Journalists in Haiti are risking their lives, contending with censorship, and overcoming personal hardships as they document the deterioration of the nation’s capital and its surroundings.

Jean-Jacques Asperges is a radio journalist operating in one of the globe’s perilous regions for reporting.

Presently, Asperges, his wife, and their two children are obliged to sleep on the floor in a squalid and overcrowded improvised shelter, alongside thousands of other Haitians who have also become homeless due to gang violence.

The shelter is constantly threatened by flooding.

“I now document the leaking of rain and share it on social media to show what we endure. That’s how I contribute,” reported Asperges.

Having lost all his professional equipment, Asperges is reliant only on his phone. He remains resolute, alongside dozens of other journalists in Haiti who are facing attacks like never before, due to a surge in violence attributed to powerful gangs controlling 85% of Port-au-Prince.

In March, heavily armed gangs targeted at least three television and radio stations. These buildings were already abandoned due to previous violence, but gunmen still stole any equipment left behind.

The Nouvelliste, the oldest independent newspaper in Haiti, had to leave its downtown printing presses due to gang occupation of the area.

“We had to move from downtown because of the constant gunfire,” stated Max Chauvet, the operations director at Le Nouvelliste, the oldest independent newspaper in Haiti.

Gangs sent a more ominous message on Christmas Eve, firing on journalists covering the ill-fated reopening of Haiti’s largest public hospital. They claimed that the reopening had not been authorized.

Two journalists were killed and at least seven others were injured, including Asperges, who was shot in the stomach. This marked the most severe assault on journalists in Haiti in recent history.

Haitians are increasingly skeptical of the media, accusing local journalists of working for gangs.

Gang members are also using social media to threaten journalists.

One gang leader threatened to kidnap radio reporters to silence them indefinitely, while another ominously warned a talk show host from outside Haiti that returning to the country would be his last.

In response, the Haiti Online Media Collective has advised journalists not to cover incidents involving armed groups.

“We issued a notice advising journalists to avoid areas with gang activity,” said Obest Dimanche, the collective’s spokesperson.

However, most journalists disregard this advice given the continuous gang attacks in the capital and other regions.

They travel in groups and zip across Port-au-Prince’s neighborhoods on motorcycles, dodging shots fired in unison when gunfire erupts.

At day’s end, they check in with each other to ensure everyone returned home safely.

Gangs are estimated to control about 85% of Port-au-Prince and continue launching attacks to claim more territory.

Jean Daniel Sénat, a journalist at Le Nouvelliste and Magik9 radio station, regrets that journalists no longer have access to many of the capital’s neighborhoods due to gang violence: “The biggest hurdle is not being able to move around freely. To report in the city without access to neighborhood information.”

On March 13, Haiti’s prime minister condemned the attack on the building housing Radio et Télévision Caraïbes, the country’s oldest radio station, and vowed to protect media outlets.

“It was another effort to silence the press and the population’s cry for social justice,” stated Richecarde Celestin, a radio journalist at Télévision Caraïbes.

Established in 1949, the station has covered Haiti’s tumultuous history – its coups, dictatorships, and the first democratic elections. The station’s former headquarters on Rue Chavannes was regarded as a “heritage monument” by those who worked there.

According to UNESCO, at least 21 journalists were reported killed from 2000 to 2022 in Haiti, with nine killed in 2022, making it the most deadly year for Haitian journalism in recent history.

The New York-based Committee to Protect Journalists reported one journalist killed in 2023 and two more in 2024.

Other journalists have fled Haiti, where attacks and killings are rarely investigated.

Haiti stands as the country least likely to see justice for journalists’ slayings, according to a 2024 CPJ report.

Seven killings remain unsolved since 2019.