Above: A UN police officer trains a Haitian police officer (UN Photo/Logan Abassi)

By the Caribbean Journal staff

The United Nations is urging Haitian authorities to investigate and prosecute police officers suspected of unlawful killings and torture, following two reports which raised concerns about the illegal use of force by police officers in Port-au-Prince.

The reports released by the UN’s Office of High Commissioner for Human Rights describe six incidents in which approximately 20 members of the Haitian National Police were allegedly implicated in the deaths of nine Haitians.

“Many police officers operate in what are sometimes very dangerous conditions,” the report said. “However, the security of Haitian citizens and effective law enforcement depend substantially on the Haitian National Police.”

Since 2011, MINUSTAH’s human rights section said it had received multiple reports of alleged killings committed by members of the police force, including allegations of summary executions.