Port-au-Prince, Haiti, CMC -The Episcopal Conference of Haiti (CEH) says it hopes that next year’s elections in Haiti will be “democratic, inclusive and transparent” and begin the process of healing in the French-speaking Caribbean Community (CARICOM) country.
“As for the elections, which we hope will be democratic, inclusive, and transparent, they will only be so if the state authorities work tirelessly to establish a secure environment throughout the country,” the Roman Catholic Bishops said in the traditional Christmas message released here.
“Security is the priority for organising well-prepared elections. While we speak, it is incumbent upon national and international actors to expedite the actions necessary to create this essential condition for holding general elections.”
The Bishops quoted Pope Leo XIV as saying the path to peace requires hearts trained to recognize the common good.
“On the road that must lead us to peace, and in the elections, we call for a new kind of leadership, one based on integrity, service, and selflessness. Authentic civic engagement can take the form of martyrdom, not through physical death, but through the costly truth and the courage to relinquish privileges to serve the people.
“Haiti needs men and women capable of renouncing corruption, resisting easy money, refusing the manipulation of the masses, and becoming servants of the common good. It is therefore urgent to make democratic institutions functional and to work toward building a state where order, justice, and peace prevail,” the Bishops added.
They are urging all stakeholders, including political leaders, social actors, and public and private institutions, to rise above partisan interests and prioritise peace, life, and respect for human dignity.
“May no decision, no word, and no action plunge our country further into violence or chaos,” they said, adding that with the Christmas and New Year holidays approaching, the population should be contemplating the mystery of the Incarnation “with our gaze turned toward our suffering people, journeying through the night of uncertainty and pain”.
They reminded the country to remember that most holy night when the angels proclaimed the good news of the birth of the Savior, adding,” We, your Catholic Bishops of Haiti, wish to send you a joyful message of peace, love, and Hope.
“We want this Christmas 2025 and New Year 2026 message to reach you in your dignity and your capacity to rise again, always achieving unexpected feats,” they said, adding that Jesus Christ was “born in the shadow of poverty, in a dark manger, without finding a home or a welcoming land in the heart of a suffering world.
“This image is a parable that resonates deeply with us where we are. The mystery of the Incarnation of the Son of God opens us to hope, particularly in this Jubilee Year of Hope, which is drawing to a close.
“Indeed, the incarnate Son of God fulfills God’s promise to give his people and all humanity a savior and a hope. The incarnate Son of God thus becomes our Hope. This promise is also for us, the Haitian people. We await its full realisation in our history and in our lives as a people who have suffered.”
Criminal gangs have been seeking to overthrow the interim government in Haiti ever since the July 7, 2021, assassination of PresidentJovenel Moise, and according to the United Nations, thousands of people, including womenand children, have been killed or forced to flee their homes as the gangs take control of most of the capital, Port-au-Prince.
The United Nations Security Council last September approved a resolution establishing a Gang Suppression Force (GSF) to replace the Kenya-led Multinational Security Support (MSS) mission, and is expected to reach a force of 5,500 police and military personnel eventually.
In their message, the Bishops say as pastors, they “cannot turn our gaze away from the human tragedy our people are experiencing.
“It challenges us and urges us to call for Hope, not as naive optimism, nor as a denial of difficult realities, but as responsible action grounded in faith and a sincere search for lasting solutions. As ‘Pilgrims of Hope’ we are not merely spectators of a distant monotony; we are active participants in a journey toward a better tomorrow.”
They said the trials the country is enduring have deeply wounded the collective soul,” but in the darkest hours, the Christian faith invites us to lift our eyes to the One who is coming, the light of the nations.
They said the coming of Jesus Christ “disarms hearts and opens a path of light in the midst of the night.
“ It is precisely this light that allows us, even today, to believe that the night will never be the final act of our story. God loves us all, and evil will not prevail.
”Therefore, we invite everyone, according to their vocation and responsibility, to become artisans of peace: priests, religious men and women, lay people, young people, and adults. May each be a ray of love and a sign of fraternity in the midst of our current difficulties.”
The Bishops said that the recent example of the national football team’s qualification for the World Cup next year “ shows us that, even in adversity, our people possess a remarkable capacity for resilience when they choose unity and solidarity.
“This success reminds us that no darkness is invincible.”
They said, faced with the glaring limitations of state institutions, the security emergency, and the structural violence that undermines society, “we call upon all the vital forces of the Nation—namely, political leaders, social actors, and public and private institutions—to rise above partisan interests and prioritize peace, life, and respect for human dignity.
The Bishops said based on the principle that the Constitution is the ‘law of laws’ regarding the organization of power and sits at the top of the hierarchy of norms concerning legal stability, thus offering a stability that contrasts sharply with chaos, “we urge all political actors to be guided by the 1987 Constitution and to follow the fruitful Haitian tradition on the eve of February 7, 2026, the date marking the end of the mandate of the Presidential Transitional Council (CPT).
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