Haitians and their neighbours welcomed Thursday’s election of René Préval as president, amid signs aid was in the pipeline to help restore stability in the hemisphere’s poorest country.
Haitians had celebrated in the streets after Préval was declared the winner of the February 7 presidential election early on Thursday following a reshuffling of blank ballots, in an internationally brokered deal over fraud claims.
His election closes a chapter on a United Nations-backed interim government installed after former president Jean-Bertrand Aristide fled the country two years ago in the face of an armed uprising.
Haiti’s new president faces one of the toughest jobs in the world — restoring democracy in a nation that is mired in severe economic, health and social problems.
Neighbouring countries offered their congratulations and encouragement.
United States Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, testifying on Thursday before the US Congress, welcomed the announcement of Haiti’s new president and paved the way for more US aid to Haiti.
”As the government develops now, I think we will want to look at what we need to do to support Haiti,” she said. ”This is a chance for a country that has had too few chances.”
Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper congratulated Préval and called for ”national reconciliation, political dialogue and fundamental reform” in Haiti.
”Canada looks forward to working with president-designate Préval, his government and all sectors of Haitian society to restore democracy and to support reconstruction in Haiti,” Harper said in a statement.
Canada, which has a large Haitian expatriate community, is a major aid donor to the poverty-stricken Caribbean nation, pledging 180-million Canadian dollars ($155 million) since 2004.
In New York, United Nations Secretary General Kofi Annan on Thursday called Préval’s victory a ”reasonable way” to settle an impasse over vote fraud allegations that could have led to violence.
”Mr Réne Garcia Préval is credited with 51,15% of the votes, based on 96% of voting stations counted, and is declared the winner,” electoral authorities said in statement.
The announcement followed five days of protests over earlier partial results that gave Préval 48,76% of the vote, short of the 50% majority needed to win outright.
Préval (63) a former president, had rejected the partial results, decrying what he said was ”massive fraud or gross errors” and encouraging his supporters to demonstrate.
Under the internationally brokere deal, electoral authorities said blank votes from the February 7 election had been distributed on a pro-rata basis among the 32 candidates. This took Préval over the 50% mark.
While crowds danced and sang in the streets of Port-au-Prince, former president Leslie Manigat, the runner-up in the election, said Préval’s victory was a ”reward for violence” and that he was robbed of the right to face-off with Préval in a second round.
”As we did in the 1988 coup against us, we say good luck to the country,” said Manigat (75) who was president for less than five months before he was ousted in 1988.
He accused the government of caving in to pressure from Préeval and certain members of the international community.
Government officials insisted foreign diplomats never imposed a deal but helped find a solution to avert renewed turmoil in Haiti, which plunged into chaos in early 2004, when Aristide resigned and fled the country.
”The diplomats backed the government in its efforts to appease the situation,” said Michel Brunache, chief of staff for interim Haitian President Boniface Alexandre.
Brazilian Foreign Minister Celso Amorim said his government acted as ”facilitator” in the discussions.
Brazil leads the 9 500-strong UN international peacekeeping force Minustah in Haiti and was among the first, with Chile and Canada, to congratulate Préval.
Préeval was president from 1996 to 2001. He served as prime minister in Aristide’s government in 1991, but his aides say the two men are no longer in contact. Aristide is currently living in exile in South Africa.
Like Aristide, Préval is considered a champion of the poor, who make up 77% of Haiti’s 8,5-million population. – AFP
