For Immediate Release
Contact:
Twaun Samuel
Phone: (202) 225-2201
E-mail:
Twaun.Samuel@mail.house.gov
Congresswoman Waters Urges Secretary Kerry to
Support Free, Fair and Democratic Elections in Haiti
Calls for Investigation of Election Violence, Fraud and Voter Intimidation
October 5, 2015
Washington, DC, –
Today, Congresswoman Maxine Waters (CA-43), Ranking Member of the Financial Services Committee, sent a letter to
Secretary of State John Kerry, expressing deep
concern
about Haiti’s 2015 elections and the impact they will have on Haiti’s
future if the Haitian people do not perceive them to be credible.
According to the State Department,
Secretary Kerry will be visiting Haiti tomorrow.
Congresswoman
Waters’ letter urges Secretary Kerry to take all necessary and
appropriate action to support free, fair and democratic elections in
Haiti. The letter
specifically calls on him to make a clear statement that the violence,
fraud and voter intimidation witnessed in the first round of the
elections should be thoroughly and independently investigated, that the
individuals and parties responsible for the violence
must be sanctioned, regardless of political party affiliation, and that
the Provisional Electoral Council (CEP) must make the reforms necessary
to establish public trust. A copy of the letter was sent to Kenneth
Merten, the State Department’s Haiti Special
Coordinator.
During
Congresswoman Waters’ thirteen terms in Congress, she has visited Haiti
many times, and she has worked with her colleagues in Congress, State
Department officials,
Haitian political leaders, and Haitian civil society to promote
political stability, democracy, human rights, the rule of law, and
economic and social development in Haiti. Following the 2010
earthquake, she introduced the Debt Relief for Earthquake Recovery
in Haiti Act (H.R. 4573), which was passed and signed into law by the
President.
The text of the Congresswoman’s letter follows (footnotes were included in the original):
Dear Secretary Kerry:
As
you know, I am a strong supporter of Haiti, and I care deeply about the
well-being of the Haitian people. I appreciate the ongoing
efforts of the Department of State and the U.S. Agency for
International Development (USAID) to provide assistance to Haiti to
improve health, education, nutrition, and economic development for the
Haitian people.
As
a supporter of Haiti, I respect Haiti’s sovereignty. Nevertheless, I
am deeply concerned about Haiti’s 2015 elections and the
impact they will have on Haiti’s future if the Haitian people do not
perceive them to be credible. Therefore, as you undertake a trip to
Haiti at this critical moment, I urge you to take all necessary and
appropriate action to support free, fair and democratic
elections in Haiti.
The
voting in the August 9 first-round parliamentary elections was marred
by massive irregularities, which set a troubling precedent
for Haiti’s upcoming October 25 Presidential and second-round
parliamentary elections. As you stated in your press conference with
Prime Minister Evans Paul, it is “imperative” that these elections be
successful. To make these elections successful, I believe
it is imperative that the many problems noted in the first round of the
elections be addressed, so that Haiti’s next government is legitimate
and is perceived as legitimate.
Haiti’s first-round legislative elections on August 9 were characterized by disorder, delays and the closing of many polling stations due to violence and fraud. Turnout was extremely low, with less than 18% of registered voters participating nationwide. Nearly 25% of the votes cast have not been accounted for and were never counted. Political party representatives – sometimes posing as election observers – frequently attempted to influence or intimidate voters, stuff ballot boxes and violently disrupt voting, according to local observer groups.[1] The European Union Observer Mission’s deputy head concluded that the disruptions and violence were consciously planned to influence the results.[2] The election, in the words of one observer group, was “an affront to democratic principles.”[3]
Despite an outcry from Haitian civil society and political parties, the CEP has not adequately remedied these glaring problems. Final results recently released by the CEP indicate that the vote will be rerun only in 24 of the country’s 119 constituencies. The CEP ruled that they would accept the votes from constituencies where at least 70% of the tally sheets were considered valid, a distressingly low threshold for acceptability, which brings into question the legitimacy of the candidates who will eventually take office.[4]
Despite
local observers reporting widespread violence and irregularities, the
CEP only excluded 16 out of the nearly 2,000 candidates
from the election due to their alleged involvement in election-day
violence. These sanctions, however, are little more than a slap on the
wrist; candidates found responsible for violence and disruption of the
voting process should be prosecuted. The CEP also
warned parties that further disruptions of the elections would not be
tolerated and notably singled out two political parties allegedly close
to President Michel Martelly --
Parti Haïtien Tet Kale (PHTK) and Bouclier -- as those most frequently responsible for irregularities and disruptions.[5]
However, the CEP announced no significant sanctions to penalize these
parties. The failure of the CEP to take stronger action for blatant
electoral violations that often rose to criminal offenses delivers a
disturbing political lesson: in Haitian elections,
crime pays.
The
inability or unwillingness of the CEP to properly investigate and
sanction parties and candidates responsible for election irregularities
has seriously damaged the institution’s credibility. I urge you to send
a clear message that electoral violence will not be tolerated.
Many
political parties and Haitian civil society are now demanding, at a
minimum, an impartial and independent investigation into
the August 9 election irregularities. Many are calling for the
resignation of the current CEP and the annulment of the entire first
round.[6]
Thus far, United States officials in Haiti have refused to recognize
the scale of the fraud and violence that affected the August 9
elections. Disregarding the overwhelming evidence to the contrary, U.S.
officials continue to insist that incidents of violence
and fraud were isolated and did not affect the overall electoral
process.[7]
President
John Kennedy famously remarked, “Those who make peaceful revolution
impossible will make violent revolution inevitable.”
Running transparently unfair elections, with the support of the
international community, will leave many Haitians to once again conclude
that they have no choice but to protest the elections and the
consequent government through social disruption. Indeed,
this is what happened in the political cycle of the past four years
that began with controversial elections in 2010 and 2011 that brought
President Martelly to power, and led to the current crisis where every
elected office in the country is vacant save for
ten Senate seats and the Presidency. Such disruption would threaten to
severely limit the next government’s ability to govern and imperil
United States’ past and future investments in Haiti’s reconstruction.
I
call on you to make a clear statement that the violence, fraud and
voter intimidation witnessed on August 9 should be thoroughly
and independently investigated, that the individuals and parties
responsible for the violence must be sanctioned, regardless of political
party affiliation, and that the CEP must make the reforms necessary to
establish public trust. The United States government
should also state unequivocally that it will not provide funding for
elections that do not meet these minimum, basic democratic
requirements.
Sincerely,
Maxine Waters
Member of Congress
[1]
Réseau National de Défense des Droits Humains, Conseil National
d’Observation des Elections and Conseil Haïtien des Acteurs non
Etatiques, “Rapport sur le premier tour des élections législatives
partielles,” August 25, 2015; Justice and Peace Commission, “Twazyèm
pozisyon Komisyon Jistis ak Lapè sou jounen vòt 9 dawou 2015 lan,”
August 12, 2015; Platforme des Organisations Haïtiennes des Droits
Humains, “Rapò preliminè sou dewoulman eleksyon 9 dawout 2015 nan peyi
a,” August 13, 2015.
2 Louis-Joseph Olivier, “L’Union européenne
fait des propositions pour améliorer le processus électoral,” Le Nouvelliste, August 25, 2015.
3
Réseau National de Défense des Droits
Humains, Conseil National d’Observation des Elections and Conseil
Haïtien des Acteurs non Etatiques, “Scrutin du 9 août 2015 : un accroc
aux normes démocratiques !” August 10, 2015
4 Jake Johnston, “Fraud, Violence, and
Protests Cloud Results of Haitian Election,” Vice News, September 6, 2015.
5 Ibid.; Conseil électoral provisoire,
“Communiqué #51: Mise en Garde au Partis et Groupements Politiques,” August 24, 2015.
6 Remixon Guillaume, “Des
partis politiques de tendances différentes, pour l’annulation des élections législatives,”
Le Nouvelliste, September 7, 2015; Réseau National de Défense des
Droits Humains, Conseil National d’Observation des Elections and
Conseil Haïtien des Acteurs non Etatiques, “Observation du Processus
électoral : Le RNDDH, le CNO et le CONHANE exigent
l'évaluation du scrutin du 9 août 2015,” September 7, 2015.
7
At her last press conference on August
27, outgoing U.S. Ambassador to Haiti Pamela A. White stated: “I am
happy to see that the first round of elections occurred, and that the
outcome, while not perfect, was acceptable.” On September 9, Ambassador
White released a series of Tweets reaffirming
this position that the first-round legislative elections did not
require major correctives: “We cannot go back, because that would be
‘lave men siye atè’,” (Literally, “to wash one’s hands and then dirty
them on the ground.” This Haitian proverb can be translated
as “Ending up back where we started.”) The Ambassador stated her
opposition to calls for the resignation of the CEP or the creation of a
transitional government and accused protestors criticizing the CEP of
“causing disorder in the streets.”
Kathleen Sengstock
Senior Legislative Assistant
Rep. Maxine Waters
2221 Rayburn Building
(202) 225-2201
