SCENESETTER FOR CODEL DURBIN'S DECEMBER 16-19

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 04 PORT AU PRINCE 001709

SENSITIVE
SIPDIS

DEPT FOR WHA/EX, WHA/CAR, S/CRS, AND INR/IAA
H PLEASE PASS TO SEN. DURBIN'S OFFICE
WHA/EX PLEASE PASS TO USOAS
SOUTHCOM ALSO FOR POLAD

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: PGOV PREL ECON USAID OVIP HA
SUBJECT: SCENESETTER FOR CODEL DURBIN'S DECEMBER 16-19
VISIT TO HAITI


1. (SBU) Summary: Your visit comes as the recently installed
government of Prime Minister Michele Pierre-Louis is
overseeing disaster relief efforts amidst growing criticism
that government assistance is not reaching all who need it.
Parliament is becoming increasingly critical of the
government. Your meetings will be an opportunity to showcase
U.S. support for the government and the new Prime Minister,
whose priorities for Haiti coincide with our own, and to
assess our assistance efforts firsthand. End summary.

Modest Progress Interrupted by Riots, Floods
--------------


2. (SBU) Haiti made slow but measurable progress in
consolidating political stability and economic growth in the
two years following presidential and legislative elections in

2006. However, the food riots in April brought political
progress to a halt, and the hurricanes and floods of August
and September dealt the economy a hard blow. Increases in
food and fuel prices that accelerated in late 2007 brought
out the worst instincts in Haiti's political actors.
Although there was genuine social grievance behind the April
protests, many observers believe that much of the associated
violence was organized by political forces seeking to oust
then-PM Jacques-Edouard Alexis and profit from the resulting
instability. The Senate voted to dismiss PM Alexis on April

12.


3. (SBU) In the five months following Alexis's dismissal, the
Haitian government was paralyzed by political gridlock.
Parliament rejected two Prime Ministerial candidates on
flimsy grounds, in no small part because President Preval
refused to bargain with parties and parliamentarians seeking
lucrative positions in government. Preval finally lobbied
hard for his third nominee, Michele Pierre-Louis, and made
promises of party representation in the cabinet and in
ministries. In the face of strong public pressure to confirm
a government able to respond to the hurricane damage,
Parliament confirmed Pierre-Louis on September 5.

New Prime Minister Faces Significant Challenges
-------------- --


4. (SBU) Although Pierre-Louis lacks the political experience
of her predecessor, she seems sincere in her determination to
reform Haiti's institutions, bring investment to create jobs,
fight corruption, have elections according to the
constitution's calendar, organize post-hurricane assistance
and reconstruction, and establish overall development
priorities. Her policy goals align closely with our own for
Haiti. However, she took office just as the staggering
dimensions of damage caused by four tropical storms and
hurricanes became clear. While previous natural disasters
have affected a limited area of the country, these storms
caused serious damage in eight of Haiti's ten departments.
The flooding killed almost 800 people and affected nearly
800,000, crippled the country's transportation
infrastructure, devastated livestock and crops, and reduced
economic growth for 2008 to a projected 1-1.5 percent. A
school collapse in Port-au-Prince November 7 that killed over
100 students and teachers only added to Haiti's woes.


5. (SBU) The unprecedented storm damage created a temporary
climate of political good will toward the Prime Minister and
her government. She acted decisively in her first weeks in
office. She and the President jointly declared a state of
emergency and allocated nearly USD 200 million, the entire
proceeds to date of Haiti's sales of petroleum products
provided under Venezuela's Petrocaraibe initiative, for
emergency relief and reconstruction.


6. (SBU) The security situation in Haiti remains a source of
concern, although the current level of crime and instability
represents a marked improvement over recent years, thanks in
large part to the United Nations Stabilization Mission in
Haiti (MINUSTAH). MINUSTAH, which comprises nearly 9,000
soldiers and police officers and over 500 international
civilians, has bought the Haitian government time to
strengthen the Haitian National Police, make progress on

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judicial reform, and improve the ability of the state to
provide basic services to its citizens.

Growing Tensions with Parliament
--------------


7. (SBU) Pierre-Louis's brief honeymoon with Parliament
following her confirmation in September is already over.
Members of Parliament, under intense pressure from their
constituents to bring needed aid and projects to their home
districts, are frustrated by the limited visibility of the
government's disaster relief efforts to date. Accusations
are mounting that aid is not reaching intended recipients.
Mayors and other local officials are accused of directing
GOH-funded disaster aid for political purposes or diverting
it into their own pockets. (Note: Foreign disaster relief
is often channeled through independent NGO implementers, not
the GOH, primarily due to the lack of government capacity.
End note.)


8. (SBU) As a result, Preval and Pierre-Louis have faced
criticism from across the political spectrum over the
government's handling of emergency funds. Although President
Preval's Lespwa coalition is the Parliament's largest party,
support for the government in the legislature is slowly
eroding. The Senate and Chamber of Deputies summoned
Pierre-Louis to Parliament December 2, and the Senate
announced the upcoming interpellation of Finance Minister
Daniel Dorsainvil. While Pierre-Louis performed ably before
the Parliament, she did not entirely diffuse the frustration
of Senators and Deputies, some of whom may sense political
opportunity in the government's difficulties. Although the
interpellation of Dorsainvil has been postponed, there is
little sign that pressure from Parliament will relent.


9. (SBU) Pierre-Louis also shares an uneasy cohabitation
with President Preval; the Haitian constitution does not
clearly delineate how the responsibilities of the two
executive offices are divided. Most of the new
government's ministers are longtime Preval associates,
and press reports surfaced in November that Pierre-Louis
had to beat back the President's initiative to replace
certain ministers in her cabinet.

A Few Bright Spots
--------------


10. (SBU) The government has a few talented people. Minister
of Economy and Finance Daniel Dorsainvil is a solid economic
policy-maker, although he does not always coordinate with the
Prime Minister. Newly appointed Minister of Justice and
Public Security Jean Joseph Exume appears determined to
pursue judicial reform, prosecute corruption cases, and
enforce work discipline on malingering judges. Minister of
Planning Jean Max Bellerive is an able administrator. Yet
even the best ministers lack the staff and the financing to
implement good policies.

Uncertainty Lingers Around Parliamentary Elections
-------------- --------------


11. (SBU) Amidst the disaster recovery efforts, the Haitian
government is making halting efforts to hold long-overdue
Senatorial elections to fill 12 vacant seats in the 30-member
body. The elections should have been held in late 2007, and
the absence of the Senators has hobbled the Senate, where 16
of the 18 members must be present to achieve a quorum. The
Provisional Electoral Council (CEP) recently set April 19,
2009 as the date for the elections, although the date has yet
to be finalized by a presidential decree. There are still no
plans to organize or finance the next set of elections, for
the entire Chamber of Deputies and a second third of the
Senate, in late 2009. Indirect elections to fill a number of
local government posts are also long overdue.


12. (SBU) The Prime Minister strongly supports the April 2009
elections, although she and many others are aware of the
CEP's weak institutional capacity and its need for robust
technical assistance from the international community. The

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elections are estimated to cost around USD 16.5 million, of
which USD 11 million will be provided by the USG and other
international donors. Some observers have expressed doubts,
however, about President Preval's commitment to the election
process, and his failure thus far to sign the decree formally
fixing the election date has only encouraged speculation.
Preval's critics, as well as some of his allies, have noted
his longstanding criticism of Haiti's current constitution as
a source of instability and have speculated that Preval wants
a pause in the elections process to build consensus for
dramatic constitutional reform.


13. (SBU) Your visit will be an opportunity to show our
support for the government and for U.S. assistance in Haiti.
So would a Pierre-Louis visit to Washington, which we
continue to encourage her to undertake at the earliest
opportunity.

The Assistance Picture: Rule of Law/Governance
-------------- --


14. (U) Your visit will also allow you to review our
assistance priorities in Haiti. Our assistance efforts in
Haiti -- financed by USAID, CDC, the State Department,s
Bureau of International Narcotics and Law Enforcement Affairs
(INL/NAS),and the U.S. Coast Guard -- seek to implement
reforms, build public institutions, improve law enforcement
and corrections capability, and help deliver basic services.
Rule of Law programs target Haiti's justice system by helping
increasing judicial authorities' administrative, management
and technical capacity. Good Governance programs provide
technical assistance and training to Haiti's Parliament in
the areas of legislative drafting, legal and judicial reform,
and rules of procedure. Programs aimed at conflict
mitigation address poverty and gang-related violence through
creation of short- and long-term employment and transfer of
job skills trough labor-intensive reconstruction of social
and productive infrastructure. Another program targets the
Provisional Electoral Council (CEP) to help it solidify its
organization and modernize the voter registration process.
Civil society programs assist a variety of local media,
regional journalist associations, and public service
associations, including those that monitor corruption.

Humanitarian Assistance
--------------


15. (U) The steep rise in food prices in 2008 followed by the
four hurricanes sharply exacerbated Haiti's chronic food
insecurity, to which approximately 3 million Haitians are now
exposed. USAID contributed USD 45 million in emergency food
aid and another USD 14 million for post-hurricane recovery.
USAID is continuing its programs to build disaster early
warning, response and mitigation capacity. The Ambassador
officiated in November at the ground-breaking ceremony for an
Emergency Operations Center for Haiti's disaster response
agencies. Following the hurricanes, Congress appropriated an
additional USD 96 million over three years for the
restoration of public services, repairs to public use
infrastructure, provision of income-generating activities,
asset restoration, and support to affected families.

Health and Education/Economic Growth
--------------


16. (U) Basic health programs help increase access to
essential health services in 72 public sector clinics and 80
NGO clinics. Nearly 50 percent of Haiti's population
receives at least some health services financed by the USG.
USAID-financed education programs include a new basic
education project to strengthen the Ministry of Education's
management and supervisory system, help it extend supervision
over the vast private-sector education system, and provide
scholarships. Social assistance programs support Haiti's
most vulnerable citizens. Economic growth programs target
trade and investment, financial sector programs for small and
medium enterprises, and programs for agricultural
productivity and marketing. Reducing environmental
degradation is the goal of USD 7 million in programs that

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focus on restoring watersheds that are the source of periodic
flooding.

HIV/AIDS Relief
--------------


17. (U) The President,s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief
(PEPFAR) will provide just short of USD 100 million in FY
2009 to prevent infections and put HIV-positive persons into
treatment. Implemented by USAID and CDC, PEPFAR programs
target HIV/AIDS and tuberculosis, but also benefit large
parts of Haiti's health care system. Haiti has the highest
rate of HIV/AIDS infection in the Western Hemisphere.

Police Reform/Corrections
--------------


18. (SBU) The U.S. is the lead donor in implementing the
MINUSTAH police reform plan, which foresees building up the
Haitian National Police (HNP) from its current strength of
9,000 to 14,000 officers by 2011. In concert with MINUSTAH's
mandate to enhance Haiti's border security, the U.S. Coast
Guard provides training for the Haitian Coast Guard, financed
by INL/NAS. The U.S. made a commitment in 2007 to assist in
improving the conditions and respect for human rights in
Haiti's prison system, and remains the lead donor to Haiti.
SANDERSON