By Brian Ellsworth
(Reuters) – The United Nations on Thursday called for the creation of a “humanitarian corridor” in Haiti that would allow the distribution of fuel amid dire shortages created by a gang blockade of the country’s principal fuel terminal.
Gangs last month blocked the entrance to the Varreux fuel terminal to protest Prime Minister Ariel Henry’s announcement of a cut in fuel subsidies, paralyzing Haiti’s economy as supplies of gasoline and diesel dried up.
Haitians also face a shortage of drinking water amid an unexpected outbreak of cholera, the spread of which is controlled through hygiene and clean water.
“The blocking of the Varreux Terminal, the main entry point for fuel in Haiti, has led to the closure of health centers over the last weeks now, and caused the interruption of water treatment services and private treated water production and distribution companies,” wrote the UN Resident and Humanitarian Coordinator Office in Haiti in a statement.
The agency called for “the immediate opening of a humanitarian corridor to allow the release of fuel to meet the urgent needs of the population.”
Such an arrangement would likely require reaching a deal with gangs to allow fuel trucks through. Gang leaders have not yet signaled willingness to do so.
Henry on Wednesday made a broad plea to the international community to help the situation in Haiti, where vast portions of the country are under the control of gangs.
U.S. lawmakers last week said the United States should sanction Haitian gangs and those who help finance them.
(Reporting by Brian Ellsworth in Caracas; Editing by Bernadette Baum)
