Identifier
Created
Classification
Origin
05PORTAUPRINCE2608
2005-10-19 18:48:00
UNCLASSIFIED
Embassy Port Au Prince
Cable title:  

HAITI ELECTIONS: SOME PROGRESS, MILES TO GO

Tags:  PGOV PREL KDEM HA 
pdf how-to read a cable
This record is a partial extract of the original cable. The full text of the original cable is not available.
UNCLAS PORT AU PRINCE 002608 

SIPDIS

STATE FOR WHA/CAR
DRL
S/CRS
SOUTHCOM ALSO FOR POLAD
STATE PASS AID FOR LAC/CAR
INR/IAA (BEN-YEHUDA)

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: PGOV PREL KDEM HA
SUBJECT: HAITI ELECTIONS: SOME PROGRESS, MILES TO GO

REF: A. PORT-AU-PRINCE 2570


B. PORT-AU-PRINCE 2569

UNCLAS PORT AU PRINCE 002608

SIPDIS

STATE FOR WHA/CAR
DRL
S/CRS
SOUTHCOM ALSO FOR POLAD
STATE PASS AID FOR LAC/CAR
INR/IAA (BEN-YEHUDA)

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: PGOV PREL KDEM HA
SUBJECT: HAITI ELECTIONS: SOME PROGRESS, MILES TO GO

REF: A. PORT-AU-PRINCE 2570


B. PORT-AU-PRINCE 2569


1. Summary: S/CRS Pascual and WHA/CAR Duddy's visit to Haiti
on October 12-13 focused on the need for immediate action to
advance elections and maintain the February 7 political
transition. The group met with UNPOL, political party
leaders, the Prime Minister, the Provisional Electoral
Council (CEP),the Support Committee (SC) to the CEP, and
SRSG Valdes. Though whip cracking by the SC and
international community has produced some results since
October 10, it was clear that the inability of the CEP, SC
and IGOH to take key actions continues to hamper progress
towards elections. MINUSTAH leaders explained that CEP
inaction on key issues has slowed some aspects of elections
preparations and brought others to a standstill. The PM, SC
and CEP reaffirmed their commitment to the process, but the
delegation insisted that all three bodies must produce
concrete results to maintain international favor by the
October 18 Core Group meeting at UN headquarters. End
Summary.


2. In the last week, significant urging from the
international community and new Support Committee (SC) has
led to some elections progress, but most of the famed ten
tasks presented at the September New York Core Group by SRSG
Valdes remain incomplete. MINUSTAH elections officials
maintained that CEP inaction has slowed elections progress in
some ways and stopped it altogether in others. For example,
the CEP,s failure to identify voting centers or allow
MINUSTAH to select the sites, as they were supposed to do by
September 30, has created a bottleneck. As a direct result
of the CEP,s inaction, the OAS cannot distribute ID cards
(REF A),the HNP and MINUSTAH cannot finalize their security
plans for Election Day, and MINUSTAH cannot finalize its
logistical plans.


3. SC member and Minister of Culture and Communication
Magalie Comeau-Denis admitted that the SC,s evaluation of
elections had slowed progress in the last week, but said that
the process would ultimately move forward more quickly as a
result of the SC's efforts. The SC and Provisional Electoral
Council (CEP) were quick to point out that they had
established new internal bylaws to govern the CEP and made
significant progress towards choosing a director general, who
the SC said it hoped would be in place by October 14. The PM
promised the visiting party he would ensure that a DG of the
CEP would be installed and tasked with setting firm electoral
dates before the PM left the country October 15 (REF B).
(Note: The acting Prime Minister installed Jacques Bernard
as DG on Saturday, October 15. Bernard declined to go to the
October 21 Brussels conference arguing that the priority is
to get to work here. End Note.) In addition, the PM said
some electoral decrees would be forthcoming such as the
decree removing the Supreme Court from the appeals process,
which will facilitate a faster electoral cycle, and the
decree on public financing for political parties.


4. The CEP, SC and PM reaffirmed their commitment to
elections before February 7. However, Ambassador Pascual,
Mr. Duddy, and the Charge pushed the members of the SC to
produce concrete results in advance of the Core Group at UN
headquarters October 18 and the Brussels donors, conference
October 21. They urged the IGOH, CEP, and SC to begin with
February 7 and work backwards to complete a workplan ending
in the transfer power on February 7. They underlined that
the only way to maintain the donor community's long-term
commitment to Haiti would be to reassure donors of the
viability of the transition through results.


5. Ambassador Pascual and Mr. Duddy did not have the
opportunity to clear this before dispatch.
CARNEY