Haiti: Kidnappers demand $17 million in ransom to release American & Canadian missionaries
The 400 Mazowo gang is demanding $1 million in ransom for each of the 17 people held captive, making the total amount of $17 million.
- World News
- 2 min read
A group of missionaries from the United States and Canada were kidnapped in Haiti on Saturday. According to the Wall Street Journal, the gang that kidnapped them is demanding $1 million in ransom for each of the 17 people held captive, making the total amount of $17 million. The 400 Mazowo gang is known for kidnapping large groups of individuals and holding them for ransom. In April, they kidnapped a group of Catholic clerics.
Five men, seven women and five children are among those kidnapped and except for one Canadian, all of them are US citizens. The youngest is barely two years old. According to the BBC, the kidnapped people worked with Christian Aid Ministries, a non-profit missionary organisation established in the state of Ohio that provides shelter, food and clothes to Haitian children. One of those kidnapped, according to the Washington Post, had sent a WhatsApp message requesting assistance.
The missionaries were on their way back from a visit to an orphanage
The missionaries were on their way back from a visit to an orphanage when their bus was hijacked by gang members on a prominent road near Ganthier, east of the capital, Port-au-Prince, according to BBC. Ganthier is in the Croix-des-Bouquets neighbourhood, which is under the authority of the 400 Mazowo gang.
The US Department of State and the FBI are both supporting Haitian authorities with the investigation. The kidnappers had already made contact with Christian Aid Ministries in Haiti, according to a former field director. Republican congressman Adam Kinzinger of Illinois told CNN that the US should negotiate with the kidnappers rather than paying a ransom. He said that they need to track them down and see if they can negotiate a release without paying a ransom.
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Kidnapping is a problem in Haiti
Local unions in Haiti organised a strike on Monday in protest of rising crime rates. As public transit employees stayed at home during the strike, businesses in Port-au-Prince and other cities were closed. According to BBC, in certain areas, barricades were erected to prevent workers from crossing picket lines. Kidnapping is a problem in Haiti, which has one of the world's highest rates. According to a local civil society organisation, this year has been especially severe, with over 600 kidnappings reported in the first three quarters of 2021, compared to 231 in the same period last year.