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U.N. urges Haiti candidates: respect law, shun violence

04 December 2010 02:12 (UTC +04:00)

Baku â€“ APA. Irregularities in Haiti’s elections seem "more serious than initially thought," U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said on Friday, urging candidates and their supporters to respect the law and avoid violence, APA reports quoting â€œReutersâ€.
Ban briefed the U.N. General Assembly in New York on the situation in Haiti, where several days of protests and unrest have followed confused presidential and legislative elections held last Sunday during a cholera epidemic.
"Whatever the complaints or reservations about the process, I urge all political actors to refrain from violence and to start discussions immediately to find a Haitian solution to these problems -- before a serious crisis develops," Ban said.
Preliminary election results are due to be announced on Tuesday, which the international community hopes can produce a stable, legitimate government to lead the recovery of the poor Caribbean country from a devastating January 12 earthquake.
The presidential contest, which featured 18 candidates, is expected to go to a runoff, probably on January 16.
Haitian electoral authorities met in Port-au-Prince with the candidates, a big group of whom -- excluding the front-runners identified by opinion polls -- have called for annulment of the elections.
This group of candidates also denounced "massive fraud," an allegation criticized by the world body and election monitors.
While acknowledging a range of voting problems, Provisional Electoral Council Director General Pierre-Louis Opont said the vast majority of voters were able to cast their ballots.
"The council has decided to move on with the process," he said, adding that would include a second round as required.
Ban said, "While some violence and disruptions on election day are not exceptional in Haiti, the irregularities now seem more serious than initially thought."
Organization of American States/Caribbean Community election observers said they detected a number of irregularities, some serious, in the vote but declared they did not necessarily invalidate the process.
Amid scenes of confusion on Sunday in the capital, many frustrated voters were unable to find the polling stations where they were registered, while a number of stations opened late or lacked the necessary electoral materials or staff.
Up to three people were killed in electoral violence, while at least one polling station was trashed by protesters.
MORE NEEDED TO FIGHT CHOLERA
The U.N. chief urged the candidates, their supporters and all others involved in the elections to respect the law. There is a more than 12,000-strong U.N. peacekeeping force in Haiti.
"Political leaders must put the national interest ahead of personal and partisan ambitions," Ban said.
On Thursday, about 2,000 protesters marched in Port-au-Prince demanding a rerun of the elections. They were led by several presidential candidates who accused outgoing President Rene Preval and his protege and presidential contender Jude Celestin of trying to steal the vote.
Two other presidential front-runners, opposition matriarch Mirlande Manigat and popular musician Michel Martelly, originally joined the other candidates in denouncing fraud on Sunday and calling for an annulment and rerun of the vote.
But after 24 hours of intense pressure from U.N. officials and other foreign diplomats, Manigat and Martelly backed down this week and said they wanted the vote to be counted, saying they expected to be the election leaders.
Ban warned that election unrest would hinder international efforts to fight the unchecked cholera epidemic, which since mid-October has killed about 2,000 Haitians, and probably many more, U.N. officials say.
Ban cited World Health Organization and Pan-American Health Organization estimates that the outbreak could affect as many as 650,000 people in the next six months.
"Without a massive and immediate international response, we will be overwhelmed," Ban said.
He said there was an urgent need for more cholera treatment centers and trained medical and non-medical personnel to run those facilities -- an estimated additional 350 doctors, 2,000 nurses and 2,200 support staff would be required over the next three months, according to the WHO/PAHO.
Cuba had already committed 300 more staff.