Overview:
A medical student was shot during a second protest demanding the relocation of Haiti’s largest public hospital, which remains closed because of gang violence.
PORT-AU-PRINCE — A medical student was shot during a protest Wednesday as students renewed demands for the relocation of Haiti’s largest public hospital, saying government officials have failed to deliver on promises made after an earlier demonstration.
Milot Exantus, a student at the Faculty of Medicine and Pharmacy of the State University of Haiti (UEH), was shot in the right arm during the July 1 march. Fellow students said his condition was stable.
The shooting occurred during the students’ second demonstration in less than two weeks calling for the relocation and reopening of the State University Hospital of Haiti, commonly known as the General Hospital. The facility, Haiti’s largest public teaching hospital, has remained largely inoperable after repeated gang attacks left the surrounding downtown Port-au-Prince area under the control of armed groups.
“We will continue taking to the streets until our demands are met.”
Student protesters from the Faculty of Medicine and Pharmacy
The protests underscore the deepening impact of Haiti’s security crisis on the country’s already fragile health care system. With the General Hospital effectively closed, hundreds of medical and nursing students have been unable to complete required clinical training while thousands of patients have lost access to one of Haiti’s principal public health facilities. Students say government promises to temporarily relocate the hospital have yet to materialize despite repeated commitments from the Ministry of Public Health and Population.
The protesters began their march at the UEH rectorate on Rue Rivière before making their way along Bourdon Road toward the Office of Prime Minister Alix Didier Fils-Aimé in Musseau.
Carrying placards, they called for the immediate reopening of the hospital and demanded that Health Minister Sinal Bertrand fulfill commitments to relocate the facility so students can resume internships interrupted by the ongoing crisis.
“We want to complete our internships, and we ask for the General Hospital,” demonstrators chanted as they marched through the capital.
The protest turned violent when gunfire erupted.
Students accused occupants of a green Nissan Pathfinder bearing license plate AA-13359 of opening fire on the crowd before fleeing the area.
No arrests were immediately reported, and authorities had not publicly commented on the shooting by publication time.
Despite the attack, demonstrators vowed to continue protesting until the government responds to their demands.
The latest incident follows an earlier peaceful march in late June, during which police dispersed protesters with tear gas after students attempted to deliver their demands to the prime minister’s office.
The closing of the University Hospital of Haiti (HUEH) has disrupted access to healthcare and training of future doctors.
They demand that authorities take concrete action to relocate the General Hospital and restore medical training and health services.
“[We will] simply maintain the mobilization in the streets until we obtain the relocation of all 13 departments of the General Hospital, so that we can receive proper clinical training and the population can also benefit from healthcare services,” Exantus told The Haitian Times ahead of the July 1 protest.
