ARTICLE - WHAT FUTURE FOR THE IHRC?

WHAT FUTURE FOR THE IHRC?
(Haiti Libre) -

More than a month after the expiration of the mandate of the Interim Haiti Recovery Commission (IHRC) of Haiti, the Haitian authorities say that they are concerned about the renewal of the mandate of this Commission. The parliamentarians are divided. Some say they are favorable for an amendment to the IHRC, and others feel that it is necessary to create a new structure in Haiti. For its part, the international community calls, through its representatives, President Martelly and the Prime Minister, Dr. Garry Conille, to take steps to resolve this issue quickly.

According to Laura Graham, an official of the Clinton Foundation, the lack of extension of the mandate of the IHRC raises fears that the donors could be moving away from Haiti. "This is the main concern of Mr. Clinton: that the donors do not turn away from Haiti" she emphasized, even if the former President Clinton declared that he would continue to ask the donors to honor their commitments.

The Head of State declared last Friday... "on our side, we believe that the IHRC must continue to exist for at least another twelve months, to help us find the money from the hands of friendly countries, and continue to consolidate what we need, because they [the friendly countries] consider the IHRC as a serious entity.

The IHRC was established because the donor countries felt that it was the best channel to bring money into our hands. So, ourselves, the State, we will continue to ask that. But we can not ask that the IHRC's mandate go beyond another year, for the simple and good reason that it is time that we strengthen our institutions. [...] Today we need to move fast..."

If the President wants to extend, the mandate of the IHRC, he must convince the Parliament to give him the majority during the decisive vote, in order to avoid failure with unpredictable consequences, ... undoubtedly bad for the country. Taking into account the tense atmosphere between the executive and legislative branches, this vote is far from certain...