defence and security forces during Alpha massive human rights violations, abductions Condé’s rule, telling them they would receive and generalized violence. Human rights justice. defenders and journalists were at Twelve years after 157 people were killed by heightened risk, impunity remained defence and security forces at a stadium in endemic and tens of thousands of Haitians Conakry on 28 September 2009 and over sought international protection. 100 were victims of sexual violence, the trial BACKGROUND had still not opened, even though the investigation ended in November 2017. The killing in July of Haitian president VIOLENCE AGAINST WOMEN AND GIRLS Jovenel Moïse was a shocking indicator of the massive human rights violations and violence The Office for the Protection of Gender, that Haiti has been facing for years.1 Childhood and Morals recorded 331 cases of Following an earthquake in August, the UN rape by mid-December, against 393 cases in estimated that some 800,000 people needed 2019 and 374 in 2020. Despite the assistance. As of August, the US State authorities’ and NGOs’ efforts in recent years Department advised against all travel to Haiti to promote access to justice for victims of due to “kidnapping, crime, civil unrest, and sexual violence, the practice of negotiating COVID-19”. out-of-court settlements between the HUMAN RIGHTS DEFENDERS AND suspected perpetrator and the victim continued to hinder prosecutions.1 JOURNALISTS RIGHT TO HEALTH Human rights defenders and journalists were increasingly at risk of attack and human The vaccination campaign against Covid-19 rights violations. was launched on 5 March, targeting primarily There was little progress in the investigation health workers, people over 60, people with into the killing of journalist Diego Charles, a strategic jobs, and religious leaders. reporter for Radio Vision 2000 and co- On 10 August, President Alpha Condé founder of the website Larepiblik Magazine, ordered the government to ensure that all and Antoinette Duclaire, a political and civil servants were vaccinated against human rights activist, vocal government critic Covid-19. As of 29 December, according to and co-founder of Larepiblik Magazine. They the National Agency of Health Security, were murdered just a week before President 1,983,124 people had received their first Moïse. The authorities failed to protect their vaccination, and 911,780 had received their families, who were subjected to death threats second one (out of an estimated population and intimidation.2 of around 13 million). IMPUNITY 1. “Guinea: Horrific cases of rape and murder of girls must urge Civil society organizations continued to raise authorities to strengthen their efforts to prevent and combat sexual concerns about chronic impunity and judicial violence”, 15 December dysfunction in Haiti. In April, the Observatoire Haïtien des Crimes contre l’humanité and Harvard Law HAITI School’s International Human Rights Clinic issued a report alleging Haitian government Republic of Haiti complicity in three massacres targeting Head of state and government: Ariel Henry (acting, impoverished neighbourhoods between 2018 replaced Jovenel Moïse in July) and 2020. The report pointed to evidence that the attacks, carried out by gangs, were The political and economic situation supported by state actors and alleged these continued to deteriorate, facilitating Amnesty International Report 2021/22 185