17 Missionaries kidnapped in Haiti
A group of 17 Christian missionaries from the U.S. and Canada are still being held outside a suburb in Haiti’s capital Port-au-Prince after a notorious and powerful gang, the “400 Mawazo”, kidnapped them following a visit to the Maison La Providence de Dieu orphanage over the weekend.
According to what Haitian Justice Minister Liszt Quitel first told The Wall Street Journal, the gang is asking for a ransom of US$17 million – 1 million for each person held – for the group’s release. The Minister also confirmed to CNN that the missionaries were at an unknown location outside the suburb of Croix-des-Bouquets, north of the city.
The Minister explained that the kidnappers first called Christian Aid Ministries, the organization the abducted missionaries belong to, last Saturday to ask for the staggering ransom. He added that since then there had been several calls between the kidnappers and the missionary organization based in Ohio.
Christian Aid Ministries said the group of hostages consists of 16 U.S. citizens and one Canadian, for a total of five men, seven women, and five children ages 3, 6, 14, and 15 years old. There is also a baby among those abducted.
According to the BBC, the missionaries returned from their visit to the orphanage “when the gang members seized the bus they were traveling in on the main road in Ganthier, east of the Haitian capital.”
The Washington Post newspaper said that one of the missionaries abducted managed to send a WhatsApp message asking for help. “Please pray for us!! We are being held hostage; they kidnapped our driver. Pray, pray, pray. We don’t know where they’re taking us”, the message said.
In a statement released on Monday, Christian Aid Ministries said the organization continues to monitor the situation in Haiti and is “in earnest prayer.”
“Join us in praying for those who are being held hostage, the kidnappers and the families, friends, and churches of those affected,” the Christian organizations said in their statement. “As an organization, we commit this situation to God and trust him to see us through.”
In Haiti, gangs have taken over entire communities where they have total control, and residents live in constant fear.
According to data released by BBC Monitoring, there are 162 gangs reportedly active in the country; the number of gang members is 3000. In addition, it is estimated that 20,000 Haitians have fled their homes due to gang violence.
