Overview:
Senior Haitian journalist and Radio Kiskeya director Marvel Dandin said he is safe after armed men attacked his home in Thomassin, Pétion-Ville, early March 12. At least seven gunmen fired shots and tried to force their way inside for nearly 45 minutes before being repelled by occupants and alerted neighbors. Dandin said he does not know the motive but believes the attackers knew exactly whose home they were targeting, and he called for a stronger police presence in a neighborhood already affected by violent crime.
PORT-AU-PRINCE — Renowned veteran journalist Marvel Dandin said he is safe now after gunmen attacked his home early Thursday morning, firing shots and trying to force their way inside during a nearly hour-long assault.
Dandin, director general of Radio Kiskeya, said at least seven men armed with 9mm firearms tried to break into his residence in the Soisson area of Thomassin on the early morning of March 12.
“I believe these individuals knew exactly where they were going. They knew whose home they were entering and where they would need to try to gain access,” Dandin said on local Radio Métropole. “I cannot rule out the possibility that it was a targeted attack, though it is unclear whether the motive was kidnapping or something else.”
The attackers fired toward the house during the attack, which lasted at least 45 minutes. They attempted to force open a metal door and breach walls before being repelled by resistance from inside the home and the rapid mobilization of neighbors, Dandin said. Police later arrived at the scene, putting the entire neighborhood on high alert as gunfire echoed through the area.
“I don’t know exactly what the objective of this attack was, but the individuals were doing everything they could to get into my home,” Dandin, the host of the radio show “Di m, ma di w” on Radio Kiskeya, said. “Despite the resistance they encountered from inside the house, they persisted and were determined to force open the door leading to my apartment in the building.”
The attack comes amid escalating insecurity in Haiti, where armed groups have targeted homes, businesses, and public figures, including journalists.
Dandin said his neighborhood has seen several violent incidents in recent years, including an attempted kidnapping of a woman and the abduction of a child, before the incident he experienced. He calls for increased patrols by the Haitian National Police as he stays vigilant and is concerned about whether these armed bandits will leave him alone.
“Today it’s my turn, but I don’t know whether they are done with me or if they will attack me again,” Dandin said. “Everyone is now trapped given the situation we are living through in the country.”
Journalists in Haiti have increasingly faced violence and intimidation. In March 2024, veteran journalist Lucien Jura was kidnapped from his home in Pétion-Ville and later released after a ransom payment. After his release for ransom, the leader of the gang coalition, Viv Ansanm’, Jimmy “Barbecue” Chérizier, revealed that he had asked another gang leader, Vitelhomme, an innocent man operating in Pétion-Ville, to carry out the kidnapping.
In October 2022, reporter Roberson Alphonse of Le Nouvelliste survived an assassination attempt in Delmas when gunmen shot him while he was driving to his radio program.
Dandin said he is still recovering from the attack and thanked neighbors and others who expressed support.
“I won’t pretend that the situation left me unscathed; it had a major impact, and I wouldn’t wish it on anyone,” says the renowned journalist from Kiskeya. “It’s humanly difficult to endure, especially since I’m neither a police officer nor a soldier, so some ordeals are simply not meant for me.”
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