In a letter sent Wednesday to President Rene Preval, she called on the president to ensure the provisional electoral council provides a complete, public explanation for the disqualifications and to reinstate unlawfully banned parties before parliamentary elections Feb. 28.

HERE IS THE LETTER:

His Excellency René Préval

President of Haiti

c/o Embassy of Haiti

2311 Massachusetts Avenue

NW
Washington, DC 20008

Your Excellency:

I am writing to express my concerns about the decision of Haiti’s Provisional Electoral Council (CEP) to exclude more than a dozen political parties from the Parliamentary elections scheduled for February and March 2010. I am concerned that these exclusions would violate the right of Haitian citizens to vote in free and fair elections and that it would be a significant setback to Haiti’s democratic development.

As you know, I have a longstanding commitment to supporting democracy and development in Haiti. I led efforts in the United States Congress to obtain debt cancellation for Haiti. These efforts culminated in the World Bank’s announcement last June that Haiti reached the “completion point” for the Heavily Indebted Poor Countries (HIPC) Initiative and would receive complete cancellation of its multilateral debts. I am also working to increase United States bilateral assistance to Haiti.
It is imperative that Haiti’s next elections be free and fair and that they be perceived as free and fair. Political parties should not be excluded from an election without a legally compelling reason, determined through a transparent, impartial process.

The CEP, to my knowledge, has not provided a public, written explanation for the exclusions of the political parties from the upcoming elections. The CEP’s failure to explain the justification for the political parties’ exclusions for almost a month raises questions about the validity of these exclusions. The fact that the decision was made by a provisional CEP – one chosen by your office from a list of nominations from organizations selected by your office rather than according to the 1987 Constitution – also raises questions about the fairness of the process.

I urge you to take appropriate action to ensure that the upcoming elections in Haiti are free and fair. This includes taking appropriate action to ensure that the CEP: a) provides a complete, public explanation for the exclusions; and b) allows any political party that was excluded for anything less than a clear, compelling legal reason to fully participate in the February elections.

Please communicate with The Honorable Hillary Clinton, Secretary of State of the United States; The Honorable Eliot Engel, Chairman of the Subcommittee on the Western Hemisphere; and myself regarding the measures you take in this matter. I look forward to continuing to work with you to support democratic development in Haiti.

Sincerely,

Maxine Waters
Member of Congress

cc: Hon. Hillary Clinton, Secretary of State of the United States

The Honorable Eliot Engel, Chairman of the Subcommittee on the Western Hemisphere

END OF LETTER-

The California representative’s letter, sent via the Haitian Embassy in Washington, lends outside support to political groups frustrated by Haiti’s nine-member, presidentially appointed electoral council.

Opposition groups accuse the council of trying to help Preval’s newly created Unity party win majorities in parliament so he can push through constitutional reforms and expand executive power. Some have threatened to disrupt voting if the council is not replaced.

“I am concerned that these exclusions would violate the right of Haitian citizens to vote in free and fair elections and that it would be a significant setback to Haiti’s democratic development,” Waters wrote.

Preval’s press office said it was not aware of the letter as of Wednesday afternoon. The electoral council has not responded to the criticisms against it.

A U.S. State Department spokesman did not comment on the letter, but said the Obama administration is nearing completion of a review on its policy toward Haiti with results expected early next year.

The most prominent faction excluded from the vote is former President Jean-Bertrand Aristide’s Fanmi Lavalas party, which has organized protests and discussed a possible boycott of the vote.

Waters provided prominent support for Aristide in the wake of his 2004 ouster to Africa aboard a U.S. plane, leading a delegation that returned him briefly to the Caribbean before his ultimate exile in South Africa.

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