Haiti looks for a way out of election chaos
In a traumatized nation with a poor history of clean voting, Haiti's recent elections were a disaster waiting to happen.
There was -- and is -- pervasive lack of confidence in the eight members of the electoral council because some perceive them as being hand-picked by President Rene Preval.
Allegations of widespread fraud were rampant even before polling stations opened for the Nov. 28 presidential and legislative elections, whose final results are yet to be released.
And the international community, which paid most of the $29 million tab for the elections, vacillated between paternalistic bullying of Haitian officials and a hands-off partnership.
Now that same international community — unsure over what should come next as Haiti's electoral commission delays the final vote count while technical experts from the United States and elsewhere sift through tally sheets — is faced with how to get Haiti back on track.
What everyone wants to avoid is a downward spiral into chaos that would hamper efforts to help the earthquake-battered nation recover.
The way forward is not clear, and there are no easy choices. They range from an outright annulment of the vote with an interim government charged with organizing new elections — in perhaps two years — to a power-sharing agreement.
Among the ideas that have been suggested:
-- Cancellation of this round of elections and Preval's early departure. So far opposed by the international community, this idea was put forth by 12 presidential candidates in a letter-writing campaign with Canadian and U.S. lawmakers launched last week.
-- A second round with the presumed top three vote-getters: former first lady and academic Mirlande Manigat, former government agency head and Preval pick Jude Celestin, and musician Michel "Sweet Micky" Martelly, whose backers set the streets ablaze after the council said he had been edged out of a runoff spot by Celestin.
Brazil has pushed for this alternative. Questions have been raised about the constitutionality of such a move. Manigat opposes it.
-- A new winner-take-all election with all 17 presidential candidates taking part and appointment of a new electoral council. Martelly suggested this. Some say it has little chance of winning favor.
-- A runoff between Martelly and Manigat, courtesy of Celestin, who would voluntarily withdraw. There would also be a runoff for legislative seats with the likely outcome of Preval's INITE (UNITY) coalition controlling a majority in parliament.
-- A second round with Manigat and Celestin, after which the winner would face questions of legitimacy.
-- Formation of a coalition government with the opposition.
"We now have an electoral challenge that is acute," US Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton said last week during a visit to Canada. "The electoral challenge, the instability in the government, the lack of a clear way forward as to who will be assuming leadership responsibilities, requires the international community to act and provide technical assistance, provide support for unraveling the complexities and questions surrounding the election."
The story of how Haiti and its foreign friends reached this dangerous impasse is a tale of good intentions by outsiders clashing with the harsh realities of a nation with weak institutions, a shattered government and a history of electoral fraud.
"We've had elections since 1987, and with the exception of 1990, all of them quite bad. I don't think we've made much progress," said Robert Fatton, a Haiti expert at the University of Virginia.
Even before the November vote, many Haitians doubted whether their country could pull off acceptable elections.
While a gentleman's agreement to postpone the vote might have worked in some other countries, it couldn't in a nation with a history of dictatorship and distrust.
A national survey of 1,275 Haitians taken on behalf of the United States Agency for International Development revealed that while an increasing number of Haitians planned to vote, respondents were equally split on whether the elections would be fair or not.
In fact, the survey showed that 39 percent of respondents interviewed between Aug. 18 and Sept. 2 believed the electoral council was corrupt. Overall confidence in the council had fallen to 56 percent in June of 2010 from a high of 78 percent the previous June.
Weeks before the vote, Colin Granderson, head of the joint Organization of American States-Caribbean Community observer mission, remarked that the main obstacle to good elections had nothing to do with the technical expertise or know-how of the council.
It had to do with "the total lack of trust in the impartiality of the council."
Preval said earlier this year that twice he had changed the council on the recommendation of various groups and opposition leaders. Each time, he said, the opposition complained about the new appointees.
Haiti watchers say Preval should have recognized that it was in his own interest and that of the country's to completely replace the council.
Others criticize the international community, especially the United States, for wavering on how to handle the election. Adding to the challenge: The entire United Nations electoral brain trust died in the cataclysmic earthquake.
Yvon Neptune, one of the few presidential candidates not calling for a cancellation of the vote, faulted the provisional electoral council for the mess.
"What we are seeing now in the electoral process is a reflection of Haitian society. You take all of the sectors that are involved in the electoral process, directly or indirectly, and there is a question of credibility," he said. "We are a product of our history. It has been a history of turmoil. It has been a history of corruption."
Since doing away with dictatorship 24 years ago, Haiti has struggled to build democracy and institutions up against inequities in wealth distribution, a lack of rule of law, overthrown governments — and now a feeling of despair after the January earthquake.
A deadly cholera outbreak and largely invisible reconstruction effort have contributed to the general atmosphere of gloom and disappointment.
Meanwhile, the international community has wavered between wanting to allow Haitians to chart their own course and getting more involved in the details.
"However unpopular Preval may be, he represents continuity, which is the single most important thing the international community values," Fatton said. "In other words bad elections will be tolerated in the name of continuity. The problem though is that continuity is not necessarily what Haitians want."
Some argue that a political agreement is needed now -- not later.
With opposition to Preval far from monolithic, he remains the key actor in Haitian politics.
Still, some in the international community have given up on the man once viewed as Haiti's "indispensable" politician. "Eighty percent of the Haitians voted against him," said one foreign diplomat, since his candidate, Celestin, got only 22 percent of the vote.
That reality along with the accusations of fraud by INITE, and the fear of violence in the coming days, has diplomats wondering about what will become of Preval. Will he, like most of his predecessors, exit into exile — or will he become Haiti's elder statesman?
Eduardo Gamarra, a Florida International University professor and political analyst, said the most important thing over the longer term will be getting a credible government in place.
"But that credible government will have to come from among the three top vote-getters. The question is who among them is best able to help Haiti on that path -- a singer with no real record of administrating, a former first lady who is dignified but has no real record or a man who has run a government construction company with extraordinary ties to the old Haitian establishment and all that means?"
Source: Miami Herald
IMF providing emergency funds to St Lucia
The International Monetary Fund (IMF) on Tuesday said the emergency funding being provided to St Lucia should play a catalytic role in mobilising financial support from other financial institutions as the island deals with the aftermath of the damage caused by Hurricane Tomas in October.
CMC reported that the Mission Chief for St Lucia at the IMF, Alfred Schipke, in a statement said that the IMF will be providing US$8 million to St Lucia to deal with the effects of the hurricane that caused landslides, resulting in human causalities and severe damage to road and water supply infrastructure and agriculture.
"The emergency financing is subject to approval by IMF management and the executive board, which could consider the request in mid January 2011," said Schipke.
He said the total emergency financing of US$8.20 million would be allocated to St Lucia's budget to support the authorities' emergency response.
"The funds are expected to play a catalytic role in mobilising financial support from other international/regional financial institutions. The emergency assistance also would come on top of the US$10.74 million provided under the IMF's Rapid-Access Component of the Exogenous Shocks Facility approved in July 2009 to buffer the adverse impact of the global economic and financial crisis," he added.
New York investment firm to build $127 million power plant in Jamaica
Conduit Capital Partners, a private equity investment firm based in New York City and focused on energy infrastructure investment and development in Latin America and the Caribbean, plans to build a $127 million power plant in West Kingston, Jamaica.
The thermal power plant, which will initially run on oil but can also be fitted to run on natural gas, is a greenfield project. Construction work for the 66 megawatt plant has begun and the project is expected to achieve commercial operation in early 2012.
The project is operated and managed by Conduit’s Jamaica Energy Partners on behalf of its sister company West Kingston Power Partners (WKPP). In 2008, WKPP won a public RFP for the supply of power under a long-term power sales contract with the local utility, Jamaica Public Service Co.
Juan Páez, a partner at Conduit Capital said, “We have worked closely with the Jamaican government and the independent regulator for more than two years under very difficult market volatility; this project represents a first step for the government under a highly ambitious plan to ensure the country remains globally competitive through the improvement of its existing infrastructure and the reduction of today’s high energy costs. We look forward to building a plant that positions Jamaica on a path for success.”
Financing for the project is being provided by IFC and a diverse group of institutions that have come together to support this project: Bank of Nova Scotia and FirstCaribbean International Bank, Finnvera, the export credit agency of Finland; and four development finance organizations: DEG of Germany; FMO of the Netherlands; CAF, the Andean Development Bank; and CIFI, the regional infrastructure development bank.
“This project shows Conduit’s ability to execute across market conditions,” said Scott Swensen, chairman of Conduit. “In the Jamaican market, where the government is supportive of foreign investment in infrastructure, developed projects are nonexistent. Greenfield is the only approach here and we have the local presence to win bids and build, and the financial expertise to secure appropriate financing.”
Jamaica Energy Partners consists of two diesel barges that together produce 124 megawatts. Conduit’s Latin Power III fund repurchased JEP in June 2009 after liquidating its original investment in the company in 2007.
Government finally pays teachers, JTA raises concerns about payments
The Jamaican Government says it has forwarded long-awaited retroactive payments to schools islandwide for distribution to public sector teachers.
The teachers and the government have been at odds over the issue for some time, with the matter ending up at the Industrial Disputes Tribunal (IDT).
In October, the IDT ruled that the government should pay $500 million of the $8 billion owed to public sector teachers this year.
In a release this afternoon, the education ministry advised that the cheques were sent out yesterday.
It says regular salaries for teachers at bursar paid institutions were also uploaded by the National Commercial Bank (NCB) yesterday.
The ministry says accounts in banks other than the NCB were expected to be credited by 3 o’clock this afternoon.
And the education ministry says cheques for teachers at non bursar-paid schools were sent out today.
Meanwhile, the education ministry says cheques for the retroactive sums and regular salaries of watchmen will be sent out tomorrow morning for payment on December 23.
In the meantime immediate past president of the Jamaica Teachers’ Association (JTA), Michael Stewart, says some teachers in Regions two, three, four and five have been having difficulties encashing their cheques.
Stewart says the JTA has received information that teachers are being told to hold on to the cheques until they are further advised.
However, when contacted Director of Communications in the education ministry, Colin Blair said the delay in some teachers getting their money is due to the lag-time it takes NCB to pass on the funds to other banks.
Blair says the ministry has been assured that those accounts should be updated within the hour.
SOURCE: JA Gleaner
Morgue Overcrowded in the Bahamas
With 94 murders on the books so far for the year in addition to a number of other deaths, PMH Administrator Coralee Adderley said 2010 has been sort of a whirlwind year for the hospital’s morgue.
Whether by murder, suicide, natural cause or some other reason, it has had to deal with a mass number of dead bodies this year.
"Given the numbers we have been having in our morgue we are at capacity almost all the time," she said. "What you would hear in the public is just those deaths from violence, but think about the number of deaths we have in the hospital or at home as a result of old age or heart attacks that are never reported.
"Our morgue has been extremely continues to grow in terms of demand. So we’ve been working closely with physicians and funeral home sot get persons out of our morgues as soon as we can."
But the PMH administrator added that things do not always go as planned.
Mrs. Adderley said sometimes a dead body is left in the morgue for various reasons.
She added that while the number of unclaimed bodies varies from time to time, the numbers are not extremely high.
In the odd case that there is an unidentified body left, Mrs. Adderley added that the hospital works closely with the Coroner’s Court.
Mrs. Adderley said usually, once all the legal work is sorted out, a pauper’s burial is then performed, a service which is facilitated by the government.
Mrs. Adderley added that there are a number of reasons why bodies are left in the morgue.
"You do find sometimes people are in the morgues, and we know who their families are, but it the bodies are left for financial reasons," Mrs. Adderley said. "Because no funeral home is going to take you until there is some commitment.
"So until such time they remain with us. Until that family has identified a funeral home and made arrangements with the family… that sometimes causes the delay. So sometimes families can’t decide on a funeral home or commit to one because they don’t have the means and then the bodies would stay with us."
But Mrs. Adderley said even before this year’s 94 murders were recorded, the morgue saw an increase due to deaths by non-communicable diseases.
But she said the murders definitely took the numbers up a notch.
The PMH administrator added that the city morgue is looking to add an additional cooler that would store an additional 20 to 30 bodies.
The cooler should be in place by early next year.
Clico payout next year
THE STATE will not begin releasing payments to Clico policyholders before the end of the year, Attorney General Anand Ramlogan said yesterday, as the Government revealed the Ministry of Finance has retained British Queen’s Counsel Gabriel Moss to advise on the matter.
“We are looking at the new year,” Ramlogan said in an interview. “I am in the process of finalising the legal agreement,” he said. The Attorney General had met with officials of the Ministry of Finance and CL Financial Limited (Clico’s parent company) on Monday night to examine the terms and conditions of an agreement which policyholders will sign if they agree to the State’s bailout. The bailout is an offer of $75,000 for policies equal to or below this value, and a 20-year, zero rated bond for policies worth more than $75,000.
The Attorney General disclosed that the Ministry of Finance — upon advice from the Office of the Treasury Solicitor — has retained Moss to advise a legal team comprising of officials from the Ministry of Finance and the Ministry of the Attorney General.
Moss, of 3-4 South Square Chambers, London, is an expert on insolvency. He has functioned as a Deputy High Court Judge in the Chancery Division (which deals mainly with finance cases) of the United Kingdom’s High Court.
Ramlogan also yesterday afternoon confirmed that another meeting of officials of the Ministry of Finance and CL Financial is expected to occur next week, after the Christmas holidays.
An official with knowledge of the talks yesterday indicated that payout would “more than likely” begin in the first week of January.
“We continue to meet and fine tune the matter,” the official said yesterday. “By and large everything is agreement and is in its final stages.” The official added, “a payout is not too far off.”
Since September, Finance Minister Winston Dookeran announced that policyholders would be paid out under specific terms which he detailed in his Budget 2011 presentation. Since then, the payout process has faced several challenges, some of which has come from policyholders themselves.
While some — including the acting chairman of the Clico Policyholders Group (CPG) Peter Permell and Opposition Leader Dr Keith Rowley — have criticised the Ministry of Finance for delays in the payout, a major cause of delay since September has been the fact that the State has engaged in consultations with policyholders after some raised legal objections.
The very month of the Budget, a group of policyholders called the Clico Policyholders Protection Association, associated with dropped UNC MP Ramesh Lawrence Maharaj, said the Finance’s Minister’s planned payments were illegal, arguing the Government did not have powers to pay out given the terms of the Central Bank Act.
The matter was taken up by the CPG, who revealed the State planned to bring legislation to shield itself from legal action. However, Government, on October 2, backed down from bringing legislation and instead began a process of consultation under a committee chaired by Minister of Food Production Vasant Bharath.
That committee met over several weeks with several submissions being made to the Cabinet.
At the same time, there has been the problem of Clico records reportedly being “in a mess”, and another problem of the precise terms of the legal agreement which policyholders are to sign on to should they accept the Government’s bailout.
Woman Died in Dump Accident in St.Maarten.
On Tuesday morning between 09:00 and 10:00 am police and detectives responded to the Philipsburg landfill after they received a call informing them that a woman identified ad Patricia Brooks (41) years of age who collects empty bottles on the dump had accidentally been ran over by a garbage compacter and as a result had suffered severe damage to both legs.
Police Spokesman Ricardo Henson said the paramedics were sent to the scene where the victim was given first aid, after which she was immediately transported to the St. Maarten Medical Center. Henson said the victim succumbed to the injuries she sustained from the accident.
The police traffic, detective and forensic department are busy investigating this case to determine exactly how this accident took place.
Press Prosecutor Rienk Mud said the victim in question was warned on several occasions to stay away from the dump (landfill). Mud said based on information his office received the victim was chased away on a number of occasions but she kept going back to look for items that are of value to her. Mud said the victim died of internal bleeding.
Europe airports battle snow backlog
European airports are struggling to help thousands of passengers stranded after severe wintry weather paralysed parts of Europe's transport network.
Freezing temperatures, snow and ice has grounded flights, trapping travellers returning home for Christmas.
Airport operators defended their handling of the crisis amid criticism from the European Commission.
Officials at the worst-affected airport, London's Heathrow, rebuffed offers to bring in the UK Army to help.
Since Saturday, when 12.7cm (five inches) of snow fell in just one hour, Heathrow airport - the world's busiest - has cancelled hundreds of flights.
The airport said it planned to operate two-thirds of its scheduled flights on Wednesday.
Delays at Heathrow also had a knock-on effect on other northern European airports.
In Ireland, the Dublin Airport Authority said the airport would be closed until at least 0800GMT on Wednesday, the The Irish Times reports.
'Unacceptable disruption'
In Germany, Frankfurt airport cancelled 550 of almost 1,300 flights on Tuesday because of the bad weather.
Air France said that some 5,000 people spent the night at Paris' Charles de Gaulle airport on Tuesday - 4,000 of whom were trying to fly into London, according to Le Monde.
While in Sweden, Scandinavian airline SAS said flights to London's Heathrow were the most problematic.
"It is the absolute worst there," SAS spokeswoman Elisabeth Manzi told The Local.
"From Frankfurt and Paris, things are running smoothly and we are getting passengers out. In London, we currently have about 5,000 to 6,000 SAS customers."
Many passengers sought to travel by rail instead of plane, causing Eurostar to recommend that passengers trying to leave from London should cancel their tickets and stay at home.
But rail expert Christian Wolmar said the real problem was not bad weather but bad management.
"Eurostar ought to be ashamed of themselves," he told Associated Press.
"It would seem possible to put on extra trains, but they can't get the crews or they can't get the trains in place. It's inexplicable."
The European Commission said it was "extremely concerned" about the level of disruption caused by the severe snow, saying that it was "unacceptable and [...] should not happen again".
But Airports Council International (ACI), the professional association of European airport operators, said 88% of flights to and from European airports had been operating.
It said airports in northern Europe found it easier to cope with severe weather because the temperatures there remained largely below freezing, so the condition of the runways did not change, whereas the fluctuating temperatures in western Europe had caused problems.
UK Prime Minister David Cameron said he was "frustrated" it was taking so long to get Heathrow fully operational again.
"If it's understandable that Heathrow had to close briefly, I'm frustrated on behalf of all those affected that it's taking so long for the situation to improve."
Inside the terminal, passengers who had spent several days waiting to catch their flights home were equally angered. Some were being accommodated in tents on the edge of the terminal.
"It's not even snowing!" 19-year-old Candie Sparks, who was trying to get back to Santa Fe, New Mexico, told AP. "It's crazy."
UN chief warns of 'real risk' of Ivory Coast civil war
The UN's secretary-general has warned there is a "real risk" of a return to civil war in Ivory Coast after the disputed presidential election.
Ban Ki-moon said the incumbent, Laurent Gbagbo, was illegally trying to expel the UN's peacekeeping force after it recognised Alassane Ouattara as victor.
Earlier, an ally of Mr Gbagbo warned the peacekeepers that they could be treated as rebels if they did not go.
And in his first TV address since the poll Mr Gbagbo stressed his legitimacy.
He also offered to let a panel representing international powers examine the results of the election.
Mr Gbagbo said Mr Ouattara could leave the Golf Hotel in Abidjan, where he has set up his headquarters, protected by the UN.
The army meanwhile announced the lifting of a nightly curfew, so families could "enjoy the end of year holidays and the New Year".
In a speech to the UN General Assembly on Tuesday, Mr Ban said he was worried about the 10,000-strong mission in Ivory Coast (Unoci).
Forces loyal to Mr Gbagbo were obstructing Unoci operations, and had blockaded the 800 peacekeepers protecting Mr Ouattara, he warned.
"I am concerned that this disruption of life-support supplies for the mission and the Golf Hotel will put our peacekeepers in a critical situation in the coming days," he said.
"I therefore strongly appeal to member states who are in a position to do so to prepare to support the mission.
"Facing this direct and unacceptable challenge to the legitimacy of the United Nations, the world community cannot stand by," he added.
The BBC's John James in Abidjan says roads leading to the lagoon-side hotel have been blocked and no supplies have been received for days.
Mr Ban said that any attempt to "starve the United Nations mission into submission" would not be tolerated, and warned those who perpetrated such acts would be held accountable under international law.
He also revealed Unoci had confirmed "mercenaries, including freelance former combatants from Liberia, have been recruited to target certain groups in the population", and that an arms embargo was being broken.
SOURCE: (BBC)
Iraqi parliament approves new government
Iraq's parliament has approved a new government including all major factions, ending nine months of deadlock after inconclusive elections.
In a special session, MPs voted for the 29 ministerial candidates nominated by Prime Minister Nouri Maliki, a Shia, who was reappointed for a second term.
But doubts persist about whether all the political groups can work together.
The key ministries of interior, defence and national security remain unfilled because nominees could not be agreed.
The BBC's Gabriel Gatehouse in Baghdad says these portfolios are especially sensitive as Iraq's rival factions watch keenly for signs that the country's security forces might be being used to promote sectarianism.
US President Barack Obama called the approval of the cabinet a "major step forward in advancing national unity".
"Their decision to form an inclusive partnership government is a clear rejection of the efforts by extremists to spur sectarian division," he said.
The parliamentary election held on 7 March left no one group with a majority in Iraq's 325-seat Council of Representatives.
Former Prime Minister Iyad Allawi's Sunni-backed al-Iraqiyya bloc beat Mr Maliki's State of Law coalition by two votes, but he was unable to form a government.
It was Mr Maliki who eventually garnered enough support by merging State of Law with the Iraqi National Alliance of the radical Shia cleric Moqtada Sadr in June to form the National Alliance, and then agreeing a power-sharing deal in early November with the Kurdistan Alliance and a reluctant al-Iraqiyya.
The pact also returned Jalal Talabani, a Kurd, as president and made Osama al-Nujaifi, a Sunni Arab, speaker of parliament.
Mr Maliki had been due to unveil his 42-member cabinet on Monday, but last-minute negotiations between rival parties postponed the move.
The following day, with some of the sticking points supposedly resolved, the Council of Representatives was asked to approve a list of 29 permanent ministers that Mr Maliki read out.
The 13 acting appointments do not need to be approved by MPs.
Oil Minister Hussein al-Shahristani, a Shia, was promoted to deputy prime minister for energy, with his post taken by his deputy, Abdul Karim al-Luaibi, also a Shia.
The prominent Sunni Arab politicians, Saleh al-Mutlaq and Rafi al-Issawi, were appointed deputy prime minister and finance minister respectively, while veteran Foreign Minister Hoshyar Zebari, a Kurd, retained his post.
The parliament also approved the creation of a National Council for Strategic Policies, headed by Mr Allawi. It is intended to oversee foreign policy and security issues, but it is not clear how much power it will have.
MPs also backed a plan to liberalise Iraq's economy, fight terrorism, address ongoing sectarian divisions, and repair relations with neighbouring Sunni-dominated Arab countries.
'Difficult task'
In a speech before the votes, Mr Maliki acknowledged that it had been a considerable challenge to form a government acceptable to all factions.
"I do not say that this government, with all its formations, satisfies its citizens' aspirations, nor the political blocs', nor my ambition, nor any other person's ambition, because it is formed... in extraordinary circumstances," he said. "[But] this is what we have."
The prime minister said he had delayed proposing ministers for the three security portfolios because he needed more time to evaluate the options, having received some proposals as late as Tuesday.
"I need more time to choose better, and I will continue to study the [candidates] to be able to choose on the basis of efficiency and professionalism," he said, adding that he would head the ministries himself until then.
He also said the lack of women nominees for any of the ministries had also been a reason for the postponement of the cabinet appointments.
"I find myself obliged... to wait for the political entities to present women candidates," he said.
Minister of State Bushra Hussein Saleh was the only one approved on Tuesday, while there were four women in the previous government.
Mr Allawi told MPs that his bloc would participate fully in the government.
"We wish the government success in its task to meet demands of the Iraqi people, who have waited long to see this accomplishment," he said.
"We as the al-Iraqiyya bloc declare our full support for this government and we will play an active, productive and co-operative role. We will also also work to bolster trust as long as we find a similar spirit from our partners in the political process," he added.
Our correspondent says there are still some negotiations ahead, but the big test now will be whether the members of this new national unity government, who have spent the past nine months fighting and arguing with each other, can pull together for the good of the whole country.