‘Should never have come to this’: What’s next as Henry steps down in Haiti?

Experts say Haitians need to lead political process after PM Henry’s resignation, as uncertainty and tensions swirl.

After nearly two weeks of heightened gang violence and instability, millions of Haitians woke up to the news that Ariel Henry has pledged to resign as the country’s prime minister.

The announcement came late on Monday after the United States urged him to step aside and usher in a transitional political process to stem the unrest.

Haitian civil society leaders welcomed the resignation of Henry, an unelected leader who was named to his post in 2021 shortly before the assassination of President Jovenel Moise, as a long overdue step.

But many are now questioning what comes next. For years, the country has been plagued by corrupt leaders, failed state institutions and violence wrought by rival armed groups, and federal elections have not been held.

“First of all, we have to say that we think this is a good thing,” Rosy Auguste Ducena, a lawyer and programme director at Haiti’s National Human Rights Defense Network (RNDDH), said of the prime minister stepping down.