Haitians deserve a first-class democracy
OPINION - Ensuring that this election is carried out in a way that provides every voter full and fair access to the political process is paramount...
New leadership can help guide Haiti along the tough road of reconstruction and redevelopment that lies ahead. The country’s new president and leadership will help determine how to allocate billions of dollars in international donations and reconstruction funds which could dramatically transform the political and economic life of this small Caribbean country.
Yesterday, voters throughout Haiti reported to polling sites to cast their ballots in the first elections held since the January 2010 quake that devastated the country. A robust slate of candidates qualified to compete for the presidential seat which is being vacated by current President Rene Preval who is barred from running again because of term limits.
With 1.5 million voters still displaced, a growing cholera epidemic, complaints of voters who had not yet received requisite national identification cards and some reports of violence on the eve of the election, the race was certainly not without challenges. Observers were deployed to many polling sites and efforts were made to ensure that the election would move smoothly.
But, ultimately, Haitian voters encountered a range of problems including exclusion from registration lists, delayed openings at polling sites, many without the requisite national identification card and, in some instances, outright violence. In some areas, polling sites were ransacked and ballot boxes destroyed. Already, a majority of the 19 candidates competing for the presidential seat have called for the election results to be declared null and void.
Despite this, the National Election Council has already certified the results in all but 56 of the country’s polling sites — a recognition, at bare minimum, that problems were severe in at least 3.5 percent of the country’s polling sites. In fact, Gaillot Dorsainvil, the election council president, has acknowledged that ballots had been damaged or destroyed at a number of sites and reported that voters in those locations would be allowed to re-vote. A finally tally of results is not expected before December 7th. How the re-vote will be carried out and whether a revote is warranted in a greater number of places remains to be seen.
Open, free and fair elections represent the cornerstone of any democracy. Ensuring that all eligible citizens are able to cast a vote that will count is a central underlying principle. While the country certainly faces a range of challenges, free and fair elections are a way to jump-start the reconstruction process while restoring faith in government.
The Universal Declaration of Democracy, a set of principles adopted by United Nations member countries including Haiti, outlines a set of basic criteria that governments should strive for in conducting elections. The declaration states that “Every voter has the right to equal and effective access to a polling station in order to exercise his or her right to vote” and that “Every voter is entitled to exercise his or her right equally with others and to have his or her vote accorded equivalent weight to that of others.”
It is unclear whether Haiti’s first post-quake election satisfies these standards and international observer reports, a neutral and impartial interpretation of the situation on the ground, can help impact overall confidence and faith in any final election results that may be announced.
What remains clear is this — Haitians have long awaited and finally deserve a first-class democracy. Elections that have the full faith and confidence of its citizens can help create a pathway to a stronger and more vibrant future for the country. Time may be necessary to make a full assessment about whether yesterday’s election satisfies those standards that the international community deems necessary for fair and free elections.
But, there is no better time that now to commit to the full democratization of Haiti to help close the chapter on a political history that has been long-marred by repression and wide-spread discontent. Ensuring that this election is carried out in a way that provides every voter full and fair access to the political process is paramount. The problems that emerged during yesterday’s election raises doubt that this commitment has been fully carried through.
