E-088/00
Port-au-Prince
Statement from the OAS Electoral Observation Mission in Haiti
The OAS Electoral Observation Mission expresses its indignation about the abduction and subsequent disappearance last Thursday of Claudy Myrthil, of Espace de Concertation (Space for Concord) city delegate candidate for the Port-au-Prince council assembly. The Mission calls on the judicial authorities to clarify the whereabouts of Mr. Myrthil and guarantee his safety and immediate release. The Mission affirms that such violent acts of intimidation are unacceptable in a state of rule of law, and are even more reprehensible occurring in the midst of an electoral campaign, especially when the victims are actors in the political process.
The Mission is troubled by the climate of insecurity in the country, which has led to the withdrawal of some candidates from the legislative, municipal and local elections. The Mission regrets the candidates’ decisions to withdraw, and reaffirms the importance of sustained efforts by the Government, political parties and civil society to work together to establish the climate of security necessary for holding elections. The EOM encourages all candidates to continue their electoral campaigns in spite of the difficulties encountered. In so doing they will demonstrate the will of the political parties to support the Haitian people’s right to freely choose its leaders.
The Mission is also concerned about the current impasse holding up attempts to resolve the electoral process in the Grande Anse. The Mission insists once again that the State has primary responsibility to assure conditions of security to permit the functioning of its institutions. The Mission also reaffirms that dialogue, held in an atmosphere of peace and public security, is the best way to resolve the crisis. In support of the authority of the Provisional Electoral Council (CEP) over electoral institutions, the Mission urges all parties to unite forces to find a viable solution to allow the Jérémie Departmental and Communal Electoral Bureaux to reopen and thus guarantee the citizens of Grande Anse the right to vote on 21 May 2000.
The Mission also calls for the application of Article 171 of the July 1999 Electoral Law, which allows for electoral observation by national groups accredited by the CEP. The EOM believes that national observation is one of the key aspects of guaranteeing transparency in the upcoming vote, as well as future elections in Haiti. The Mission encourages all those involved to work together in a common goal to ensure this democratic principle is applied in the upcoming elections as well as those of future generations.
In the same spirit, the Mission encourages the CEP to continue its work to ensure the Haitian electorate goes to the polls on 21 May and 25 June, the dates decreed by the President of the Republic. With this goal in mind, the EOM urges the CEP to nominate and train polling station workers, and to finish printing and deliver the ballots within the required timeframe. The Mission stresses its support for the CEP in its efforts to ensure the participation of the Haitian electorate in credible, transparent and peaceable elections.
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