Prime Minister Ariel Henry announced his resignation via video earlier this week. The use of this medium is a second in Haiti's history. Jean-Claude Duvalier, before him, bid farewell through a prerecorded message. Ariel Henry advances down this path previously taken by other fallen leaders, convinced until the last minute of their reign of the unconditional support of the "Blanc," before reversals accompanied by phrases as sharp as a guillotine's blade. The spokesperson for the US State Department, Matthew Miller, wished for Prime Minister Henry to return to Haiti "if allowed." He did not say who should authorize the PM-president to return to his own country. The White House National Security Council's communications advisor, John Kirby, stated that he "did not know where Prime Minister Ariel Henry was," even though he was on US territory at that precise moment. Diplomatic subtlety took a serious blow. In fact, inelegance prevailed during these maneuvers of American diplomacy to oust Ariel Henry. For those who still doubt, this brutal reminder made in the USA should inspire future leaders. One does not fuss around by disposing of wrinkled napkins after the meal. The resigned Prime Minister Ariel Henry, humiliated by the Dominican head of state, Luis Abinader, after their showdown a few months earlier over the construction of the irrigation canal in Ouanaminthe, has become the laughingstock of many of his own compatriots. The fall of leaders amuses the people. It is often the case. At the worst, people sometimes say that it was better before the leader they were stoning. Ariel Henry, in de facto exile, must surely wonder what he failed to decipher in his interactions with the Americans, Canadians, and CARICOM. Did he cross a red line? Why, he, the liquid that so often took the form of the vase of his tutors' demands, is practically thrown out with the bathwater? We'll have to wait and see - if it's not classified - why and when the Americans, Caricom and other members of the international community decided that the dice were cast for Ariel Henry, who has made no progress on the political and security fronts. A Dam Has Burst However, with the Prime Minister Ariel Henry's resignation being formalized under these circumstances, a Pandora's box has been opened, a dam has burst. Since the time of military coups, Ariel Henry joins Jean Bertrand Aristide on the list of heads of the executive who resigned partly under the constraint of arms. Those of the gangs in Ariel Henry's case. The country has taken a worrying step backward to find itself as it was in the 19th century and before 1915. The rioters, the violent, the anarchists, the gangs, and their political allies have provoked chaos and forced the hand of the Americans. The gangs and political leaders proudly display their tacit alliance. Time will tell whether this alliance is temporary or whether it reflects the camaraderie between mafia circles and political circles. Without inhibition, before and after February 29, 2024, Moïse Jean Charles, Guy Philippe, Jimmy Chérizier, and their allies exhaust all registers of violence, much to the dismay of the population. This terrible alliance continues to claim power, threatening those who subscribe to the new political rules set by Caricom and the Americans. At the moment, the first phase of the second part of the transition that is intended to be put in place is very tense. Those who squabble for power are in their element. They are shedding their masks. There is also a temptation to align with the positions of the extremists, the self-proclaimed anarchists. Other politicians, more discreet, more subtle, also know that the Americans have the ability to rebalance the power dynamics at any moment. The gangs and their allies may one morning face the wrath of the population that is enduring this situation. If the responsibility for this string of failures must be shared by the extremists close to former Prime Minister Ariel Henry, by the diehards and pseudo-nationalists entrenched in the opposition thirsty for power, we must never forget these American, Canadian, UN diplomats... stationed at the bedside of a patient whose condition has never stopped deteriorating. The international community has helped the Henry government wage useful, necessary battles against forces with great capacity for harm and destabilization, without ever providing the requested security assistance. It took almost a year for the UN Security Council to approve the MMAS. Nearly six months later, this support is still in limbo. Between 2022 and 2023, the United States and Canada promised over almost $300 million in support to the PNH. American diplomats like Todd Robinson from the INL carried out several missions punctuated by ceremonies to equip the PNH. The Under Secretary of State for Western Hemisphere Affairs, Brian A. Nichol's, wore out the keys on his smartphone with his enthusiastic tweets. Canada sent officials to discuss funded projects within the framework of the $100 million Canadian announced in March 2023. The amounts committed to the support basket fund for the PNH financed things. The disbursement rate probably pleased only the fund manager. The PNH received armored vehicles, rifles... purchased by the Haitian government. But obviously, something that no one dared to name, was amiss. It took months after the execution of these activities in support of the PNH, the words, and the rugby player's kick from Helen Meagher La Lime in the anthill of security cooperation with Haiti. "We're going around in circles," revealed Helen La Lime, accused by some of having acknowledged a certain positive effect at a certain moment during the duration of the gang federation called G-9 on the perpetration of acts of violence in the metropolitan area of Port-au-Prince. In March 2023, just a year ago, Helen La Lime, whom some diplomats surely criticized, had argued that without the support of an international force, Haiti would continue to advance on the path of a "failed state," during a meeting of the "Haiti Working Group" at the OAS. On the security front, Mrs. La Lime was matter-of-fact. "There are only 9,000 officers on duty, tasked with overseeing an entire country. The gangs are so armed that the police officers stay in their stations. They don't go out to fight the gangs (...) Is there a plan, a strategy to rebuild the police force? If there were, I wouldn't be here asking for the forces we need. Haiti cannot solve this problem alone with more training. There are only 9,000 left...", indicated Helen Meagher La Lime. "Kidnappings are endemic, sexual violence occurs in Haiti at a level never seen before and rarely seen in any society. So what do we do? Yes, it's a collective effort. France provides training, the United States, through the INL, has implemented a comprehensive security program aimed at strengthening SWAT capabilities. And we, as the smallest mission, have about 20 UN police officers integrated into the national police working in different areas," enumerated Helen Meagher La Lime, who noted once again that this is not getting the job done, not in time, for it to have had, to date, a significant effect. She also highlights the limitations of the choice of funding from the basket fund, managed by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), a UN agency. The country has found no blue-clad savior. In the space of a year, the number of male and female police officers assigned to public security tasks has continued to decline. In recent months, the PNH has lost an average of 500 members per month, a well-informed source recently confided to Le Nouvelliste. In January 2023, a source close to the PNH's high command shared information that was grasped by Le Nouvelliste's editor-in-chief and editor-in-chief, Frantz Duval. Meanwhile, no one should be sending flowers to American diplomats for their handling of the Haiti issue, which risks becoming more prominent in US domestic politics in this election year. Their failure is pushing the Biden administration to consider setting up space at Guantanamo in case of a massive influx of migrants to the Florida coast. Governor Ron DeSantis has taken a strong stance, invoking a possible "invasion" and his state's right to protect its shores. His stupidity almost rivaling his great fortune, Elon Musk, uses the offensive caricature of the Haitian migrant, portrayed as a cannibal to appeal to the American right and far right. That being said, decades after decades, Haiti and its people have become a laboratory for experimenting with the worst. "Time has allowed us to see the cards, to knock down all sorts of masks, and to manufacture new ones. The choices made by everyone have cost the country dearly. The bill for failure must be presented to all operators of this catastrophe and hope, against all odds, for a respite, a bias for life, for a return to some semblance of normalcy in this country and for this population that is being dehumanized," wrote Frantz Duval in the editorial of Le Nouvelliste titled "Who Wants What Exactly?". Without mincing words, responsibility must be assigned to everyone in this string of failures. Just as a great moment of clarification, lucidity, and courage about who we are, what is unacceptable, and what is desirable is necessary to at least slow down this race towards the abyss.