PORT-AUH-PRINCE, Haiti (AFP) — Haiti, which has been engulfed by years of gang violence and political chaos, has indefinitely postponed elections due to be held later this year, officials said Tuesday.

Haiti has not held elections since 2016, and its last president, assassinated in 2021, has not been replaced.

The first round of presidential and legislative elections was set for December 13, and the second round for February 21, 2027.

“The period originally scheduled for the electoral campaign has been postponed,” the Provisional Electoral Council’s statement said, omitting any mention of a new election date and adding that the timetable “will be made public as soon as possible.”

The council says the schedule will be updated to take into account the “technical and operational requirements of the process, as well as the conditions necessary for the proper conduct of the various stages.”

It adds, however, that voter registration is continuing.

A member of the electoral council, speaking to AFP on the condition of anonymity, confirmed that “the December 13 date no longer stands,” adding that “we are working on a new timetable.”

Holding elections has been seen a crucial step to stabilizing the Haitian government and tackling rampant gang crime.

– Engulfed by violence –

The Caribbean country, the poorest in the Americas, has long faced a political, economic and security crisis, but the situation has deteriorated in recent years as gangs step up killings, kidnappings, rape and child recruitment.

Of its approximately 11 million inhabitants, nearly 1.5 million are internally displaced by violence, according to the International Organization for Migration, which stressed that attacks were not confined to the capital.

The country’s gang violence crisis has left at least 5,700 people dead or wounded this year while more than 1,000 women and girls have been raped, UN human rights chief Volker Turk said last week.

The figures, compiled by the UN mission in Haiti up to September 11, also include 230 kidnappings, though Turk said “the real figures are likely much higher.”

A UN-backed Gang Suppression Force (GSF) is being slowly deployed to assist overwhelmed local police. The mission is intended to reach 5,500 personnel but currently only has about 1,500 so far.

The GSF replaced the Kenya-led Multinational Security Support mission, which was seen as under-equipped and underfunded.

The UN Security Council late last month approved a six-month extension of the mandate for the GSF with the resolution authorizing it, emphasizing “the importance of ensuring security conditions conducive to holding free and fair elections.”