Haiti’s Church is key target for gangs, says bishop

HAITI’S gangs are trying to silence the Church as it remains the last institution challenging their stranglehold, a bishop has warned as worsening violence pushes back elections.

Bishop Joseph Gontrand Décoste of Jérémie told Catholic charity Aid to the Church in Need (ACN): “We are the last remaining bulkhead – moral, ethical, spiritual and prophetic… That is why they want to eliminate us.”

Legislative and presidential elections, due to take place on 30th August, have been postponed until December. They would be the first national elections since the assassination of President Jovenel Moïse in 2021. 

But Church sources warn that voting remains uncertain while gangs control large parts of the country.

Armed gangs now control between 70 and 90 percent of the capital, Port-au-Prince, as well as areas of Artibonite and Centre, collecting illegal tolls and forcing parishes, schools and religious institutions to close.

The impact on Church life has been severe. In Port-au-Prince, 40 parishes have had to close, with around 15 more shut in the central plateau and 10 in Artibonite. Catholic schools and religious houses have also been attacked, burned, or seized and turned into gang bases.

Religious and clergy have also been directly targeted. In the first seven months of 2026, one seminarian was murdered and two priests were kidnapped; 

On 31st March 2025, Sisters Evanette and Jeanne of the Little Sisters of Saint Thérèse of the Child Jesus were killed by armed gangs while on mission in Mirebalais, central Haiti. And in 2024, nine religious Sisters, five brothers and four priests were abducted.

Despite the danger, Bishop Décoste said the Church continues to support people through pastoral care, prayer, radio broadcasts, online teaching and practical help for thousands of internally displaced Haitians.

He said: “We keep praying, singing and dancing. In Haiti we say: ‘As long as they haven’t cut off our head, we still have hope of wearing a hat.’ That is why we never lose hope.”

Bishop Décoste thanked ACN benefactors for their support, saying: “This capacity for resilience is possible thanks to the great support we feel from organisations like Aid to the Church in Need. 

“Your prayers sustain us enormously; without them we could not carry on. Thank you very much from the bottom of my heart.”

With thanks to Amelie Berthelin