Haiti’s Fight for Transparency by Jake Johnston (Caribbean Journal)

In the aftermath of the earthquake in Haiti, donors pledged billions of dollars for reconstruction efforts. With those dollars was a commitment to “build back better”; this time was supposed to be different from previous big aid campaigns.

But so far, less than half of donor pledges have been disbursed, and it has become clear that “building back better” remains nothing more than a slogan. While there clearly have been successes in Haiti since the earthquake and the hard work of thousands of aid workers shouldn’t be discounted, nearly half-a-million remain homeless and hundreds of thousands more are living in desperate conditions.

With a visible lack of results and little hard data with which to assess progress, one question naturally arises: Where did the money go? At the Center for Economic and Policy Research and together with many other organizations, we’ve been trying to track where exactly the money that did get spent, went. It hasn’t been easy.

To be sure, aid projects shouldn’t be judged solely on what percent of an aid budget went to overhead, or how much went to American consultants or was spent on American products as opposed to Haitian consultants and products. Ideally, the effectiveness of projects should be based on their outcomes, not just on the breakdown of how funds are spent. But measuring outcomes often isn’t feasible. A nominally independent review of the U.S. government’s response in Haiti attempted to measure the quality and impact of aid, but “a disquieting lack of data on baselines against which to measure progress or even impact” prevented them from doing so.

As taxpayers, we have the right to know how our tax dollars are being used and if they are used effectively.  Specifically, this means looking at the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), which has spent well over a billion dollars in Haiti since 2010.  To their credit, it’s not difficult to obtain the first level of transparency: to which organizations USAID gave funds.  USAID factsheets reveal that close to 100 percent of humanitarian funds for Haiti were channeled through NGOs, U.N. agencies or right back to other U.S. government agencies. Included in this billion-plus dollars hundreds of millions of dollars in contracts which have gone overwhelmingly to “beltway bandits” — firms located in D.C., Maryland or Virginia. Only 0.02 percent by our latest tally has gone to Haitian firms.

But this isn’t the end of the line when it comes to transparency.  Once funds are given to an organization, what are they spent on? What were they meant to achieve? How much goes back to the US and how much goes to local firms?

In a meeting last October in Port-au-Prince a USAID official defended the awarding of contracts to so-called “beltway bandits,” telling me that, while certainly some money goes off the top for their profits, much gets spent in country or is given to local subcontractors. It was a back-of-the-envelope calculation, but he estimated that each international worker sent to Haiti could cost up to $250,000 a year.

The important part, he stressed, was that this money would be spent in Haiti on electricity, security, housing, etc. “He has to live here, eat here, dance here, whatever,” the official reasoned.

And as for how much money is actually going to local subcontractors, did USAID have any data on this they’d be willing to share? While I was assured that a systematic approach to capturing this data was in the works, in the meantime the same USAID official explained to me that, “you need hard data…and I need that hard data too.”

It’s a critical issue. To be able to judge how effectively US taxpayer money is being spent in Haiti, we need to know what actually gets spent in Haiti and what gets funneled back to the US.  Local procurement is a sustainable way to improve the Haitian economy; channeling aid through local businesses creates jobs, develops capacity and reduces the need for more aid down the line. While USAID has begun an ambitious reform agenda, which includes increasing local procurement, they readily admit that “the Agency does not have the systems in place to track sub-grants and sub-contracts.”

USAID may not have the systems in place, but they at least should collect the information. Following a Freedom of Information Act request, I received a USAID task order with Chemonics, a for-profit development firm that is the largest single recipient of USAID funds for Haiti since the earthquake. The task order requires the contractor to “track and report on the overall monthly commitments and disbursements for all activities and non-activity expenditures.”

Further, the contract states that Chemonics “is required to provide a detailed budget and vouchers for all subcontractors.” So USAID may not be able to systematically process this information, but if the contractor and USAID are doing their jobs, the data does exist.

In responding to my FOIA request, in which I asked for “all communications or records relating” to the two contracts USAID had with Chemonics since the earthquake, USAID only provided me with their two task orders. These are vague documents that list the general goals of the program, but no specific targets or works to be completed. Of all the various documents and financial reports that the contractor was required to submit to USAID, none of them were released, nor were they even withheld. It was as if they didn’t exist. Further, all of the cost information, including overhead and labor costs, was redacted on the grounds that this is considered the proprietary information of the contractor and could cause competitive harm.

There have been some successes. Just a few weeks ago, following up on a request, USAID published a list of Haitian organizations that had received direct USAID funding. The total was less than $10 million out of more than $1 billion spent to date. Although it was an extremely low percentage of spending – just about one percent – it was a step in the right direction for USAID. Of course, there is still no data available on where funds are going at the subcontracting level.

The USAID Inspector General (IG) has six audits of Haiti programs planned for 2012, which hopefully will provide valuable information that so far hasn’t been publically available. In November 2010 the IG had found numerous problems with the work of Chemonics and others involved in cash-for-work programs.

Despite noting that contractors “were operating in an environment with high risk for fraud,” USAID had not performed financial reviews.  Currently, an audit of Chemonics is being performed by the IG, and could be published later this summer. But while Chemonics may be the largest recipient of USAID funds in Haiti, they’re far from the only USAID partner whose activities and financials are shielded from public scrutiny.

In Busan, South Korea, at the Fourth High-Level Forum on Aid Effectiveness, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton announced, to a round of applause, that the U.S. was joining the International Aid Transparency Initiative.

“Transparency helps reveal our weaknesses so we can improve our work,” Clinton said.

Indeed. USAID could start by making public their partners’ budgets, as well as project related targets and costs, in order to answer the question of “where did the money go” once and for all.

**Jake Johnston is an international researcher at the Center for Economic and Policy Research. He writes on Haiti-related issues for the blog Relief and Reconstruction Watch.

Haiti Runoff Electoral Update # 1 by Stanley Lucas

Background

On November 28, Haiti organized an election for President, a third of the senate and 99 seats in the lower Chamber. The pre-electoral period was characterized by political manipulation of the electoral process by the ruling party INITE, a partisan Provisional Electoral Council (CEP), corruption, questionable technical assistance that led to organizational failures, and weak international electoral observation missions, for more see pre and post electoral updates: http://solutionshaiti.blogspot.com/2011/01/haiti-pre-and-post-electoral-updates-by.html

Election day was characterized by blatant and universal efforts to rig the vote and various technical breakdowns at the local and national levels. As a result, 13 of the Presidential candidates called for the annulment of the elections. Despite calls for the annulment, the CEP went ahead with the ballot counting and in the process presided over the rigging and manipulation of tally sheets.  The following is a chronology of events immediately following the elections:

• On December 6, the CEP completed the “counting” process. That day observers present at the tabulation center of the CEP took notes of the final results for President; it was understood that Mirlande Manigat and Michel Martelly qualified for the runoff.  Based on that information international news outlets broadcast those results.
•   On December 7, the CEP – under the influence and direction of President Preval -- changed the results and put the ruling INITE party candidate, Jude Celestin, in the run off omitting Martelly. 
•  At the same time, the Legislatives elections were subject to deeper manipulation. A revolt erupted around the country in the following days.  
• On December 9 the OAS Electoral Mission outraged Haitians when they stated in a press conference that: “there were some problem on election day but the process was acceptable and sound”. The Secretary General of the United Nations had to subsequently issue a statement to calm the outraged Haitian voters saying that there were in fact serious problems with the process and they were bigger than previously evaluated.  
•  Preval called on the OAS to recount the tally sheets for the president only (see:  ).  At the end of the process the OAS recommended that the results be corrected and that the ruling party candidate withdraw from the elections leaving Manigat and Martelly to participate in the run off.
• Secretary of State Hillary Clinton went to Haiti to address the situation. No one knows the details of the conversation between her and Preval and Haiti’s political network -- even the US ambassador did not take part in those private discussions according to Haitian government sources.
• Preval’s CEP then published the presidential “results” according to the OAS recommendations. The rigged legislative elections have not been addressed so essentially the ruling INITE party has been allowed to steal a number of seats. Emboldened by the inattention to the initial round of legislative elections, they are currently preparing to steal the remaining seats up for election in the runoff.
•  Two of the losing Presidential candidates have contested the legality of the election results with the Haitian Attorney General’s Office.

Meanwhile former President-a-Vie Jean-Claude “Baby Doc” Duvalier has been charged with economic and political crimes.  Ousted former President Jean Bertrand Aristide is trying to get back in country and will likely face charges for his political and economic crimes.

This is the context in which the OAS is calling on the CEP to move forward with the runoff.

The Provisional Electoral Council

Several members of the CEP have been found responsible for the manipulation of the results -- in favor of the ruling party -- at the Tabulation Center. Vice President Toussaint, Ginette Cherubin, Ribel Pierre, Gaillot Dorsinvil, and Director General Robert Opont appear to be the source of the manipulations. Michel Martelly called for their replacement and Mirlande Manigat requested change within the electoral machinery. The Haitian people have completely lost confidence in the CEP.

The CEP Director General Robert Opont, the CEP technical personnel working at the Tabulation Center and the leadership of the BED and BECs (the local election officials) have played a direct role in the manipulation of the tally sheets and elections results are still in place. None of them have been removed despite calls by the presidential candidates, Haitian civil society and the Diaspora. Every Haitian knows that the partisan CEP’s focus is to give Preval two-thirds of both chambers.

Haitians have become skeptical of the international community’s reaction to and leadership of the electoral process. To date, the OAS Electoral Observation Mission has refused to address the irregularities of the legislative elections despite numerous reports by domestic electoral observation groups documenting the fraud and violence.  Haitians believe that the international community struck a deal with Preval allowing him to steal the legislative elections in order to save face. The belief is that if this process moves forward without addressing legislative election results, there will likely be a huge political crisis in the months ahead. How do you explain to the people that voted for change that the ruling party stole (unchallenged) two-thirds of both legislative chambers?

Election Results

This is the first time in Haiti’s history that the CEP published results without listing the number of vote that each of the legislative candidates received. Even Haiti’s dictators used to take the time to publish fake results. The CEP published a list of 20 names of candidates that were “elected” in the first round for the House of Deputies (most from INITE) and four winning senate candidates (all INITE).

Only four of the eight CEP members signed the elections results; five signatures are required.  The CEP spokesperson was called to the Attorney General’s Office to answer questions about why results were published in the manner that violates the Electoral Law and voter and candidates’ constitutional rights. The next step is for the Attorney General to question members of the CEP. CEP President Gaillot Dorsinvil has expressed concern that he could be arrested at any moment.

Voter Lists

Most observers will agree that after the first round, the CEP manipulated the voter lists in order to prevent high voter turnout, which would be a negative for the ruling party candidate. On election day, voters stood in front of polling stations from 4:00 a.m. until noon and could not vote because their names were not on the voter registration list. An estimated 45-50% of the voters went back home after waiting six to seven hours. Many of those that finally found their names on the list learned that somebody from the ruling party had already voted for them. To date, the corrupt CEP has not taken any steps to correct the voter registration list. In fact, on February 15, the CEP has issued a communiqué (#70) that seems to suppress voter participation by stating that Article 32 of the Electoral Law says that registration of citizens should take place 60 days prior to elections. According to this timetable, no one will be able to register. In other words, the lists will not be corrected to allow disenfranchised voters to participate.

Tally Sheets

Domestic observers and International Observation Mission had shown exactly how the CEP manipulated the tally sheets at the Tabulation Center by comparing the duplicate (copy) of the tally sheet at the polling station with the original used at the Tabulation Center. For example, 18 votes noted at the polling stations were changed to 118 votes at the Tabulation Center. No steps have been taken to address this unsophisticated and blatant manipulation of the resuts.

Security

The security situation has worsened. More than seven police officers have been murdered since the elections. According to witnesses who called into Haiti’s Radio Signal, it seems that in each case the police officers were specifically targeted.

Many are afraid that part of the Aristide network that used to target police and kidnap innocent Haitian citizens are reconstituting. From 2004 to 2006 Aristide ordered his gangs to kidnap and spread violence as part of a strategy to force his return. These groups killed 1,941 Haitian citizens, kidnapped 800, and raped 400 under a violent campaign known as “Operation Bagdad I” -- a similar number of people were brutalized under “Operation Bagdad II”. At that time with the same goal another Operation Pakatan’n (or Operation Can’t Wait) was launched by Amaral Duclona one of Aristide’s right hand men and resulted in the killing of dozens of citizens. (see:  1. http://www.rnddh.org/article.php3?id_article=314  2. http://www.rnddh.org/article.php3?id_article=300 ).  It took three years for the police to disband and get rid of these gangs. Many citizens believe that the recent targeting of the police is linked to Aristide and this marks the beginning of Operation Bagdad III for the return of Aristide.

Political Parties, Haitian Senators and former Presidential Candidates

A coalition of political parties – some boycotted and others participated in the process – have called for the annulment of the elections and the application of Article 149 of the constitution, which would replace President Preval with a Supreme Court Justice.  They assert that Preval’s term legally ended on February 7.  This coalition is comprised of Altenativ, Rasanble, Liberasyon , UCADDE, Lavalas and several Haitian senators.  The 12 presidential candidates who each won 1% of the vote are also calling for the annulment of the elections. This coalition is organizing protests around the country that so far are not having any traction.

Civil Society

Civil society organizations have accepted the run-off solution to the rigged presidential elections. Haitian civil society continues express outrage for the manipulation of the legislative results though. They are calling for the verification and comparison of the polling station tally sheets with the ones used at the Tabulation Center for both the Deputy and Senate candidates.

Preval Term Illegally Extended

Preval’s Constitutional Term ended on February 7, 2011.  Rene Preval has stated that he will remain in office until a newly elected president is sworn in. He has passed a law to extend his term in office until May 14.  For Haitians this law is unconstitutional, but because of the division of the opposition -- and in the interest of stability -- Rene Preval has been given a pass. We have witnessed over the past few weeks the disastrous consequences of prioritizing stability over democracy, however.

OAS Electoral Observation Mission

The OAS observation Mission (EO) needs new leadership. In the eyes of the Haitian people, this mission has not contributed to a free and fair electoral process.  On the contrary, they have made things worse. The Mission demonstrated that it was incompetent and inefficient time and time again.  After the fiasco of November 28, the OAS EO stated that the elections were acceptable to them and needed to retract those statements later. While observations have a key role to play in ensuring free and fair elections, the OAS needs to regain credibility by, at a minimum, replacing the leadership of that mission.

MINUSTAH, Elections, Cholera

As a Mission, MINUSTAH has failed the Haitian people. From the mismanagement of the earthquake, to the strengthening of democratic institutions, through the assistance provided for the elections and the spreading of the cholera, the leadership of the Mission has shown incompetency. While there has been modest progress with their efforts to strengthen the Haitian National Police, MINUSTAH has little else to show for the US$4 billion spent from 2004 to 2010, and does not merit the $864 million requested for 2010-11.

The countries contributing to this Mission, including the U.S. taxpayers, deserve a more productive use of their money. Cholera continues to kill Haitian citizens. There are approximately 7,500 dead and 130.000 contaminated. There seems to be no clear strategy on how to address the epidemic that is killing Haitians at an alarming rate. The evidence presented by the US CDC pinpointing the cholera bacteria to a strain from South Asia combined with the French report concluding the Nepalese soldiers as the source of the outbreak, should be enough to establish MINUSTAH as the source of the epidemic. The UN has denied these claims and has appointed UN personnel to investigate the source of the epidemic (judge and jury). This failure to address the situation will continue to undermine the credibility of MINUSTAH in the eyes of the Haitian people and the Diaspora. Many Haitians expected help from the Obama Administration in order to establish the United Nations responsibility in the cholera epidemic and have them support the cholera recovery in the same way he held BP responsible for the oil clean up. Cholera is not only killing people, it is having a negative impact on the consumption of local rice and vegetables because they are grown on the river that was the source of the cholera epidemic.  People are afraid to buy those products.

Reconstruction

Reconstruction is stalled. Haitians are upset at the Haiti Interim Reconstruction Commission (HIRC) led by former President Clinton and Prime Minister Bellerive. The 12 Haitian members of that commission have public decried the fact that all the contracts are allocated to foreign friends and companies, and they are used merely as rubber stamps for decisions (see: http://solutionshaiti.blogspot.com/2011/01/haiti-interim-reconstruction-commission.html ). Many Haitians hope that structure will be addressed for a lack of results and will in the future include greater Haitian input (from Ministers and the Haitian business sectors) and will be more inclusive.

Haiti’s Strongmen

The return of former dictator Jean Claude Duvalier and the potential return of former dictator Jean Bertrand Aristide is a threat to Haiti’s political stability and the rule of law.  Both strongmen have records of political and economic crimes in Haiti. Aristide and Duvalier both have a myriad of U.S. lawyers and lobbyists advocating for them in the United States and the international media in order to silence Haitian voices calling for justice.

Duvalier has hired former US Congressman Bob Barr and others to defend him and promote his reconciliation propaganda on the international scene, see: http://www.mediaite.com/tv/former-rep-bob-barr-haiti-is-worse-now-than-under-his-client-baby-doc-duvalier/ . While Aristide continues to leverage ideology (casting himself as a victim of US imperialism) to hide his political and economic crimes by using lobbyists, lawyers, see: http://www.haitipolicy.org/Lobbying7.htm , ideological actors, and former US government officials to call for his immediate return, see: http://haitisolidarity.net/downloads/Miami%20Herald%20Ad%20Jan%202011.pdf . He made most of these people millionaires by granting them access to sweetheart deals and lucrative retainers.  Members of this network include: Ira Kurzban, Brian Concannon, Randall Robinson, and others. He has also brought to the table some new American political figures like Reverend Jeremiah Wright to advance his case as a victim of US imperialism. For Haitians it’s about political assassination, kidnappings, corruption, drug trafficking, and embezzlement. Haitians want justice brought to Duvalier, Aristide and Preval for their crimes, for more see: http://solutionshaiti.blogspot.com/2011/02/united-nations-partisanship-in-haiti-by.html

Launching Runoff Campaigns

On February 17, Manigat and Martelly launched their campaign for the runoff. Manigat chose to hold a press conference focusing on issues and responding to questions about education and the fate of Haiti’s strongmen. Martelly took the road and opened his campaign in Cap Haitien, the second largest city of the country where thousands of youth attended in an environment of victory. During the week Wyclef Jean, a singer that failed to meet the requirements to run for president, endorsed Martelly. Polling showed that if elections were held today, Martelly would get 66% of the vote and Manigat 33%. The runoff campaign was launched without any efforts to address the manipulations of the legislative elections and without any effort to address the technical and political issues that were at the source of political instability after the first round.

Recommendations

There are a number of technical issues that should be addressed in order to avoid further political unrest and ensure a more democratic process in the run offs:

• Partisan members of the CEP under investigation should be replaced immediately
•  The Catholic Church should name its member to the CEP
• The Director General and technical employees of the Tabulation Center should be replaced
• Members of the BED and BECs should be replaced with nonpartisan actors
• Voter registration list should be fixed
• The tally sheets and results for the senate and deputy candidates should be reviewed for manipulation 

Additionally, there are number of critical political environment issues that should be addressed:

• Security strategies should be reviewed and strengthened
• Haiti Judicial System should indict the country’s strongmen
• OAS Electoral Observation Mission should be revamped – replacing the leadership as a first step
•  MINUSTAH’s leadership should be replaced
•  An international independent panel to investigate and establish the source of the cholera epidemic should be appointed. This should include Haitian experts from abroad.

Secretary Clinton will face 3 likely scenarios in Haiti by Stanley Lucas

The State Department Bureau of Public Affairs announced that “Secretary of State Hillary Clinton will travel to Haiti on January 30 to consult with members of civil society, political actors, Haiti’s president and international partners on the ongoing electoral situation as well as reconstruction efforts.

In addition to meetings with Haitian President Rene Preval, Secretary Clinton will also meet with leaders of civil society and electoral candidates, the Special Representative of the United Nations and visit a cholera treatment clinic.”

According to the Wall Street Journal: Mrs. Clinton's visit will pressure Jude Célestin, the candidate of the ruling party, to withdraw from the second round of the presidential election, Haitian officials said Friday.

While in country Secretary Clinton is most likely to face three scenarios:

1.     President Preval’s scenarios.   While most of the INITE ruling party leadership has agreed to put aside Jude Celestin, their presidential candidate, and follow the country’s general consensus on how to move forward in order to avoid retribution or threats of unrest on February 7 (Preval’s last legal day in office), but President Preval has remained defiant.  With the support of Haiti’s elite business cartel, the Groupe de Bourdon, he is playing all sides and will focus on what happens on February 7 rather than explore electoral solutions.  President Preval has prepared two scenarios for his discussions with Mrs. Clinton.  First, he will try to convince her that he should remain in office after his term ends on February 7 until a new president is elected.  This scenario has no support in Haiti.  Everyone in Haiti and the Diaspora knows that if he tries that Haitians, who are fed up with his corruption, electoral manipulation and mismanagement, will kick him out.  Second, as a backup plan, Preval will try to call for the implementation of Article 148 of the constitution at the end of his term allowing his Prime Minister, Jean Max Bellerive, to remain in office with the same cabinet without a president.   By doing so, Preval will continue with his INITE associates to control the government and the electoral process. Preval traveled to the Dominican Republic last week to seek the support of President Fernandez for that scenario since Haiti’s current Prime Minister is very close to the Dominican establishment.  As a safety measure, Preval also negotiated with Fernandez his escape plan if the situation gets out control, which is what all Haitian analysts believe will happen if there is not a negotiated institutional solution in the next six days.  For Haitians, both of these tactics are unacceptable.

2.     Annulment of the Elections.  The political parties and coalition that boycotted the elections, twelve of the presidential candidates and some senators have called for the annulment of the elections, the implementation of Article 149 of the constitution and the organization of general elections (President, 30 senators, 99 Deputies, 140 mayors) in six months.  Article 149 of the constitution will allow a member of the Supreme Court to become the provisional president at end of Preval’s term on February 7, 2011.  The members of the provisional government will not be allowed to run for office unless they resign six month prior to the elections.  Haitian political actors have widely agreed to this plan, but have not published a plan to date.  According to several of them this plan will be unveiled next week.  We will know at that time if they secured public support for this plan by next week.  This approach has been done successfully twice before.  First in March 1989 leading to the election of Jean Bertrand Aristide in December 1990 and in 2004 leading to the election of Preval in 2006.

3.     The Runoff Scenarios.  The Organization of American States (OAS) issued a contested and largely discredited report in which they propose a runoff between two Presidential candidates, Michel Martelly, the candidate of the Repons Peyizan Party, and Mirlande Manigat the candidate of the RNDP party.  The report largely avoids the legislative elections that were even worse in terms of vote rigging by the ruling party according to a report issued by the 5,500 Haitian domestic observers.  This omission has increased the criticism of OAS report. OAS has very little credibility left in Haiti, particularly on electoral issues.  Their Electoral Observation Mission led by Ambassador Colin Granderson did a very poor job providing technical support during the pre-electoral period and on Election Day.  Two days after the elections, Ambassador Granderson gave a press conference claiming that very few places were subject to manipulations and announcing that he was certifying these elections.  The general consensus in-country is that a run-off between Martelly and Manigat should be held at the end of March or early April – in the interest of stability and with the caveat that new legislative elections should be organized in the next six months.  That scenario will also require the swearing in of a Justice of the Supreme Court on February 7, in accordance with Article 149 of the constitution.  It seems that this scenario is prevailing now.  Will this change next week with the unveiling of the transition plan and the call for the annulment of the elections?  We will need to wait and see.

Meanwhile there is a consensus that Haiti will not go back to the past and their strongmen.  Jean Claude Duvalier, Jean Bertrand Aristide and Preval (to a lesser degree) have all been accused of human rights violations and embezzlement of state funds. Aristide and Duvalier have extensive human rights violations and a track record of corruption.  They brutalized the Haitian people and enriched themselves.  Duvalier persecuted and killed many political opponents over his 14 year rule (see: http://www.fordi9.com/Pages/Victlist/ListA.htm  ).  After his departure, an administrative commission, led by former Minister of Finance Leslie Delatour, concluded Duvalier had stolen more than US$600 million from Haiti’s coffers.

Jean Bertrand Aristide was democratically elected in December 1990.  The people of Haiti were hopeful that this humble, poor priest meant a new era for Haiti.  But Aristide ruled as a strongman – not as a man of God.  Aristide coopted several Duvalierists that were members of the military and the now defunct Tonton Macoutes, a paramilitary group under Duvalier, during his second term in office.  The most well known was Sainvoyis Pascal, who Aristide made Speaker of the House in 2001 as the head of the Lavalas caucus in the House of Deputies.  

Aristide persecuted and killed his political opponents.  Journalists, women and youth activists, political parties and human rights activists, peasants and others that opposed his views were beaten, illegally jailed or killed (see: http://www.forumhaiti.com/t678-liste-partielle-des-victimes-et-magouilles-du-lavalas  and http://www.prevalhaiti.com/messages.php/24180 ).  After Aristide resigned in 2004, Haiti’s General Accounting Office and an administrative commission led by the current Minister of Justice Paul Denis found that he had stolen more than US$350 million from Haiti’s coffers over nine years (see: http://www.haitipolicy.org/content/3284.htm ).

Haitians hope that the United States will hear their voices and calls for justice.  Many Haitians are afraid that Duvalier and Aristide’s well paid and financed lobbying effort in the United States will be drumming up support for them.  Duvalier has hired former US Representative Bob Barr, and Aristide maintains his original cohorts that used to make each $50,000 monthly in Washington for a few 15 minute meetings (see that list here: http://www.haitipolicy.org/Lobbying7.htm ).

Haitians and the Diaspora want to ensure a peaceful transition of power and ensure that a legitimate government can focus on a reconstruction that includes Haitians.  The unresolved elections crisis and the return of Haiti’s strongmen has been a distraction from the real reconstruction work that needs to get done.  Haiti’s people have once again suffered as the world sits on the reconstruction money waiting to see who will emerge from this mess.  And again, the Haitian people are victimized.  It is time to do what is right in Haiti for the long term – not for the short-term interest of stability.  We need to see a real, sustainable solution to the mess Preval has made, and we need to get back to work addressing the priorities of the people:  housing and fighting cholera.  Hopefully, the US and other international actors will stand with the Haitian democrats seeking a meaningful change to business as usual in their country.

United States Congress Wants Free, Fair and inclusive elections in Haiti

Haiti Earthquake: Stanley Lucas to Clinton, Diaspora coalition to develop strategic plan; monitor adoption activity

The Honorable Hillary Clinton

Secretary of State

Dear Madame Secretary: 

I would like to thank you, the Obama Administration and the American people for the huge support to the earthquake victims in Haiti.  We are deeply moved by the outpouring of support and by your personal commitment to the people of Haiti. 

The Haitian Diaspora living the United States and myself are focused on ensuring that aid is really getting to the victims while ensuring a better future for Haitians.  As you may know, there are more than two million Haitian Diaspora in the United States.  We currently remit $US1.8 billion to family and friends in Haiti accounting for a significant portion of the people’s income.  Internationally, the Diaspora community is coming together to address both short and long term priorities.   

The infrastructure of the Haitian state has collapsed; several ministries have been destroyed as well as the command center of the country, the National Palace. The Haitian government has been completely devastated and lacks staff, resources, expertise, and functionality.  Several ministries have lost almost their entire staff.  Simply put, they cannot do this without support. 

It is almost impossible for the Haitian people to begin to think about reconstruction while there are still so many immediate needs, and we are in such deep mourning.  However, we know the rebuilding process will be a long and complicated road so we must begin to consider how to move forward even while the relief workers continue their missions.  

The Diaspora groups around the United States and internationally are coming together to establish a coalition focused on developing a recommended strategic recovery and rebuilding plan for the Haitian government.  We intend to convene a seminar in Washington, DC in March to discuss and finalize this plan.  One of the major issues that we will address is effective deployment of international aid.  Clearly, U.S. and international aid will play a central role in rebuilding Haiti.  This crisis has cast a spotlight on the lack of progress and development in the country despite $US13 billion in foreign aid that has gone to Haiti over the past 25 years.  This must change.  With the world watching, Haiti must get this rebuilding process right.  The Diaspora coalition will include goals and benchmarks for the infrastructure and social institutions along with recommendations for how to ensure an open, transparent system for managing reconstruction projects. And above all, we will call for accountability.  I hope that we can partner with the State Department and USAID in support of our efforts.  I believe the Diaspora community is poised and ready to help fill some of the voids in the country and its management. 

Separately, and more urgently, we are growing more concerned about the welfare of the approximately 4000 Haitian orphans.  We all desperately want to see the Haitian children adopted by loving families.  This is one of the most heartbreaking consequences of the earthquake.  In fact, my own sister will be adopting.  It would be a tremendous benefit if the Department of Health and Human Services, the State Department and non-governmental actors could provide support to the Haitian government by vetting the families seeking adoption and ensuring that all adoptive parties are cleared through the registered sex offender databases.  As you know, in the aftermath of the tsunami in Southeast Asia sexual predators took advantage of the urgency of the situation to adopt children.  Haiti has already experiences problems in this regard in the past.  Recently, a convicted pedophile, Douglas Perlitz, was arrested in Haiti for abusing children.  I know of your strong commitment to children’s issues, so I am hopeful that this is an issue you might adopt.  Your commitment to this issues would go a long way toward ensuring that our orphans find the loving families that they deserve. 

Finally, I am dedicated to helping my country reach the potential that I know it has.  From the devastation, there might be a chance to break free of this failed-state legacy and show the world who we really are:  a strong, proud, resilient and resourceful people who can rebuild from the rubble a vibrant, developing country. 

Thank you for your consideration.  If you have any questions or comments, please do not hesitate to have your staff contact me at (202) 256-6026. 

Sincerely, 

Stanley Lucas

The Haitian Coalition

Liste des personnes a st domingue

	Nom	Diagnostique	L´Hopital	ID
1	Anne Kerry 12 ans	Amputation traumatique  doigts du pied gauche	CEDIMAT
2	Carmi Isema  42 ans   -  Mariani		Darío Contreras
3	Floriant Milio   20 ans		Darío Contreras
3	Pierre Fréandre  5 ans		Darío Contreras
4	Pierre-Charles Jean-Michel 51 ans		Darío Contreras
6	Rojas Contreras Carlina 37 ans- Martissant		Darío Contreras
7	Adrienne Luis  (31 ans)	Fractures Multiples et anémie falciforme	CEDIMAT	FPU
8	Alecide Natacha		Darío Contreras
9	Ali Fauri  (MINUSTAH)	?	CEDIMAT
10	Almonord Mirtha  45 ans  Delmas 33		Darío Contreras
11	Alyattna Ryonis (2 ans)	Fillette de 2 ans internee a Plaza de la Salud	Plaza de la Salud
12	Angeville Esthère    28 ans Delmas 65		Darío Contreras
14	Anne-Rose Marcelin 23 ans	Lacerations multiples	CEDIMAT
15	Augustin Briana Joy   6 ans Aéroport		Darío Contreras
16	Baldomaire Stefania   15 ans  - Tabarre		Darío Contreras
17	Baptiste Lucson		Darío Contreras
18	Baptiste Sandia		Darío Contreras
19	Beaubrun Angelot  10 ans Delmas 31		Darío Contreras
20	Benoît Jacson  26 ans - Port-au-Prince		Darío Contreras
21	Béralus Nathalie  6 ans		Darío Contreras
22	Bernard Doulis  8 ans - Port-au-Prince		Darío Contreras
23	Bervely Merveille   9 ans		Darío Contreras
24	Bien-aimé Stanley		Darío Contreras
25	Blanc Osli (Cabiar)		Darío Contreras
26	Bodelaire Vladimir   25 ans  Cité Militair		Darío Contreras
27	Bolde Mc Donald  4 ans  - Arcachon 32		Darío Contreras
28	Bolier Vladimir   26 ans		Darío Contreras
29	Bosico Regenique 82 ans		Darío Contreras
30	Cadet Jean Max  23 ans   Carrefour-feuille		Darío Contreras
31	Cadet Peterson		Darío Contreras
32	Castain Serané  25  ans Belaire		Darío Contreras
33	Catherine Antoine 73  ans	Diabète,fracture maleolaire	CEDIMAT
34	Cazeau Kevin  7 ans   --   Aéroport		Darío Contreras
35	Celestin Lucien		Darío Contreras
36	Clairmite Nelson  19 ans Carrefour		Darío Contreras
37	Clergé Maxine		Darío Contreras
38	Clerveau Fédeline 10 ans   - Santo 25		Darío Contreras
39	Colivier Mack Sebastien Paen 12 ans Delmas 32		Darío Contreras
40	Conteras Mehe Changeaux 45 ans Carrefour		Darío Contreras
41	Chalorie Veal 32 ans		Darío Contreras
42	Charles Evens 23 ans		Darío Contreras
43	Charles Mengellin	Fractures  de tibia et perone	CEDIMAT	CV0069
44	Chi Wang-Der	Ministre affécté a l´ambassade de Taiwan en Haiti	CEDIMAT
45	Chrisostome Linda  32 ans  Pernier		Darío Contreras
46	Christophe Madeline   36 ans  Delmas 33		Darío Contreras
47	Dabrézil Jean-Claude   50 ans - Tabarre		Darío Contreras
48	Danda Islande  7 ans  (Cabiar)		Darío Contreras
49	David Midsie 28 ans	Fracture de hanche et de cheville	CEDIMAT
50	Délile Réginald  10 ans   -  Delmas 60		Darío Contreras
51	Delsimé Wilio   10 ans		Darío Contreras
52	Delva Louis-Michel 16 ans		Darío Contreras
53	Dénis François		Darío Contreras
54	Denis Juneau		Darío Contreras
55	Destiné Sony 33 ans Léogâne		Darío Contreras
56	Edeus Gosthène   33 ans - Delmas 40 B		Darío Contreras
57	Ekatrina Pisalnikova	?	CEDIMAT	CV0862
58	Elida Luxamar 22 ans	Fractures de tibia et perone tres inffectees	CEDIMAT
59	Emmanuel Brunet Richard 16 ans-Carrefour		Darío Contreras
60	Ermionne Pierre 44 ans	amputation pied gauche	CEDIMAT
61	Erna Joana Charles 26 ans	Fracture cheville,lesion vasculaire	CEDIMAT
62	Eveline Josefine Malgron 55 ans	Fracture thorax	CEDIMAT
63	Evelyn Josefine Malgron 55 ans	TRAUME THORAX	CEDIMAT
64	Evena Bélizaire 69 ans	Fractures multiples	CEDIMAT
65	Felor Olivier  39 ans  - Carrefour-Feuille		Darío Contreras
66	Ferrier Momplaisir    20 ans - Delmas 31		Darío Contreras
67	Ferson Tamare   20 ans- Carrefour Claircine		Darío Contreras
68	Floriant Milio		Darío Contreras
69	Florvil Angelot    27 ans Cité Soleil		Darío Contreras
70	Fontaine Stéfany 25 ans Blvard 15 Octobre		Darío Contreras
71	Francique Crainsa   19 ans  - Sapotille		Darío Contreras
72	Francisco Luis Ferreira	Fracture femur	CEDIMAT	MI57784
73	François Aimé K Ponon 50 ans Port-au-P		Darío Contreras
74	François Chévrine  13 ans  - Delmas 19		Darío Contreras
75	François Maximilien   12 ans - Christ-Roi		Darío Contreras
76	Franchini Ilfrad     6 ans  --Carrefour-feuilles		Darío Contreras
77	Gabriel Eldine		Darío Contreras
78	Gabriel Eldine 28 ans - Thiote		Darío Contreras
79	Gabriel Imah      (Minustha)	?	CEDIMAT	?
80	Gabriel Kemala 3 ans Cité Militaire		Darío Contreras
81	Gauthier Marie Valerie 31 ans	Fractures multiples	CEDIMAT
82	Georges Claudi  29 ans		Darío Contreras
83	Germain Natacha 24 ans Delmas 41		Darío Contreras
84	Gérôme Vania  25 ans  Carrefour		Darío Contreras
85	Gothi Shekhar P  (MINUSTHA)	Traume cerebral	CEDIMAT	MI59415
86	Guerrier Régine 29 ans Turgeaut		Darío Contreras
87	Hernández Stefania  23 ans Thomassin		Darío Contreras
88	Hsu Mien-Sheng  EMBASSADEUR	?	CEDIMAT
89	Isa Macedoine	?	CEDIMAT	UNV0084
90	Jackon Héros  27 ans  Delmas 33		Darío Contreras
91	Jacques Marie-Nadine 30 ans Carrefour		Darío Contreras
92	Jacques Yolande  40 ans Aéroport		Darío Contreras
93	Jean Felix Jeffrey    19 ans		Darío Contreras
94	Jean Jn Kelli  12 ans		Darío Contreras
95	Jean Joseph Pierre Louis 44 ans	Fracture cheville	CEDIMAT
96	Jean Lolo Junior   29 ans -- Delmas 32		Darío Contreras
97	Jean Philippe Esther   55 ans  -- Turgeaut		Darío Contreras
98	Jean Philippe Galdenia  10 ans MORT		Darío Contreras
99	Jean Philippe Vanessa              10 ans		Darío Contreras
100	Jean Philippe Wilner		Darío Contreras
101	Jean-Baptiste Rosita  30 ans  - Delmas 60		Darío Contreras
102	Jean-Fils Laurette Maigots  28 ans		Darío Contreras
103	Jean-Jules Gladys   37 ans Croix-Des-Bouquet		Darío Contreras
104	Josée Elie Steven 17 ans		Darío Contreras
105	Josée Mannuel Altagrace   1 an		Darío Contreras
106	Joseph Christophe   1 mois		Darío Contreras
107	Joseph Fabiana  11 ans Port-au-Prince		Darío Contreras
108	Joseph Fabienne 11 ans		Darío Contreras
109	Joseph Frantz Yves 55 ans	Fracture de hanche ,crise d´hypertension	CEDIMAT
110	Joseph Itère  40 ans		Darío Contreras
111	Joseph Pascale 36 ans	Fracture hanche, cheville	CEDIMAT
112	Joseph Paul Eyma   71 ans   Carrefour-Feuille		Darío Contreras
113	Joseph Venel   20 ans		Darío Contreras
114	Joseph Wisguel  33 ans  Port-au-Prince		Darío Contreras
112	Joseph Yania 26 ans   MORT		Darío Contreras
115	Julien Innoncia  35 ans  Delmas 31		Darío Contreras
116	Julien Vilia   13 ans  - Delmas 33		Darío Contreras
117	Juste Nadia    25 ans Delmas 19		Darío Contreras
118	Karin Chamin	Traume cranien	CEDIMAT	UNV00446
119	Kiarah Fabre	?	CEDIMAT
120	Kpanon François	FRACTURE HUMERUS	CEDIMAT	MI3685
121	Lafontaine July 14 ans   MORT		Darío Contreras
122	Laguerre Wadine 37 ans - Delmas 34		Darío Contreras
123	Lamartinière Andy 2 ans  Delmas 24		Darío Contreras
124	Lamartinière Lourdide 18 Delmas 24		Darío Contreras
125	Lamercia AnneMarie Desvarieux 55   F	TRAUME THORAX	CEDIMAT
126	Lapointe Stacy		Darío Contreras
127	Lea Louidor 76 ans	TRAUMES DIVERS	CEDIMAT
128	Léonce Fritz	POLITRAUMATISE	CEDIMAT	IC01269
129	Louis Annine   32 ans		Darío Contreras
130	Louis Edeline 9 ans -Delmas 19 ans		Darío Contreras
131	Louis Giventz  24 ans Léogâne		Darío Contreras
132	Louis Juslane    10 ans - Rue Docteur Obrit		Darío Contreras
133	Louis Lumène  42 ans   Delmas 2		Darío Contreras
134	Luc Ashley  4 ans		Darío Contreras
135	M. Joseph Toussaint 78 ans	POLITRAUMATISE	CEDIMAT
136	Manigat Marla   - 30 ans  --  Delmas		Darío Contreras
137	Manius Thima  57 ans Rue des Miracles		Darío Contreras
138	Marianne M-Rec Pol  Minustha	?	CEDIMAT
139	Marie Emilienne Douyon 44 ans	POLITRAUMA	CEDIMAT
140	Marie Viviane Vaval 55 ans	TRAUME Cranien	CEDIMAT
141	Marie Yacinthe  73 ans	TRAUMES DIVERS	CEDIMAT
142	Marie-Noël Moïse 72 ans	TRAUMES DIVERS	CEDIMAT
143	Marouscar Katulcia 24 ans		Darío Contreras
144	Martine Jeanne		Darío Contreras
145	Maurice Ketia  13 ans		Darío Contreras
146	Medado Alfred		Darío Contreras
147	Mehica Merone 13 ans - Delmas 2		Darío Contreras
148	Métellus Oston		Darío Contreras
149	Mohammad Asghar MINUSTHA	?	CEDIMAT
150	Mompremier Wilmand  23 ans Delmas 19		Darío Contreras
151	Momprévil André   55 ans --		Darío Contreras
152	Montas Rico 26 ans - Nerette		Darío Contreras
153	Montina Viola  37 ans  Bon Repos		Darío Contreras
154	Monvilus Anne-Guerrier  12 ans - Carrefour		Darío Contreras
155	Moreau Bill		Darío Contreras
156	Moris Ketia  13 ans  - Delmas 33		Darío Contreras
157	Nicolo Mirlyne      40 ans  -  Bizoton		Darío Contreras
158	Numwinge Yedone	TRAUME CRAnien,PERTE DE CONCIENCE	CEDIMAT
159	Olivier Michel-Ange  - 34 ans		Darío Contreras
160	Oriol Martin        20 ans		Darío Contreras
161	Orlando Diego   2 mois  Delmas 19		Darío Contreras
162	Oscar Lidia Ruth            18 ans		Darío Contreras
63	Oscar Navarro 51 ans	DISHYDRATACION,HIPOGLICEMIE	CEDIMAT
164	Oscas Liria  18 ans Carrefour Montier 75		Darío Contreras
165	Osner Suze (29 ans		Darío Contreras
166	Ostine Marie Sabrina 40 ans	TRAUMES DIVERS	CEDIMAT
167	Paul Jolson   - 6 ans		Darío Contreras
168	Perseval Leonie   80 ans  Gantier		Darío Contreras
169	Philippe Jean-Pierre 31 ans		Darío Contreras
180	Pierre  Waldrain   5 ans   --    Damien		Darío Contreras
181	Pierre Brunelson   - 5 ans		Darío Contreras
182	Pierre Jacques Mulet 28 ans-Port-au-Prince		Darío Contreras
183	Pierre Mirielle  32 ans		Darío Contreras
184	Polinus Adel		Darío Contreras
185	Prem Basnyat	FRACTURE DE TIBIA ET PERONE DROIT	CEDIMAT
186	Renato Augusto Polanco  36 ans	Divers types de traumes	CEDIMAT
187	Rogerio Marinho	Traume abdominal ferme	CEDIMAT
188	Roselaire  Fleurontin 45ans	Diabète,traumes multiples	CEDIMAT
189	Sainfa Melissa   -13 ans  - Canapé-Vert		Darío Contreras
190	Saint Louis Jimmy 35 ans	Traumes membres inferieurs	CEDIMAT
191	Saint-Fort Louisemary  21 ans - Léogâne		Darío Contreras
192	Saintil Laurie Christy  10 ans  Pétion-Ville		Darío Contreras
193	Saintil Luis-Jean  39 ans		Darío Contreras
194	Saint-Vil Saint-Léger    39 ans  Delmas 32		Darío Contreras
195	Salimar Kerby   ans		Darío Contreras
196	Samuel Rémy  17 ans P- au Prince		Darío Contreras
197	Sanon Clivens   3 ans		Darío Contreras
198	Santana Breville  32 ans  Fontamara 27		Darío Contreras
199	Sauveur Sadrak   23 ans		Darío Contreras
200	Sénat Pauline		Darío Contreras
201	Silencieu Jean Kit   49 ans (Policie) MORT		Plaza de la Salud
202	Soeur Angelique Boursiguot 81 ans	Fracture humerus droit	CEDIMAT
203	Soeur Madelaine Destroble 56 ans	Politraume,Fractur droite radius	CEDIMAT
204	Solimar Kerby   2 ans		Darío Contreras
205	Stephanie Louis 35 ans	TRAUMES DIVERS	CEDIMAT
206	Stra Attiglio 72 ans	Divers types de traumes	CEDIMAT
207	Surin Sofie    21 ans  -- Las Vegas		Darío Contreras
208	Tatilus Dina   19 ans-  Carrefour-feuille		Darío Contreras
209	taturi   - 27 ans  Carrefour		Darío Contreras
210	Thibidon Mackiline   40 ans Delma 34		Darío Contreras
211	Thisma Diustijée J. Olenf 12 ans		Darío Contreras
212	Thomas Erline Emile   3 ans		Darío Contreras
213	Tisma Dieustuyee John Olerf 12 ans		Darío Contreras
214	Toussaint David   16 ans  Delmas 33		Darío Contreras
215	Val Pierre-Richard  33 ans  Port-au-Prince		Darío Contreras
216	Valdez Jean   21 ans		Darío Contreras
217	Vanessa Eli Celestin 26 ans	Avortement (grossesse de 18.5 semaines)	CEDIMAT
218	Vilachon Merrio 34 ans- Crois-Des-Bouquet		Darío Contreras
219	Vincent Sthéfani 15 ans-Croix-des-Bouquet		Darío Contreras
220	Zétrène Julienne  32 ans		Darío Contreras
221	Zilmé Yvanne   21 ans - Delmas 32		Darío Contreras
222	Antoine Dniel		Hospital Gautier
223	Bonhomme Jacques Taylor		Hospital Gautier
224	Casenorc Natacha		Hospital Gautier
225	Pascal Marie		Hospital Gautier
226	Milks Marie		Hospital Gautier
227	Dupont Rose Elie		Hospital Gautier