Haiti’s silent exodus: Driven into the the sea in search of hope

The Haitian migrant boat phenomenon represents one of the most devastating immigration crises in Latin America and the Caribbean, with thousands of people risking their lives in flimsy vessels to escape violence, poverty and hopelessness in Haiti. However, like the country’s own crisis, it often goes unnoticed amid other global conflicts. An emblematic case of this silent tragedy is the disappearance of the rapper Wens Jonathan Désir, better known as MechansT, who, after paying $8,000 to try to reach the United States, stopped communicating with his family last July and has not been heard from since, an event that symbolizes the dangers faced by Haitians on illegal maritime routes.

According to the International Organization for Migration (IOM), at least 470 migrants died or went missing in the Caribbean in 2023, many of them Haitians. The boats, overloaded and in poor condition, cannot withstand the harsh weather conditions at sea. In July 2024, a boat carrying Haitian migrants caught fire off Cap-Haïtien, leaving 40 dead and several seriously injured. According to Grégoire Goodstein of the IOM, extreme violence and the lack of legal alternatives have led more Haitians to resort to desperate measures.

The deadly risk for Haitian migrants

The high costs of renewing passports and obtaining visas, coupled with the lack of legal alternatives for migrating, have led many Haitians to turn to human smuggling networks that promise to take them to the United States for exorbitant sums. According to statements by relatives, traffickers charge between $3,000 and $5,000 per person per trip, in a country where the minimum wage is just over $116 per month.

In an attempt to address irregular immigration, the Joe Biden administration launched a humanitarian program for Haitians, Cubans, Venezuelans, and Nicaraguans that has benefited more than 531,000 citizens of those countries, including 211,010 Haitians.

But demand far outstripped supply. And while it was helpful for many, it did not stem the growing flow of migrants. President-elect Donald Trump — a vocal critic of the system — has vowed to end it. Meanwhile, deportations rose 46% in March alone, reaching more than 13,000 Haitians that month, the last month for which IOM had data before they had to leave the country.

The implementation of humanitarian parole programs in the United States has reduced net crossings at the border, according to U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) data. An analysis by Haitian historian and migration expert Michel Soukar showed that about 75% of CBP records of Haitians were one-time encounters, suggesting that most migrants attempted to cross without authorization.

“Although not all unique encounters resulted in admissions, the numbers were similar for the countries benefiting from parole. Moreover, many migrants from these countries were able to demonstrate credible fear, facilitating their legal entry,” the historian says. His analysis concludes that parole reduced illegal crossing attempts by offering a regulated alternative and allowing a better understanding of migration patterns.

An exodus under fire

Haiti has been wracked by violence for years, with armed gangs fighting for control of the territory. In February 2024, gangs launched coordinated attacks in the capital Port-au-Prince, seizing police stations, blocking key roads and opening fire at the main airport. This escalation of violence has forced more than 700,000 Haitians to flee the country, according to UN data.

In this context, while some migration routes are closing — such as the land route for Haitians who moved to the south of the continent and headed for the United States — others have opened, such as the parole program, although this seems to have its days numbered. In 2021, 61% of migrants who crossed the Darién Gap were Haitian. By 2023, that number had dropped to 9%, while Haiti continued to face gang violence, political instability, and recurring natural disasters. Despite the decrease in Haitian migrants on this route, the impact of the country’s internal crises remained visible in other migration contexts.

In the Dominican Republic, authorities announced on October 2 a plan to deport more than 10,000 Haitians per week starting on that date, which could double the current number of expulsions in a year. So far, more than 50,000 Haitians have been reported removed from Dominican territory. According to official data, there are 495,815 Haitians in the neighboring country.

For his part, Donald Trump has called the use of humanitarian parole an “outrageous abuse” and has warned that he will expel hundreds of thousands of migrants who entered the U.S. under the programs promoted by Biden. The possible elimination of these policies is causing concern among Haitians who, in this context, are left in the middle of a rampant crisis and without a lifeline.

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