A Solution to Haiti’s Political and Electoral Crisis by Stanley Lucas (Updated Dec 15 @ 12:11 a.m.)

   Age 20, shot dead in PaP, for democracy, he wanted his vote to be counted

   Executed by INITE operative, click on picture to enlarge

   See video of the execution: 

    1. http://www.youtube.com/v/kASfVSb9ozU?fs=1&hl=en_US  

    2. http://english.aljazeera.net/video/americas/2010/12/201012112022424244.html

Overview

Before the January 12 earthquake, the situation in Haiti was already dire.  Haiti ranked at the bottom of almost every development index – 158^th for education, 70% unemployment, and average life expectancy at 52.  It ranked among the top four most corrupt countries in the past several years.  More than 90% of the economy and the wealth of the country are controlled by a corrupt business (Groupe de Bourdon) cartel that does not pay taxes.  The January earthquake exacerbated the situation bringing unimaginable devastation to the country.  More than 300,000 people died and another 400,000 were injured.  The country lost an estimated US$40 billion, 6,000 schools and 500,000 houses, leaving people with no collateral to rebuild.  Then, just when it seemed things could not get any worse, Haiti had an outbreak of cholera, which had not been seen in country for 200 years.  See: http://solutionshaiti.blogspot.com/2010/11/cholera-in-haiti-is-united-nations.html          

This is the context in which Preval, the United Nations and OAS pushed for elections on November 28.  Not only was the electoral infrastructure almost completely devastated, but also no one believed that a peaceful transition of power was even a remote possibility.  Civil society groups and analysts had been sounding the warning bells about Preval organizing an electoral coup, but still elections proceeded.  The November 28 elections were held in complete chaos, see:
1. http://solutionshaiti.blogspot.com/2010/12/haiti-preval-clings-to-his-coup.html 
2.  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dA0NKdfnqNs
Rene Preval and the partisan Provisional Electoral Council (CEP) blatantly rigged the elections by putting in place a partisan team of poll workers, instituting a campaign of violence and political intimidation, manipulating the voter lists, stuffing ballot boxes, changing the results (even after international observers watched the vote count at the tabulation center), and enlisting international spokespeople to defend the elections, see:

1. http://solutionshaiti.blogspot.com/2010/12/haiti-seven-steps-to-prevals-november.html

2. http://solutionshaiti.blogspot.com/2010/12/haiti-preval-clings-to-his-coup.html  

James Johnson, age 16, shot dead allegedly killed in Cap Haitien by an operative of Senator Moise Jean Charles of the ruling party INITE

Context:  Preval’s Electoral Record

None of this should come as a surprise.  Preval has never organized a free and fair election.  He has rigged all five elections during his ten years as president of Haiti.

Fact:  He rigged the April 7, 1997 elections by manipulating the results.  His own Prime Minister, Rosny Smart, blocked his version of the results, which led to the prime minister’s resignation and the dissolution of parliament by Preval on January 11, 1999.

Fact: President Preval and Aristide rigged the May 21 and November 2000 elections. Those electoral coups coupled with corruption, repression and drug trafficking led to a citizen revolt and the resignation of President Aristide in 2004.

Fact: President Preval rigged the April 19 and June 21, 2009 senatorial elections giving him absolute control of the senate.  And finally, he conceived of and implemented an electoral coup during the November 28, 2010 legislative and presidential elections.  For more on President Preval's questionnable record on democracy see: http://solutionshaiti.blogspot.com/2008/01/president-rene-prevals-questionable.html           

    Ruling party appointed poll worker manipulating results

Fact: In spite of widespread irregularities, there is consensus that Mirlande Manigat and Michel Martelly qualified for the presidential runoff.  The domestic and international media and the OAS publicly announced those results.  We know that the CEP and Preval then changed the results the next morning in favor of their candidate, Jude Celestin, removing Martelly from the race.

Fact: As a result of the level of fraud and ballot stuffing, we know that it is difficult to sort out who won in the legislative elections. see results: http://184.168.116.203/rewsa19q36/mapa-a.php and see: http://haitipolicy.org/fraud.html?PHPSESSID=69718e054d9c1cd2543839d94cbd12bc   

Given this context, we must come up with a quick and decisive solution that, most importantly, reflects the will of the people. Their frustration and outrage at this sham election will not simply go away with calls for “calm”.  A reasonable and responsive solution must be presented or this situation could spiral out of control. 

The following are elements of workable solution, but the fundamental point is that the current CEP cannot be in charge of or preside over any contestation or newly organized elections.  They are one of the main sources of the problem as they have already manipulated the results and the tally sheets and rigged the entire process.  Any plan that avoids addressing this critical piece, is not workable. Additionally, it would not be acceptable to send three candidates to the final runoff just because Preval wants his candidate to advance. According to article 134 of the constitutions only two candidates are permitted to stand for elections in a presidential runoff.

Elements of a Solution

   1.  Quickly replace the current CEP with nine new members in accordance with Article 289 of the constitution.  Within the next three days, the eight sectors of civil society represented on the CEP should designate new CEP representatives.  The executive branch should also designate a new, non-partisan CEP representative.

    2.  Name a new Director General for the CEP.

    3. The new CEP should organize the presidential runoff in January 2011 as scheduled.

    4. Legislative and local elections should be postponed until April or May 2011 to allow the situation to diffuse and to ensure that the electoral infrastructure is brought up to date, including updating the voter registration lists.

   5. Legislative and local elections should be opened to all parties that meet legal requirements, including  those that boycotted the November 28 elections.

If this solution is not acceptable to the Haitian leadership, then President Rene Preval should resign, and Article 149 of the constitution should be invoked allowing a member of the Supreme Court to become interim president.  In this scenario, elections should be organized within 90 days.

There is no time to let this situation play out further.  Haiti is stressed to the limit so a workable solution that contains these elements must be presented and put in place immediately.

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Leahy Calls For Freeze Of Funds To Haiti’s Central Government And Of Travel Visas For The Government’s Leaders Who Are ‘Trying To Subvert The Will Of The People’

December 10, 2010

[(FRIDAY, Dec. 10) -- U.S. Senator Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.) Friday said he has urged the Obama Administration to withhold funding to the central government of Haiti, and to suspend visas for travel to the United States by senior Haitian Government officials and their immediate family members, until necessary steps are taken to ensure a fair and democratic outcome to the elections held on November 28, 2010. Leahy chairs the Senate Appropriations Committee’s Subcommittee on The State Department and Foreign Operations, which handles the Senate’s work in funding foreign assistance, including aid to Haiti, and the State Department’s budget.  Leahy also chairs the Senate Judiciary Committee, which handles immigration policy issues.  Leahy released the following statement:]

“As if Haiti did not have enough problems, now, once again, those in power there are trying to subvert the will of the people.  The United States must come down squarely in support of the Haitian people’s right to choose their leaders freely and fairly.  By suspending direct aid to the central government and visas for top officials and their immediate family members, the United States would be sending that message.  This process needs to bring about a legitimate government respected by the Haitian people and recognized by the international community.”

# # # # #

State Department : Daily Press Briefing - December 10, 2010

Philip J. Crowley

Assistant Secretary
Daily Press Briefing

Washington, DC

December 10, 2010

HAITI

This Electoral Process is Critical to the Future of Haiti / U.S. Committed to Support the Review Process / Will Judge Future Relationship by the Actions Haiti Undertakes / Believe Results of Process Can Lead to a Credible Election QUESTION: Can I ask you a quick one on Haiti? Senator Leahy, who chairs, as you know, the Senate Appropriations foreign ops subcommittee, put out a statement this morning in which he calls for the United States to suspend direct aid to the central government of Haiti and visas for top officials and their immediate family members, so as to send a message that the United States squarely supports the Haitian people’s rights to choose their leaders freely and fairly. Do you have – this is obviously a key player in Congress and on your budget. Do you have any sympathy for his call for suspending aid to the central government, and for not doing visas for members of the government and their families? MR. CROWLEY: Well, let’s focus on where we are now. We have – we’re in the middle of an electoral process. This electoral process is critical to the future of Haiti. We have already publicly stated our significant concerns about the results that have been announced. There is a process underway. I think today is the last day to file formal complaints to challenge the results that have been announced. And we are committed to support this review. It needs to be credible. The results that -- when these results are finalized, leading to a run-off election next month, the people of Haiti have to believe that these are the candidates that they have chosen, they haven’t been chosen by the government behind closed doors. This is a critical moment for Haiti . We are prepared to support Haiti. We are also sending a very clear message to the existing government that that this election has to be done properly, in accord with the wishes of the Haitian people. We will judge our future relationship by the actions that Haiti undertakes, but -- and we are committed to supporting this process. But let’s wait until we see what happens first, and then we will judge the implications. QUESTION: So you have no sympathy for Senator Leahy’s – MR. CROWLEY: Well, the Senator is outlining some actions that are, of course, within our purview. But let’s get to the end of the electoral process, find out what actually happens, and then we will evaluate what the nature of our future support for Haiti should be. QUESTION: Last one for me on this. You don’t think, therefore, the exercise of this kind of pressure might be beneficial toward getting to a more credible outcome? MR. CROWLEY: Well, again, there is an existing process ongoing within Haiti. The election is not done yet. I think it’s premature for the United States to take this kind of action until we are convinced that the existing process cannot work. I think we are committed to try to help to make this process work. There is a lot at stake here, but we want to see the process unfold, and we believe that it can lead to a credible election result.

RNDP: REPONSE AU COMMUNIQUE #59 DU CEP

La candidate à la présidence de la République, Mirlande Manigat, prend acte du communiqué No. 59 du Conseil Electoral Provisoire portant sur la vérification des procès-verbaux liés aux présidentielles du 28 novembre 2010.

A l'analyse, il résulte que ce communiqué n'indique ni la date ni l'heure d'une éventuelle invitation des intéressés, ni surtout la procédure envisagée pour une telle opération. Dans ces circonstances, la candidate regrette de ne pouvoir s'associer à une pareille démarche.

Toutefois, soucieuse des intérêts de la nation, dans cette conjoncture troublée, Madame Manigat demeure ouverte à toute initiative pouvant favoriser un dénouement de la crise, pourvu que la solution soit empreinte de transparence et de légalité.

Port-au-Prince le 10 décembre 2010

Pour le conseil juridique :

Me. Carol Chalmers, av.

Me. Wilmine Raymond Saint-Pierre, av

REPONS PEYIZAN: REPONSE AU COMMUNIQE #59 DU CEP

Monsieur Gaillot Dorsinvil

Président du Conseil électoral provisoire

Pétion-Ville

 Monsieur le Président,

Accusant réception de votre invitation à participer au recomptage des procès-verbaux des résultats du scrutin du 8 novembre 2010, je m’empresse de vous informer qu’en ma qualité de candidat à la Présidence de mon pays, par respect pour moi-même et surtout pour le Peuple haïtien, je me vois contraint de décliner cette invitation.

La question que tout un chacun est amené à se poser en cette circonstance bien malheureuse, est celle-ci : quel est l’intérêt et quelle est l’économie de cette démarche tout à fait surprenante et illégale du CEP, démarche  qui, à n’en point douter, ne vise qu’à conforter ce dernier dans sa position exprimée le mardi 7 décembre 2010, qui viole les intérêts et les droits de l’immense majorité du Peuple haïtien, victime expiatoire d’une véritable machination politique.

La solution à cette farce publique qui a déjà occasionné des pertes regrettables en vies humaines, ne consiste certainement pas en un recomptage pur et simple des procès-verbaux en possession du CEP, mais bien en l’annulation radicale des procès-verbaux des centres et/ou bureaux de vote saccagés, vandalisés, objet de fraudes massives et scandaleuses en faveur du candidat du Parti au pouvoir, M. Jude Célestin, tel que constaté par la presse tant nationale qu’internationale, le Peuple haïtien en son entier et le Centre national d’Observation électorale (CNO) ; ce que ce CEP n’est pas sans ignorer.

Vous vous rappelez, Monsieur le Président, que bien nombreux étaient les citoyens qui, en violation de la Constitution et de la loi électorale, ont été empêchés d’exercer leurs droits politiques en raison, d’une part, des voies de fait et autres menaces exercées contre eux et d’autre part, des irrégularités flagrantes observées dans l’organisation des élections.

  

Le Centre national d’Observation électorale (CNO), présent le jour des élections dans tous les centres et bureaux électoraux, jusqu’à la fermeture des bureaux de vote, agissant en toute indépendance et sous aucune pression, avait rendu public les vrais résultats, les seuls et uniques résultats crédibles des élections présidentielles, à partir des procès-verbaux non truqués.

Il est à se demander par quel moyen, par quel artifice et suite à quelles pressions politiques gouvernementales ou autres, ce CEP croupion est parvenu à réduire à sa portion congrue le quantum des voix que j’ai obtenu pour, avec la même vitesse, augmenter celui de Jude Célestin. Cette fraude patente et inadmissible a été immédiatement éventée et démasquée par une population en fureur.

Les crimes et délits contre la Constitution, les crimes et délits relatifs à l’exercice des droits politiques, les attentats à la liberté sont prévus et sévèrement punis par la Loi pénale.

Les membres du Conseil électoral provisoire (CEP) en aucune façon, n’auraient du ni valider, ni cautionner ces actes arbitraires, illégaux et scandaleux, engageant leur responsabilité personnelle.

Veuillez agréer, Monsieur le Président, mes salutations très distinguées que vous aurez l’obligeance d’étendre aux autres membres du Conseil électoral provisoire.

Michel J. MARTELLY

Candidat à la Présidence,  Repons Peyizan

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