Overview:
As Haiti marked 222 years of independence on Jan. 1, individuals gathered throughout the nation to share soup joumou, the normal image of freedom and solidarity. In Port-au-Prince, the Konbit Soup Joumou introduced collectively households and youth for its seventh version, at the same time as persistent insecurity as soon as once more prompted authorities to skip official celebrations in Gonaïves, the historic Metropolis of Independence.
PORT-AU-PRINCE — Round tables set beneath open skies, kids, mother and father and elders gathered to play dominoes and playing cards whereas sharing bowls of soup joumou served in conventional calabash gourds, referred to as kwi in Creole. The scene marked the seventh version of Konbit Soup Joumou, held Jan. 1 to commemorate Haiti’s 222nd anniversary of independence.
Hosted on the public highschool Lycée Nationwide de Pétion-Ville, the celebration emphasised sharing, remembrance and unity — values rooted in Haiti’s founding after the defeat of Napoleon’s forces and the declaration of independence in 1804. Regardless of widespread insecurity fueled by gangs, political uncertainty and financial hardship, the grassroots initiative as soon as once more introduced Haitians collectively round a robust nationwide image.
Organized by Gwoup Konbit, the annual occasion has expanded through the years to incorporate individuals throughout all 10 departments and within the diaspora. Soup joumou — as soon as forbidden to enslaved Africans and later embraced as the primary meal of a free individuals — was inscribed on UNESCO’s Intangible Cultural Heritage checklist in 2021.
“On Jan. 1, 2026, Haiti and its diaspora got here collectively round a deeply common image: the sharing of a bowl of soup, an act carrying reminiscence, dignity and freedom,” mentioned Roodlynail Théagène, Gwoup Konbit’s ambassador in Haiti. “Konbit Soup Joumou embodies lively solidarity and a freedom inherited from our historical past and projected towards the long run.”
This 12 months’s theme, “Ann pataje yon bòl soup pou nou sonje kiyès nou ye” — “Let’s share a bowl of soup to recollect who we’re” — mirrored a name for nationwide reflection amid overlapping crises. Haiti continues to face widespread gang violence, mass displacement, a stalled political transition and the erosion of state presence past the capital.
Whereas individuals gathered in neighborhoods and public areas to honor independence, the Haitian authorities as soon as once more bypassed Gonaïves — the historic metropolis of independence — holding official ceremonies in Port-au-Prince as a substitute. Authorities have cited persistent insecurity and restricted state management outdoors the capital for repeatedly relocating nationwide commemorations.
At Villa d’Accueil, members of the Presidential Transitional Council (CPT), together with its president, Laurent Saint-Cyr, Prime Minister Alix Didier Fils-Aimé and senior management of the Haitian Nationwide Police and Armed Forces attended the official ceremony. The occasion featured navy salutes, a brass band and flag-raising rituals.
In remarks, Saint-Cyr acknowledged the nation’s fragile state and pledged continued efforts to revive safety and advance the political transition.
“There’s a want for everybody to place the nation’s pursuits first, as our ancestors did, so Haiti can take a brand new path,” Saint-Cyr mentioned. He added that the council and authorities had been working with nationwide and worldwide companions to stabilize the nation and put together for a “clear, inclusive and credible” electoral course of.
The distinction between the grassroots celebrations and the closely secured official ceremony underscored the widening hole between state establishments and on a regular basis Haitian life. Whereas authorities remained confined to the capital, members of the inhabitants continued to depend on cultural traditions like soup joumou to affirm id, resilience and collective reminiscence.
Throughout Pétion-Ville and the remainder of Haiti, volunteers served soup, distributors displayed handmade items and households lingered over video games and dialog — quiet acts of resistance in a rustic nonetheless struggling to reclaim security, sovereignty and nationwide cohesion.
The next are some pictures from the seventh version of Konbit Soup Joumou and Haiti’s independence celebrations:
