Jimmy Chérizier, known as “Barbecue,” is the boss of the Haitian gang and has sent a dire warning to Kenya and any other foreign powers considering sending security forces to the war-torn Caribbean country.
According to ‘Barbecue,’ the 1,000 police officers that Kenya plans to send on a mission to restore peace in Haiti would be greeted with violent resistance from the gangs since they will be seen as ‘invaders’ who threaten the lives of innocent Haitians.
“If the Kenyan military or police come, whatsoever, I will consider them, aggressors. We will consider them as invaders and we do not have to collaborate with any invaders that have come to walk over our independence,” Barbecue said in an interview on Friday.
The gang leader went on to say that because the peacekeeping forces are ignorant of the history of the rivalry in Haiti, they will inadvertently ignite an already-existing conflict, leading to a massacre that would also involve innocent people.
He claims that the idea held by Kenyan police and other international organisations is that they will be fighting gangs and bandits, which prevents the gangs from engaging in communication and coming to a peaceful resolution to the dispute.
“I believe that just like I said, if Kenyans come, first of all, they will come to commit massacres in the poor communities because the oligarchs and the corrupt politicians are going to tell them where to go…they are going to enter the poor communities on the pretext that they are coming to eliminate gangs and bandits,” he explained.
Despite noting that, together with other leaders, he is willing to have a peaceful dialogue to put an end to blood-shed in the Caribbean nation, ‘Barbecue’ who posed as a ‘people’s hero’ throughout the entire interview session, seemingly blamed the political class for escalated tension.
He says that the gangs could only engage if the plight of the people was put first and that all rival parties be heard at the same level.
“We believe in dialogue, we are for dialogue, but this political class is here now is not here for dialogue because they don’t carry Haiti in their hearts the same way we do,” he stated.
“The political class say they are excluding bandits, that men with guns are not in it…we are ready for all solutions as long as Haitians are at the table. We are ready to sit and talk with everyone because we are not proud of what is happening in this country.”
This remarks by Barbecue come amidst surging deaths resulting from gang violence.
