The Organization of American States (OAS) continues supporting efforts to strengthen security, justice and human rights in Haiti, Secretary General Jose Miguel Insulza said today as he highlighted the progress achieved and challenges remaining in that country prior to its general elections.

Presenting a quarterly report to the Organization’s 34 member countries, the Secretary General underscored the “great success” of the OAS-supported voter registration campaign, saying that it has led to the registration of some 3.4 million eligible voters to date.

“This means that we now have a system in place with which to carry out the elections,” Insulza said. However, the Secretary General expressed concern over certain organizational and logistical difficulties remaining, which have resulted in the postponement of the elections. “The concern of the international community has been to ensure that the election takes place when it is supposed to take place, that is the first week of December,” he emphasized.

“The work we’re doing to bring about the electoral process in Haiti, the effort we’ve made at trying to maintain security so that there can be a peaceful transfer of power and that we can begin a new stage in the history of Haiti, is one that has received great support from the OAS,” Insulza expressed.

The Secretary General also emphasized the need for the OAS to remain in that country after the elections, in order to support future democracy building efforts. “The democracy that we’re trying to bring to Haiti, the political stability and the security that we want to bring, is important for the rest of the hemisphere,” he said.

The OAS Assistant Secretary General, Ambassador Albert Ramdin, informed the Council of the political progress made in terms of the preparations for the elections, saying that “the real challenge at this point is to finalize the electoral calendar, and to determine specifically the dates and the actions to be taken in establishing a date for the election, somewhere in December.”

In the meeting, chaired by Ambassador Izben Williams of Saint Kitts and Nevis, the representatives of several countries expressed their support for the work carried out by the OAS in Haiti.

Reference: E-248/05