Update on the Abductions in Haiti

YVENS RUMBOLD, DIRECTOR OF COMMUNICATIONS, POLICITE: We were surprised, but also we think it may be political. There may be political motives behind that, too. So, there have been a lot of people saying, well, of course, they don`t know why they`re being kidnapped, the Americans and the Canadians have been kidnapped. But there are people will think that such act, striking act, is maybe a force — waiting for the hands of the Americans to intervene. But they think the act…

BIANNA GOLODRYGA: Well…

RUMBOLD: Yes, you were saying?

GOLODRYGA: Yes, I was just going to say we know that it is U.S. policy to not pay these ransoms, just because obviously the impact that could have for further kidnappings and future kidnappings. But I think this is an important moment to highlight, while there may be these 17 American and Westerners who were kidnapped, this is happening on a daily basis throughout Haiti. The kidnappings spiked 300 percent since just July. What is the sense for everyday Haitians there who are just trying to go about their lives, schoolchildren trying to go to school, family members trying to go to work?

RUMBOLD: People are afraid. Like, myself, my friends — I have one of my close friends, he has been kidnapped two weeks ago, and he was kidnapped in my car while I was in the neighborhood where we together used to go to just have a beer. Yes, people are afraid of going out. Like, my friends and my colleagues, my family, they don`t want me to go outside. And I was in the States last month. And people didn`t want me to come back. They — when I came back, they were surprised. Like, why did you come? I mean, of course, there is this understanding that if you are outside of Haiti, you should stay outside of it, because things are really messy here. But at the same time, you cannot leave the country and leave it in this mess situation, because you need to take care of your own. We are 12 million people on the ground, but we need to gather, and try to come up with solutions to the situation. So, right now, I mean, I think the people are afraid, but, also, they don`t have trust in the police. We don`t have a huge number of police officers, Bianna. The average police-to-civilian ratio is worldwide one to 450 people, maybe 2.25 police officers for every 1,000 people. But, in Haiti, this ratio is 1.3, 1.3 to 1,000 inhabitant.