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Friday, February 25, 2011

Michel Martelly Live tonight Friday Feb. 25







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Monday, February 14, 2011

La politique de "Devan devan net" de Madame Manigat peut lui coûter les élections

A superbly well written piece by Norly GERMAIN  reproduced here from his blog page

Les diplômes, la moralité, la crédibilité et l’intégrité politique ne manquent pas à Madame Manigat pour qu'elle devienne première femme  élue présidente démocratiquement en Haïti. Toutefois, son incapacité à se prononcer et à se positionner face à la crise électorale peut lui coûter les élections.

Favorite des différents sondages organisés avant les élections contestées du 28 novembre 2010, elle a terminé en tête des résultats préliminaires, en dépit de fraudes massives et des irrégularités répertoriées dans plusieurs centres de votes. Cet avantage, qu'elle a conservé, malgré la révision et la correction faites par l’équipe technique de l'OEA, le permet de discuter le second tour face à Michel Martelly.

Grande surprise de cette 5ème élection présidentielle démocratique en Haïti, Michel Martelly, un habitué du micro, ne fait pas d'économie de ses mots pour dire bien haut ce que la grande majorité des haïtiens pensent tout bas des politiciens de ces trois dernières décennies. Il se conduit en leader et exprime très clairement ses positions quant à l'organisation du second tour des élections. Il réclame la tête du Président,  du Directeur général et de quelques conseillers du CEP (Conseil Électoral Provisoire), ainsi que le renvoi des ministres de la justice, de l’intérieur et des affaires sociales pour que les élections soient organisées vraiment de façon libre et démocratique.
Caricature conçue par un artiste haïtien
Cependant, Mme Manigat qui devait profiter de son statut de favorite et du soutien de l'intelligentsia haïtienne pour exiger un second tour honnête et crédible, préfère se taire et ne fait que de déplorer et  de dénoncer. Soumise, son silence, sa  passivité, sa neutralité et le comportement de ses supporteurs intellectuels menant une campagne de dénigrements contre Martelly en divulguant à travers les médias en ligne le passé controversé du chanteur, ne fait qu'augmenter la popularité de Martelly. De ce fait, deux cas sont à considérer: soit ils ne sont pas informés ou bien ils n'ont rien à faire que de répéter Martelly vu que ce qu'ils ont diffusé n'a jamais été un secret pour personne.Trop sûre d'elle ou encore ignorant la capacité de Martelly de se défaire du fantaisiste "Sweet Micky", elle contribue à l'émergence progressive  du Martellisme "tet kale" à travers tout le pays.

Martelly gagne des points auprès de la population, du secteur privé des affaires, des investisseurs et de la communauté internationale. Ses sorties médiatiques impressionnantes et la campagne de dénigrement des partisans de Mme Manigat à son encontre, lui sont profitables.

Michel Martelly est sur le point d'ajouter une nouvelle page dans l'histoire du pays pendant que les Manigats jouent leur dernière carte pour accéder à la magistrature suprême de la république.  En fait, en menant une campagne silencieuse "bèbè" dénié de programme, Préval a pu conquérir le cœur des anciens partisans d'Aristide pour se faire élu en 2006. Cependant, en 2011, en utilisant cette même stratégie, Madame Manigat ne pourra pas gagner face à un Martelly, sûr de lui et qui n'a pas sa langue dans sa poche lorsqu'il doit défendre sa position.

Ce 2eme tour des élections se jouera sur le programme, les idées, le leadership et le charisme. Les haïtiens ne croient plus dans les politiciens traditionnels. Les diplômes importent peu dans la course aux urnes. Deux candidats, deux personnalités opposées et deux passés différents, on peut attendre à une campagne plus objective et plus musclée.

Norly GERMAIN
11 Février 2011
http://norlygermain.blogspot.com/

Sunday, February 13, 2011

Mirlande Manigat: Professor, First lady and (maybe) President - MiamiHerald.com

 BY TRENTON DANIEL

TDANIEL@MIAMIHERALD.COM

A week to the day after Haitian officials announced that Mirlande Manigat took first place and was heading to a March 20 runoff in Haiti’s flawed presidential vote, the longtime opposition candidate literally stepped from behind her desk to meet one-on-one with The Miami Herald.
In her air-conditioned office at her political party headquarters near downtown Port-au-Prince, the professor and former first lady held forth on why she’s running, the role her husband, former president Leslie Manigat, would play, and the possible return of former President Jean-Bertrand Aristide. Campaign coordinator Jean Yves Noël sat with us.
Q) Why are you running for office?
A) First of all, that’s the easiest answer. Because I am a concerned citizen in this country, and I am exercising my constitutional right to run for whatever post that’s available in the country. But it’s not satisfactory as an answer. Why at my age (70) and taking into consideration my career, which has been both political and academic? I am running because, as I like to say, I love this country, which is mine. I am very proud of its history, of its culture. I am very proud of its people. But I don’t like it as it is now.
It’s a country crippled with problems, and every problem can have a solution. But our problems are structural ones. For instance, the very unacceptable social inequalities. We have a series of antagonisms in this country, people living in town against people living in the countryside; people who speak French against those who people speak only Creole; people who are Christians, Catholics, Protestants and those who are Vodouisants; people who are educated to whatever the level and those who are illiterate, that represent 45 percent of the population; women against men. They are interrelated. That creates very deep social problems and sometimes we can feel some kind of social eruption. We don’t need social eruption in the country but we need changes. I personally advocate for peaceful change but socially profound changes.
And I do think that I can try, I can walk in every circumstance and in every domain and in every sector. I am a university professor. I am confident that I am doing a good job. … In order to try to solve those problems, you have to reach the highest the political position because I think that it’s not only a matter of policy making, it’s a matter of politics. No matter the problems you want to solve you have to first put together the political will to solve them.
As a human being, as a citizen, I think I have received much, from God, from life, from the country. Because of that I want to give back what I have received.
Q) What would be your top priorities if elected?
A) In Haiti we like to say everything is a priority and it is true. Given the circumstances, the top priority would be to solve the cholera problem. It’s a problem because of medical and water conditions. We have another priority stemming from the consequences of the earthquake, those living in the camps. Being a university professor I am very concerned about the education system in Haiti. When I have a vision for the development of the country, I can see the take-off – the necessary take-off of the country – maybe in 15, 20 years. Which means there’s no possibility to go back but to go further. Of course, it won’t happen under my government because I have a five-year mandate. Thinking about development. It seems to me that one of the tools for development is education. The country will not realize this “take-off” if 45 percent of its population is illiterate and if it still has 800,000 children not attending school. All this creates frustration among the young. The country is losing what it could gain from young people who could be educated. Of course, we need electricity, we need roads, we need hospitals. But for me education is the key.
Q) Former President Jean-Bertrand Aristide has expressed serious interest in returning to Haiti. What are your thoughts on that?
A) I think that as a Haitian citizen he has the right to come back and live in his country. But he is not an ordinary citizen. He’s a former president and you know about his history. My question is why would he come back now? We just had Jean-Claude Duvalier come back. The two of them represent two very controversial periods in Haitian history. The two being together in Haiti, given the present circumstances of the electoral process and so on, that would certainly create at least tension in the country.
Q) Some have said your husband would have a hand in politics in Haiti if you were elected. To what extent do you think your husband would be involved?
A) It’s a normal preoccupation but it’s not true. He has decided to relinquish all political activities and he has stuck with that. He’s advising me – but as a husband. It’s a normal attitude but he doesn’t take part. At all. At all. At all. He has too much respect for me for that
Q) If you were elected, what kind of priority would you give the prosecution of Jean-Claude Duvalier?
A) It’s not my business. Some people believe they have been victims of the Jean-Claude Duvalier regime and they have filed lawsuits against him. It’s a question for the judiciary.
Q) Why should people vote for you?
A) They can trust me. They can trust my competence, my honesty. They can trust that I am not promoting a personal presidency. I think that we need now for the country a professional team that is serious, competent, honest in order to govern the country. I can add because – it is important – I am a woman.

Thursday, February 3, 2011

CEP Announces the Winners for Round 2 - Controversial candidate replaced

(FRENCH ARTICLE BELOW)
By the CNN Wire Staff
February 3, 2011 -- Updated 1554 GMT (2354 HKT)

(CNN) -- Former Haitian first lady Mirlande Manigat will face popular musician Michel Martelly in the second round of presidential elections in Haiti, the electoral commission announced Thursday. The government-backed candidate, Jude Celestin, was eliminated from the race.

The announcement followed pressure from the United States and others on President Rene Preval to honor recommendations from the Organization of American States regarding the runoff election.

In early December, the electoral council announced that Manigat had won but lacked the majority of votes needed for an outright victory. Initial results put her in a runoff with Celestin, a protege of the president.

The third-place candidate, Martelly, claimed he had won more votes than Celestin and a review of results by an Organization of American States team supported that contention. That review suggested that Martelly earned a spot in the runoff.

When the initial results were announced, Haitians responded by charging fraud and burning cars, tires and Celestin's campaign headquarters in Port-au-Prince.

With Thursday's decision, the council accepted the findings of the review.

The vote is set for March 20. Final results will not be known until April 16, officials say.

The attempts to resolve the political turmoil come as the toll in the nation's cholera outbreak surged past 4,000, the public health ministry said.

Nearly 216,000 people have been sickened and 4,131 had died as of January 28, according to the latest report posted by the ministry.

Struck by a massive earthquake a year ago, Haiti has been struggling to recover. Its troubles were compounded first by cholera and then by the controversy surrounding the November 28 presidential election

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videos

CEP Announces Results 

The long wait and Presidential results Announcement

Full Legislative Announcement
(Excuse poor video quality)


Michel Martelly Comments on Final Results

Mirlande Manigat Comments on Final Results
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3 February 2011 

Haïti: Jude Célestin, candidat du pouvoir à l'élection présidentielle haïtienne, a été écarté du second tour après deux mois de crise post-électorale, le Conseil électoral ayant finalement décidé jeudi d'inverser des résultats provisoires entachés de fraudes.


Le second tour opposera le 20 mars une ancienne Première dame, Mirlande Manigat, au chanteur populaire Michel Martelly, a annoncé le Conseil électoral provisoire (CEP). M. Célestin est rétrogradé à la troisième place.

Le parti au pouvoir, Inité, "accepte les résultats", a déclaré à l'AFP le sénateur Joseph Lambert, coordonnateur national du parti, alors qu'on redoutait des violences de la part du candidat malheureux.

Les partisans de Michel Martelly, que les résultats provisoires du premier tour avaient d'abord donné troisième, l'écartant d'un second tour, criaient victoire aux abords du siège du CEP après l'annonce des résultats définitifs.

Des Casques Bleus de la mReturn to list of postsission de l'ONU et de la police nationale étaient déployés dans plusieurs points stratégiques de la capitale, selon un journaliste de l'AFP, qui a cependant constaté que la situation était calme.

La veille déjà des Casques Bleus avaient été déployés à Port-au-Prince et dans plusieurs autres villes en prévision de l'annonce des résultats. Les banques privées avaient fermé plus tôt que d'habitude et des habitants s'étaient empressé d'acheter produits alimentaires et eau.

"Martelly tèt kale (tête tondue), Martelly président", scandaient des partisans du chanteur au crâne rasé, laissant éclater leur joie, les avertisseurs des voitures témoignant aussi de l'ambiance de fête.

"Manigat et Martelly au second tour et puis la paix!", criait Hector, un jeune haïtien qui vit dans un camp de sinistrés du séisme de janvier 2010, tout près du siège du CEP.

"Martelly est au second tour, il n'y a plus de problème, il est aujourd'hui deuxième mais il sera notre président", assurait Kesnel Samedy, brandissant un portrait du chanteur.

Haïti était plongé dans une grave crise politique depuis la publication début décembre des résultats provisoires du premier tour du 28 novembre. Ils avaient provoqué des violences de la part des partisans de M. Martelly qui accusaient M. Célestin de fraude.

Le CEP a finalement suivi les recommandations de l'Organisation des Etats américains (OEA) et écarté du scrutin Jude Célestin, le candidat soutenu par le président sortant René Préval, dont le mandat arrive à échéance le 7 février.

Le chef de l'Etat a annoncé qu'il resterait au-delà de cette date pour permettre au processus électoral d'aboutir.

Le parti au pouvoir avait décidé la semaine dernière d'écarter Jude Célestin de la course, mais celui-ci n'avait pas confirmé lui-même son retrait.

La lourde tâche de reconstruire le pays le plus pauvre des Amériques après le séisme reviendra donc désormais soit à Michel Martelly, 49 ans, alias "Sweet Micky", soit à Mirlande Manigat, 70 ans, une intellectuelle diplômée de la Sorbonne.

Mme Manigat rêve de devenir la première femme présidente du pays, promettant de rompre avec la corruption et de réformer le système éducatif. Mariée au président Leslie Manigat, qui a dirigé le pays quelques mois en 1988 avant d'être renversé par un coup d'Etat, elle n'a cependant pas une grande expérience politique.

De son côté, M. Martelly assurait en décembre à l'AFP qu'il voulait "changer la face d'Haïti". "Les gens me voient comme la lumière au fond du tunnel", disait-il.

Le retour le 16 janvier en Haïti de l'ancien dictateur Jean-Claude Duvalier, alias "Baby Doc", après 25 ans d'exil, avait plongé encore un peu plus le pays dans la crise.

Ajoutant à la confusion, le gouvernement haïtien s'est dit prêt lundi à accorder un passeport à l'ancien président Jean-Bertrand Aristide, exilé en Afrique du Sud après avoir été chassé du pouvoir par une insurrection armée en 2004.


Ban Ki-moon salue les résultats définitifs du premier tour
Haïti: Le secrétaire général de l'ONU Ban Ki-moon "salue" l'annonce jeudi par le Conseil électoral des résultats définitifs du premier tour de l'élection présidentielle en Haïti, a indiqué son porte-parole Farhan Haq.

"Le secrétaire général encourage tous les acteurs à saisir cette occasion pour faire avancer le processus électoral", a ajouté le porte-parole.

"Après une année 2010 marquée par le tremblement de terre dévastateur du 12 janvier et l'épidémie de choléra, il est d'une importance capitale pour Haïti de se doter d'un nouveau gouvernement démocratiquement élu, en mesure de travailler sur les dossiers urgents de la reconstruction et de la lutte contre le choléra", a-t-il encore indiqué.

Jude Célestin, candidat du pouvoir à l'élection présidentielle haïtienne, a été écarté du second tour après deux mois de crise post-électorale, le Conseil électoral ayant finalement décidé jeudi d'inverser des résultats provisoires entachés de fraudes.

Le second tour opposera le 20 mars une ancienne Première dame, Mirlande Manigat, au chanteur populaire Michel Martelly, a annoncé le Conseil électoral provisoire (CEP). M. Célestin est rétrogradé à la troisième place.


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Tuesday, February 1, 2011

Aristide wants to return - Haiti Agrees to issue passport


Update: Jan. 31, 2011

Haiti Agrees to Issue Passport for Aristide, Lawyer Says
By GINGER THOMPSON - Published: January 31, 2011

WASHINGTON — The Haitian government has agreed to issue a diplomatic passport to former President Jean-Bertrand Aristide, his lawyer said Monday, potentially dropping a major hurdle that has prevented Mr. Aristide from returning home after seven years in exile.

The lawyer, Ira Kurzban, said he was notified of Haiti’s decision last week. He said he sent a letter to Haitian authorities on Monday requesting that Mr. Aristide’s passport be “issued immediately, and that plans for his return commence immediately.”

A senior Haitian official told Reuters that Haiti’s Council of Ministers, under the direction of President René Préval, agreed to issue Mr. Aristide a passport if he asked for one. That decision was a significant reversal for Mr. Préval, who had refused Mr. Aristide’s request for a passport for years, partly in response to international pressure.

Mr. Aristide, the firebrand slum priest who became this country’s first democratically elected president in 1990, was ousted from power twice. The last time was in 2004, under intense pressure by the United States and the threat of invasion by armed insurgents.

Since then, Mr. Aristide and his supporters have made numerous public appeals asking officials to allow him to return to Haiti. Those appeals intensified two weeks ago when the former Haitian dictator Jean-Claude Duvalier managed a surprise return home, ending 25 years in exile.
Last week, Mr. Aristide’s supporters took out a full-page ad in The Miami Herald demanding his return. The ad was signed by prominent supporters including Dr. Paul Farmer, the deputy United Nations envoy to Haiti. Since then, rumors have swirled across Haiti that Mr. Aristide had flown to Cuba or Venezuela to plot his own surprise return. Mr. Kurzban said that Mr. Aristide remained in South Africa, where he has lived in exile.
The State Department did not comment Monday on Haiti’s decision.
The United States and several other countries, including France and Canada, which provide millions of dollars in support to Haiti, the Western hemisphere’s poorest country, have expressed concern that Mr. Aristide’s return could destabilize the country as it struggles to resolve a hotly contested presidential election.

Asked why Mr. Aristide wanted to return, Mr. Kurzban said, “He wants to return as a private citizen, to help his country.”

=======================


Top-level negotiations involving Cuba and the US are under way to send exiled Haitian leader Jean Bertrand Aristide back home - and save South African taxpayers at least R3-million a year.

Aristide wrote to his supporters in Haiti expressing his desire to return to the poverty-stricken Caribbean island. One of the reasons he gave was that he wanted to avoid the "unbearable pain" he was likely to suffer during a South African winter due to the six eye operations he had had during his African exile.
The government has been negotiating with Haitian authorities, with the help of the Cuban government, since last year for Aristide's departure.
But his return has been delayed by US concerns that the former Catholic priest would destabilise the country.
It is understood that the issue was discussed during President Jacob Zuma's state visit to Cuba in December.
Officials from the Department of International Relations have had several meetings with Aristide to discuss his future, most recently on Friday, after he said he wanted to leave.
The officials are to meet their US counterparts in a bid to convince them that Aristide is no longer a threat.
Director-General Ayanda Ntsaluba confirmed the talks were continuing, but would not say which countries were helping SA's bid to return Aristide to Haiti.
Ntsaluba said the former leader, who was ousted from power in a 2004coup, was no longer interested in running for office.
"He has assured us that he was not seeking any political office ... not going there to contest any elections. He was illegally removed from political office but (he is) not interested in politics any more.
"He wants to play a role in humanitarian aid following the floods and earthquakes in his country," Ntsaluba said.
"We are talking to different countries and some major powers still have reservations. We are saying, let bygones be bygones."
Haiti, which is still struggling with the devastation caused by the earthquake more than a year ago, is embroiled in a fresh political crisis, sparked by the recent presidential election.
As no candidate received an outright majority, a run-off is expected to be held next month.
Furthermore, the return of notorious former dictator Claude "Baby Doc" Duvalier has added to the tensions. There are fears that the presence of the two former rulers would plunge Haiti into renewed violence.
Ntsaluba said the talks also involved discussions of "the logistical issues" around Aristide's safe return, as his security was still of major concern.
Aristide, who remains popular among Haiti's poor, was ousted amid claims by a street gang that he had ordered the assassination of its leader, Amiot Metayer, whose mutilated body was discovered in September 2003.
The former priest fled to Jamaica in February 2004, and three months later was invited to South Africa by then-president Thabo Mbeki.
Last year the Minister of International Relations, Maite Nkoane-Mashabane, revealed that Aristide enjoyed similar benefits to those of cabinet ministers and that his monthly costs included accommodation; security; transport and salaries for his support staff.
At about R3-million a year, Aristide would have cost South Africa a total of R18-million.
This week, in a public letter to his supporters, the former Haitian leader wrote: "The return is indispensable for medical reasons. It is strongly recommended that I not spend the coming winter in South Africa, because in six years I have undergone six eye surgeries. The surgeons are excellent, but the unbearable pain experienced in the winter must be avoided in order to reduce any risk of further complications and blindness."
But a US spokesman, PJ Crowley, tweeted this week that Haiti would be better off without Aristide.
"We do not doubt president Aristide's desire to help the people of Haiti. But today Haiti needs to focus on its future, not its past," Crowley said.

Clinton to mediate Haiti presidential crisis

U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton has returned from a trip to Haiti, where she met with presidential candidates and urged the Haitian people not to give up on democracy despite a disputed presidential election.


Clinton told a reporter Sunday that her message to the Haitian people is that democracy is worth investing in.  She said the United States supports the recommendation of the Organization of American States that the president's chosen successor Jude Celestin should withdraw from the March 20 runoff vote amid evidence of election fraud in his favor in the first round in November. 
Clinton met separately with each of the presidential candidates - Celestin, Michel Martelly, and front-runner Mirlande Manigat - during her visit.

Clinton also told reporters the United States has no plans to suspend earthquake recovery aid to Haiti over the disputed vote. She said the U.S. is "impatient" to get more work done to help the country recover.

During her trip, Clinton also visited a treatment center for the cholera outbreak that has killed 4,000 Haitians since October.

The publication of preliminary election results last month triggered days of violent protests by opposition supporters angered by what they saw as vote-rigging by Haiti's government. 

Haiti's ruling party has urged Celestin to pull out of the presidential race, but he has not confirmed his exit. Haiti's election commission has said it will publish final results of the disputed first round of voting on Wednesday. 

Haiti is struggling to recover from last year's earthquake that left more than 200,000 people dead and 1 million others homeless





The United States has no plans to halt aid to earthquake-ravaged Haiti despite an ongoing crisis over who will be the nation's next president, but is insisting that the president's chosen successor be dropped from the race, Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton said Sunday. 
Clinton arrived in the impoverished Caribbean nation for a brief visit Sunday. She is scheduled to meet with President Rene Preval and each of the three candidates jockeying to replace him. 
Only two candidates can go on to the delayed second round, now scheduled for March 20. The US is backing an Organisation of American States recommendation that the candidate from Preval's party, government construction official Jude Celestin, should be left out. 
The top US official at the United Nations, Susan Rice, said recently that ``sustained support'' from the United States required the OAS recommendations be implemented. Many Haitian officials, including leaders of Preval's Unity party and rival candidate Michel Martelly, interpreted that to mean the US was threatening an embargo and cutting off aid. 
On Sunday Clinton flatly rebuffed that suggestion: "We're not talking about any of that.''
"We have a deep commitment to the Haitian people,'' she told reporters.
"That goes to humanitarian aid, that goes to governance and democracy programs, that will be going to a cholera treatment center.'' 
Asked if there were any set of circumstances that would prompt Washington to cut off aid, Clinton said, ``at this point, no.'' 
Still, she insisted that the United States would press the recommendations by international monitors after a fraud-ridden first-round presidential vote in November. They determined that Celestin finished last and should drop out. Celestin has yet to do so. 
"We're focused on helping the Haitian people,'' Clinton said ahead of meetings with Preval and the three presidential candidates.
"One of the ways we want to help them is by making sure that their political choices are respected.'' 
Haiti is in a deepening and potentially destabilizing political crisis.
The announcement of preliminary results from the disputed first round, which was marred by fraud and rampant disorganisation, led to rioting in December. Final results are expected to be announced Wednesday. 
Just five days after, on Feb. 7, comes the constitutional end of Preval's five-year term. 
A law passed by an expiring Senate last May would allow him to remain in power for an extra three months, but it is not clear if his government would continue to be recognized by donor countries. But Preval has said he does not want to hand power to an interim government and elections for a successor are not expected until late next month.
"That's one of the problems we have to talk about,'' Clinton said. "There are issues of a continuing government, how that can be structured. And that's what I'm going to be discussing.''



Interview With Gerin Alexandre of Caraibes FM


Hillary Rodham Clinton
Secretary of State
Ambassador's Residence
Port-au-Prince, Haiti
January 30, 2011


QUESTION: Mrs. Clinton, I’m very glad to have you as a – to have an interview with you today it’s a very important day for Haiti. So what is the purpose of your mission in Haiti?
SECRETARY CLINTON: Well, I’m here just a little over a year from the earthquake to express our continuing support for the Haitian people, for reconstruction and redevelopment, for humanitarian assistance, and to show solidarity with the Haitian people as we go forward into the future.
I’m also here to urge that the voices and the votes of the Haitian people be heard and respected. I know that Haiti is on the brink of moving forward in the electoral process, and we support the OAS recommendations. We would like to see Haiti resolve their election and install a new president so that we can begin the hard work that still lies ahead.
QUESTION: Mrs. Clinton, regarding the reconstruction, how do you see the situation in Haiti? We got, like, more than one million people still living in the tents. So how do you judge the situation one year later?
SECRETARY CLINTON: I think that there has been progress, but not nearly enough. We have an enormous amount of work to do together. And although everyone is working, I think we know that it’s not just rebuilding structures. We want to do better. We want to have a better education system and healthcare system. We want more economic opportunity.
My husband and I feel very personally committed to Haiti. President Obama is very committed to Haiti. So we want to take what has already been done and make it a model, not just for Haiti’s future but for the world.
For example, if I could give you just one statistic, in a year, more rubble has been removed from Haiti than was removed after the tsunami in Indonesia. It is hard when you’re living in the midst of a tent city, when your home has been destroyed and your children are still not regularly going to school, or when the job you had has not come back, to have any perspective. I understand that. So we are here to reassert our commitment. We are impatient; we are determined to work with the people of Haiti to accelerate the progress.
QUESTION: Regarding the political (inaudible) in Haiti right now, you just have a meeting with Michel Martelly, Mrs. Manigat and Jude Celestin. So what kind of message do you send to these leaders in Haiti?
SECRETARY CLINTON: Our message is very simple: We support the votes of the Haitian people and believe they should be respected. We support the OAS recommendations, which reflect the best analysis possible about the intentions of the Haitian people when they voted. But the decision is up to the government and people of Haiti. We would like to see the election go forward into a second round and a resolution so that there can be an orderly transfer of authority and a new president can get to work.
QUESTION: When?
SECRETARY CLINTON: As soon as it can be done. I know that these matters take time. And I met with a group of civil society experts, including election experts, and they’re concerned about making sure that in the next round there are enough observers, there’s enough information for voters so they know where to go to cast their vote.
We will work to help that be accomplished, but the important task now is to set out the schedule and make sure that we hold a free and fair second round.
QUESTION: For the end, Mrs. Clinton, do you have a message for the Haitian population? It’s been waiting a long time for development, democracy, and (inaudible) in Haiti. So do you have a message for Haitian population?
SECRETARY CLINTON: Yes. I think that the people of Haiti have proven themselves over the course of your history as courageous, resilient, determined people against great odds. Do not give up. Democracy is worth investing in. It must deliver results for the people, and the United States will stand with you. We know how hard this is, and we admire your courage.
QUESTION: Once again, thank you very much.
SECRETARY CLINTON: Thank you very much.



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Fine Haitian Cuisine A Taste of Haiti (Hippocrene Cookbook Library) Chez Bernice: Easy but Fabulous Recipes Haitian Creole Dictionary and Phrasebook: Haitian Creole-english, English-haitian Creole Haiti Noir (Akashic Noir) Unshaken: Rising from the Ruins of Haiti's Hotel MontanaHaiti Rising: Haitian History, Culture and the Earthquake of 2010 Plunging into Haiti: Clinton, Aristide, and the Defeat of Diplomacy