United Nations Security Council Resolution 2700 – The question concerning Haiti (Haiti sanctions)

Resolution 2700 (2023)

The Security Council,

Reaffirming its strong commitment to the sovereignty, independence, territorial integrity and unity of Haiti,

Recalling all its previous resolutions on Haiti, in particular its resolutions 2653 (2022), 2692 (2023), and 2699 (2023),

Noting with deep concern the protracted and deteriorating political, institutional, economic, security, human rights, humanitarian and food security crises in Haiti, and reaffirming its commitment to continue to support the people of Haiti,

Recognizing that exclusion and inequality have an impact as aggravating factors in the situation concerning Haiti,

Stressing the primary responsibility of the Government of Haiti to address longstanding drivers of instability and inequality,

Reiterating the need for all Haitian stakeholders, including with the UN Integrated Office in Haiti’s (BINUH) support to continue to facilitate a Haitian -led, Haitian-owned political process to permit the organization of free and fair legislative and presidential elections, conducted through a credible process, and with the full, equal, meaningful, and safe participation of women and the engagement of youth, civil society, and other relevant stakeholders through an inclusive inter-Haitian national dialogue, and underscoring that all Haitian stakeholders should urgently reach an agreement on a sustainable, time-bound and commonly accepted roadmap for elections and that the Government of Haiti should provide an update on the political process,

Expressing grave concern about the extremely high levels of gang violence and other criminal activities, including kidnappings, trafficking in persons and the smuggling of migrants, and homicides, and sexual and gender-based violence, including rape and sexual slavery, as well as ongoing impunity for perpetrators, corruption and recruitment of children by gangs and the implications of Haiti’s situation for the region,

Expressing deep concern that illicit trafficking and diversion of small arms, light weapons, and ammunition to armed gangs in Haiti, that engage in persistent and destabilizing criminal activities, contributes to undermining the rule of law and respect for human rights, can impede the provision of humanitarian assistance, and can have wide ranging negative humanitarian and socioeconomic consequences,

Encouraging cooperation between Member States to prevent illicit arms trafficking and diversion, including through providing and exchanging timely and upto date information in order to identify and combat illicit trafficking sources and supply chains,

Acknowledging the urgent need to address the illicit financial flows to Haiti which enable armed gangs to operate and pose a growing threat to the country’s stability, including by prioritizing breaking links between political and economic actors and gangs,

Expressing concern about the Haitian National Police’s (HNP) lack of access to vital ports which are largely under the control of gangs, and further demanding to stop any occupation of ports and fuel terminals by gangs,

Taking note with appreciation of the visit of the Chair of the Committee established pursuant to resolution 2653 (2022) (the Committee), Permanent Representative of Gabon to the United Nations, Ambassador Michel Xavier Biang, to Haiti from 12 to 13 June 2023 and the Dominican Republic from 14 to 16 June 2023,

Welcoming the letter dated 2 October 2023, reference: S/AC.60/2023/OC.6, from the Chair of the Committee to the Security Council with three recommendations proposed by the Panel of Experts to the Council,

Welcoming the launch of technical programmes by the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) to assist national authorities to promote border and ports control, trace illicit financial flows, collaborate across borders to combat transnational crime, corruption, and drug and arms trafficking, including through the UNODC-World Customs Organization (WCO) Container Control Programme in Haiti and border management programmes, and further welcoming the Caribbean Community’s (CARICOM) regional roadmap to combat the trafficking of firearms,

Recognizing the important role of neighboring countries, regional and subregional organizations such as CARICOM, and other international partners,

Condemning attacks on and kidnappings of UN personnel, violence against diplomatic premises, and the looting of humanitarian aid, and recalling that the primary responsibility for the safety and security of UN personnel and assets rests with the host state,

Calling upon all actors in Haiti to issue clear orders prohibiting all human rights violations and abuses, and underscoring the necessity for all actors to ensure immediate, safe and unhindered access by humanitarian organizations,

Expressing deep concern about the detrimental effect of corruption and misuse of public funds on the Government of Haiti’s ability to provide services to its population,

Stressing that the measures imposed by this resolution are not intended to have adverse humanitarian consequences for the civilian population of Haiti, and recalling resolution 2664 (2022), and emphasizing the importance of rapid, safe and unhindered humanitarian access throughout Haiti, in a manner consistent with relevant provisions of international law and in line the humanitarian principles of humanity, impartiality, neutrality and independence,

Recognizing the need to continuously strengthen due process and to ensure that fair and clear procedures exist for delisting individuals and entities designated pursuant to resolution 2653 (2022), further recognizing the role of UN sanctions in conflict resolution and maintaining international peace and security, and emphasizing that the timing of sanctions relief is a key part of such efforts,

Determining that the situation in Haiti continues to constitute a threat to international peace and security in the region,

Acting under Chapter VII of the Charter of the United Nations,

1. Demands an immediate cessation of violence, criminal activities, and human rights abuses which undermine the peace, stability and security of Haiti and the region, including kidnappings, sexual and gender-based violence, trafficking in persons and the smuggling of migrants, and homicides, extrajudicial killings and recruitment of children by armed groups and criminal networks;

2. Urges all political actors to constructively engage in meaningful negotiations to overcome the current political stalemate in order to allow the holding of inclusive, free and fair legislative and presidential elections, as soon as the local security situation permits;

Travel Ban and Asset Freeze

3. Decides to renew until one year from the date of adoption of this resolution the measures imposed by paragraphs 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, and 9 of resolution 2653 (2022), reaffirms resolution 2664 (2022), and affirms that paragraphs 15 and 16 of resolution 2653 (2022) shall continue to apply;

4. Directs the Committee to consider expeditiously the update of the list of individuals and entities designated pursuant to resolution 2653 (2022), taking into account the reports submitted by the Panel of Experts;

5. Expresses its intention to support the further development of fair and clear procedures for individuals and entities designated pursuant to resolution 2653 (2022), including through the Focal Point for Delisting established by resolution 1730 (2006);

Arms Embargo

6. Reaffirms paragraph 14 of resolution 2699 (2023), which decided that all Member States shall take the necessary measures to prevent the direct or indirect supply, sale, or transfer to Haiti, from or through their territories or by their nationals, or using their flag vessels or aircraft, of small arms, light weapons, and ammunition, and further decided that this measure shall not apply to:

(a) The supply, sale, or transfer of small arms, light weapons, or ammunition to the UN or a UN-authorized mission or to a security unit that operates under the command of the Government of Haiti, intended to be used by or in coordination with those entities and intended solely to further the objectives of peace and stability in Haiti;

(b) Other supplies, sales, or transfers of small arms, light weapons, and ammunition to Haiti as approved in advance by the Committee established pursuant to resolution 2653 (2022) to further the objectives of peace and stability in Haiti;

7. Decides to extend the measure described in paragraph 6 of this resolution until one year from the date of adoption of this resolution;

8. Decides that Member States shall take appropriate steps to prevent the illicit trafficking and diversion of small arms, light weapons, and ammunition in Haiti;

9. Affirms that the exemption contained in paragraph 6 (a) of this resolution applies to, inter alia, the UN, BINUH, the Multinational Security Support (MSS) Mission authorized by resolution 2699 (2023), the HNP, and the Armed Forces of Haiti;

10. Encourages Member States to ensure adequate marking and recordkeeping measures are in place to trace arms, including small arms and light weapons, in accordance with the international and regional instruments to which they are parties, and to consider how best to assist, where relevant and upon their request, neighboring countries in preventing and detecting illicit trafficking and diversion in violation of measures imposed in paragraphs 6–7 of this resolution;

11. Calls upon all States, in particular countries in the region, to inspect, in accordance with their national authorities and legislation, and consistent with international law, all cargo to Haiti in their territory, including seaports and airports, if the State concerned has information that provides reasonable grounds to believe the cargo contains items the supply, sale, or transfer of which is prohibited by paragraphs 6–7 of this resolution, and to submit a written report to the Committee if such inspections result in the seizure of such items, and to invite the Panel of Experts established pursuant to resolution 2653 (2022) to inspect the seized items;

12. Encourages regional land, air, and maritime cooperation, as applicable, to detect and prevent violations of measures imposed in paragraphs 6–7 of this resolution, as well as to report cases of violations in a timely manner to the Committee;

13. Encourages the Government of Haiti to reinforce the weapons and ammunition management capacity of the HNP through proper marking, recordkeeping, storage, and disposal of their stockpiles of weapons and ammunition, as well as of seized weapons and ammunition;

14. Calls upon the MSS mission to implement weapons and ammunition management processes and oversight mechanisms for their weapons and ammunition, and further calls upon the MSS Mission to report any diversion of weapons and ammunition, including through loss and theft, to the Panel of Experts established pursuant to resolution 2653 (2022);

15. Further calls upon the MSS Mission to cooperate with the Government of Haiti’s efforts to reinforce their weapons and ammunition management, as appropriate;

16. Demands that States ensure that all measures taken by them to implement this resolution comply with their obligations under international law, including international humanitarian law, international human rights law and international refugee law, as applicable;

17. Calls upon Member States to protect Haitian refugees and migrants in their territories in accordance with international human rights law;

Sanctions Committee and Panel of Experts

18. Decides that the mandate of the Committee, as set out in paragraph 19 of resolution 2653 (2022), shall apply with respect to the measures imposed in this resolution;

19. Decides to extend for a period of 13 months from the date of adoption of this resolution the mandate of the Panel of Experts, as specified in paragraph 21 of resolution 2653 (2022), and further decides that this mandate shall also apply with respect to the measures imposed in this resolution;

20. Requests that the Panel of Experts provide to the Security Council, after discussion with the Committee, an interim report by 29 March 2024, a final report no later than 1 October 2024, and periodic updates in between;

21. Directs the Panel to cooperate with BINUH, the UNODC, CARICOM, and relevant expert groups established by the Security Council to support the work of its Sanctions Committees;

22. Urges all parties and all Member States, as well as international, regional and subregional organizations, and the MSS Mission to ensure cooperation with the Panel of Experts and further urges all Member States involved to ensure the safety of the members of the Panel of Experts and unhindered access, in particular to persons, documents and sites in order for the Panel to execute its mandate;

23. Notes that the selection process of the experts composing the Panel should prioritize appointing individuals with the strongest qualifications to fulfill the duties described above while paying due regard to the importance of regional and gender representation in the recruitment process;

Review

24. Affirms that it shall keep the situation in Haiti under continuous review and that it shall be prepared to review the appropriateness of the measures contained in this resolution, including the strengthening, modification, suspension or lifting of the measures, as may be needed at any time in light of progress achieved on the following key benchmarks:

(a) When the Government of Haiti has developed adequate judicial and rule of law capacity to address armed groups and criminal-related activities;

(b) Progressive reduction in the amount of violence committed by armed groups and criminal networks, including the number of intentional homicides, kidnappings and incidents of sexual and gender-based violence, as measured on an annual basis, beginning over the initial period of twelve months from adoption of this resolution;

(c) Progressive decrease in the number of incidents of illicit trafficking and diversion of arms, as well as illicit financial flows there from, including by increasing the number and volume of arms seizures;

25. Requests in this regard the Secretary-General, in close coordination with the Panel of Experts, to conduct, no later than 1 October 2024, an assessment of progress achieved on the key benchmarks established in the paragraph above;

26. Invites the UNODC to work with BINUH and the Panel of Experts, as appropriate, and to report to the Committee on recommendations to stem illicit financial flows and trafficking and diversion of arms in Haiti, and recalls paragraph 9 of resolution 2692 (2023), which requested that UNODC report to the Security Council every three months, concurrent with the reporting cycle of BINUH, through the Secretary General;

27. Decides to remain actively seized of the matter.

Adopted by the Security Council at its 9444th meeting, on 19 October 2023.