ARTICLE - PERMANENT ELECTORAL COUNCIL

THE GOVERNMENT WILL ESTABLISH A PERMANENT ELECTORAL COUNCIL
(Haiti Libre) -

Laurent Lamothe, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs informed that a meeting was held yesterday Thursday, at the National Palace, between representatives of the Haitian Government and Ambassadors accredited in Haiti. The objective of the meeting was to reaffirm to the international community the government's desire to organize, as soon as possible, the next legislative and municipal elections.

All participants present welcomed the Government's decision to create a Permanent Electoral Council as required by the Constitution. Minister Lamothe has suggested the creation of a joint working group to develop a document, which will serve as a guide for the steps to take, until the formation of the Permanent Electoral Council.

Minister Lamothe advocated for a modernization of the voting system, by using technology to reduce the risk of fraud that has always marred the Haitian elections. The Director General of ONI said he was ready to accompany the process. On the issue of security, the Chancellor and the Secretary of State for Public Security have guaranteed the firm willingness of the government to foster a climate conducive to the holding of the next elections.

Following this meeting, which lasted about one hour, the Chancellor declared, "We just had a meeting with the Diplomatic Corps,.... all the Ambassadors of the Diplomatic Corps were there today at the National Palace. We did a small review with them, on the intention of the Haitian Government to hold elections in Haiti as soon as possible.

We discussed with them the funding required for the organization of these elections, which is an extremely important aspect, and of the deadline, which is very important and that we must respect it. We also discussed the different experiences in other countries, what worked for them, and what did not work, so that we can have elections in the shortest possible time, .... once, of course, the new government is ratified [...]

...each Ambassador gave their suggestions, and they all expressed their willingness to support until the end, the electoral process to be implemented in the coming months in Haiti. Overall, we are very satisfied with the meeting, and I think they are very satisfied with the meeting too.

It is a way for us, once again, to move towards the rule of law that President Martelly has advocated since taking office. I want to thank all the embassies, all the Ambassadors who took the time to come here today to talk about this subject and also to reassure them that's where we go."

The international community through the voice of its representatives welcomed the holding of this meeting which will contribute to the establishment of the Permanent Electoral Council.

Present at this meeting: Bernadito C. Auza, Apostolic Nuncio (Holy See, S.E.MGR.) ; S.E.M Pedro Anotnio Canino Conzalez (Venezuela) ; S.E.M. Jens-Peter Voss (Germany) ; S.E.M. Rubel Silie Valdes (Dominican Republic) ; S.E.M. Kenneth H. Merten (USA) ; S.E.M. Ricardo Napoles Sotero (Cuba) ; S.E.M. Didier Le Bret (France) ; S.E.M. Bang-Zyh Liu (Chine) ; S.E.M. Leone Mauricio Bravo (Chile) ; S.E.M. Henri-Paul Normandin (Canada) ; S.E.M. Manuel Lopez Moreno (Mexique) ; S.E.M. Manuel A. Hernandez Ruigomez (Spain) ; S.E.M Marcelo Sebaste (Argentina) ; S.E.M. Ms. Edita Vokral (Switzerland) ; Mattarello (UNASUR) ; M. Jentaro Minami, Charge d'affaires (Japan) ; Mr. Floreal R. Garrido Y. (Panama) ; Mr. Claudio José De Campo (Brazil) et M. Frédéric Bolduc (OAS).