Johnson Smith urges Haiti to respect Feb 7 red line on transition amid council turmoil
Published:Tuesday | February 3, 2026 | 12:15 AMKimone Francis/Senior Staff Reporter
Days before Haiti’s transitional government is set to expire, Foreign Affairs Minister Kamina Johnson Smith has warned that any move away from the February 7 deadline would risk further fragmentation, insisting that the agreed-upon date must be the final day for the current council.
Deep-seated infighting within the country’s Transitional Presidential Council (TPC) has reached a breaking point, with a majority of the council voting to fire Prime Minister Alix Didier Fils-Aimé on January 21, weeks before the body’s own mandate is set to expire on February 7.
“We are deeply concerned,” Johnson Smith told journalists at the International Economic Forum in Panama City last week.
“Fragmentation at this time is the last thing that is needed. What is needed is a clear recognition that February 7th was agreed, after deep stakeholder engagement, to be the final day of existence of the Transitional Presidential Council. And the need to move immediately to a clear mechanism or clear leadership that will deliver elections and continue the stable leadership that has been delivered under the presidency, in the TPC of President [Laurent] Saint-Cyr, and Prime Minister Fils-Aimé, as a combined effort, that that is something that does seem to bode well for Haiti,” she added.
Her comments follow a statement issued by CARICOM, which called for Haitian leaders to halt the “fragmentation” that regional leaders say serves only to empower the French-speaking nation’s marauding gangs.
Noting that the council’s mandate must end as scheduled, the regional bloc urged stakeholders to abandon the current political impasse and prioritise a consensus-driven path towards elections.
In a sharp rebuke of the internal power struggles, the regional body said: “The current impasse within the Haitian Transitional Presidential Council, following the inconclusive efforts of some members to dismiss the prime minister, renders more complex an already-fraught governance transition process. Meanwhile, the people of Haiti continue to suffer unimaginable violence and deprivation. This is unacceptable. It is crucial that stakeholders put aside differences to reach consensus.”
Political turmoil and gang violence have intensified the guns-for-drugs trade in Haiti and has fuelled a human-smuggling market, directly challenging Jamaica’s border security and straining national resources amid a rise in irregular arrivals.
Last week, 31 Haitians – 23 males and eight females – were found in a house in Kitson Town, St Catherine, following a police operation.
In December 2025, 29 Haitians were found in an Airbnb in Portmore, with many having overstayed their allotted transit time.
Johnson Smith said a clear mechanism and leadership are needed that will deliver elections and continue the stable leadership that has been delivered under the presidency of Saint-Cyr, and Fils-Aimé, through a combined effort.
“That is something that does seem to bode well for Haiti. And to disrupt that at this time might not be in the best interest, but we continue to engage through the EPG (Eminent Persons Group),” she said.
The council, established in April 2024 following the resignation of Prime Minister Ariel Henry, had a mandate to organise free and fair elections.
The legal framework governing this transition explicitly set February 7, 2026 as the date a new, democratically elected president was supposed to be sworn into office.
With no elected successor ready, the council’s legal authority to rule effectively expires on Saturday, creating a power vacuum that many fear will lead to further unrest.
Several members of the council are seeking to extend their mandate, arguing that this is to maintain order, eventually holding elections in late 2026 or 2027.
However, critics argue that because the council failed in its primary mission, it loses legitimacy on February 7.
Some have called for a Supreme Court judge to take over as a provisional president, a move that has historical precedent but is currently legally disputed.
The United States and other international partners have recently taken a hard line, underscoring that the transition’s timeline is non-negotiable, even as they support Fils-Aimé to keep the government functioning.