The assassination of President Moïse and the political chaos that followed had direct consequences for some of Haiti’s most vulnerable children — those in state care institutions and child welfare programs that depended on government functioning and political stability to maintain their operations. The governance vacuum created by the assassination disrupted the already limited oversight that existed for orphanages, foster care arrangements, and street child programs.
Child protection organizations warned that periods of political instability in Haiti had historically been associated with increased child trafficking, as opportunistic actors took advantage of reduced oversight to move children across borders under the guise of adoption or humanitarian assistance. The assassination created exactly the kind of governance vacuum that made children in institutional care particularly vulnerable to exploitation.
The political crisis also threatened the funding and operational stability of Haitian and international NGOs that provided services for vulnerable children. Donor uncertainty about Haiti’s trajectory, combined with the security challenges of operating in an increasingly dangerous environment, led some organizations to reduce their programs or consider withdrawal — decisions with direct consequences for the children who depended on their services.
Haitian advocates for children’s rights called for child protection to be explicitly included in any political agreement or transitional governance arrangement, arguing that the welfare of children could not be treated as a secondary concern to be addressed after the political crisis was resolved. The political crisis was itself a child protection emergency that required immediate attention.