Dr Daniel Schwanen, Executive Director of CIGI,
Ambassador Paulo Cordeiro, Ambassador of Brazil in Canada,
General Eduardo Aldunate,
Senator Mirlande Manigat,
Dr Leslie Voltaire,
Ambassdor Jorge Heine and Mrs. Norma Heine,
Dr Andrew Thompson,
Dr Yasmin Shansie,
Dear Friends,
Ladies and Gentlemen,

Introduction


I am indeed pleased and honored to have been invited to deliver the opening address at this important workshop with the interesting title “Haiti’s Governance Challenges and the International Community”, a title which can be interpreted in many ways and expressing a cause-effect relation which in itself, taking into account Haiti’s dynamic history and role in the Western Hemisphere possibly may provide a perspective for further study.

I thank the Centre for International Governance Innovation and the Laurier Centre for Military Strategic and Disarmament Studies for the honor and for organizing such a gathering of such eminent authorities from Haiti and on Haiti, at a time when the people of Haiti are going through another difficult period, this time not caused by man but by nature. Mobilizing powerful political, social and intellectual energy at such a time will hopefully result in positive and constructive thinking, providing hope for a better future in a country often so wrongfully pictured in the international media. A perception which need to be corrected structurally and systematically and I hope all of will contribute to that new and positive picture about Haiti and its people.

The Republic of Haiti, the second republic in the Western Hemisphere, for those who do not know, was one of the original signatories of the Charter of the Organization of American States in April 1948 in Santa Fe de Bogota, Colombia, the only CARICOM country at that time independent and sovereign. Haiti and the OAS go indeed a long way back.

During the recently held meeting of the Group of Friends of Haiti in Washington DC I felt compelled to explain that my commitment to Haiti and its people had to do with the fact that the many challenges each country in the Hemisphere face, in some form and with a certain degree of intensity they all come together in Haiti, whether that is the strength of democracy, the challenges related to the political or electoral process, the economic vulnerabilities or the security problems. And I believe that the OAS has a moral obligation to accompany Haiti in its efforts towards consolidation of democracy and development, otherwise I feel, keeping in mind the purpose and objectives of the OAS, we all in the Americas have failed.

Perspectives on Haiti and Haitian society

At the outset I would like to say that I will be frank in my perspectives and assessment of developments as I see them unfolding in the Republic of Haiti and I do assure you that they are not meant to be offensive, on the contrary my remarks should be put in the context of my commitment to Haiti as a country where positive things can happen also. At the same time I will not be able to be complete and comprehensive in my presentation, but having seen the program and speakers of the workshop over the coming two days, I am convinced that many issues and perspectives I will not be able to raise will be extensively discussed by scholars here present.

Over the past ten years I had the pleasure to be involved in the recent political developments in Haiti in different capacities, first as Assistant Secretary General for Foreign and Community Relations of the Caribbean Community, then as Adviser to Secretary General Cesar Gaviria of the OAS and now as Assistant Secretary General of the Organization of America States, in which capacity I chair the Haiti Task Force as well as the Group of Friends of Haiti in Washington DC. In these ten years I have visited Haiti at least sixty times –a short while ago, I stopped counting- and I say all of this to you just to make the point that I know a little of Haiti’s current political and development challenges, and the hemispheric and international efforts to assist the people and Government of Haiti, but I still know too little about the country to consider myself an expert on the country.

While, in my view, it is quite difficult as an outsider to understand in a complete sense the Haitian psyche, which given the complexity of the life and history of the people of Haiti is quite understandable, I have come to appreciate two aspects of the Haitian people very much: firstly, their pride in being Haitian and what it stands for and secondly their enormous creative ability in arts, music, dance and … politics. Here I see a country not only with challenges, but also a country with opportunities, because “pride” and “creativity” well applied can lead to stability, prosperity and progress, to a bright future.

This is my perspective on the Republic of Haiti, a positive one, as a country not in crisis, but as a country with opportunity and a future. Therefore, I feel very comfortable with CIGI’s approach regarding Haiti, because we need to see Haiti through a positive and optimistic lens, despite the clouds shrouding the news and the images presented. I believe that any discussion that does not depart from such a premise on what is considered the poorest nation in the Western Hemisphere is doomed to focus on “what cannot be done” rather than “what can be done”. Those who expect change to take place “overnight” are wrong and unrealistic. The deep rooted structural impediments to sound political, social and economic development cannot be changed instantly; it will require the adoption of a step by step approach.

I regret to say that in my experience over the past ten years these two critical assets have been applied in a counterproductive manner by Haitians themselves. Often I am surprised about the enormous amount of “talk” among Haitians and between Haitians and the international community, but with little or no “action” or “decision”. For the Haitian political players in the executive and legislative branch it is important to change this attitude and focus on commitment for structural change, putting the nation first, placing the people first. In the period before the 2004 elections I witnessed long hours of discussions between opposing political leaders, without at any point demonstrating the willingness for compromise or without taking into account or mentioning the interest of the eight million Haitians. This can and has created misunderstanding, confusion and sometimes disrespect in the international community at times when action, commitment and cooperation were the only way forward.

I continue to believe that Haiti’s development is first and foremost the responsibility of Haitians; that is Haiti’s politicians, civil service, private sector, academia, media, civil society at large and the diaspora, which plays a critical role in mitigating the impact of social and economic underdevelopment. I believe a culture change is necessary for every Haitian to feel responsible for the well-being of their fellow citizens. The international community can only assist and do so much. I equally believe that the support provided by the international community should be based on the priorities and needs identified by the Government of Haiti. I regret that many scholars have deemed it necessary to put labels on countries, like characterizing Haiti as a “failed state”. I generally dislike putting labels on people and for that matter on countries, because I believe that the reality is far more complex than these labels can describe or convey. Yes, Haiti has challenges, problems and weaknesses, and maybe from a certain perspective more than other countries, but the more relevant question is why, because of what or who Haiti has failed !

OAS – Haiti relationship

Having outlined the parameters of my perspective on Haiti, allow me to share with you now the engagement of the OAS with the Republic of Haiti in recent times.

Let me recall that the OAS has been supporting the Haiti people for very long. During my last visit to Haiti mid September, the Minister of Foreign Affaires, His Excellency Alrich Nicolas reminded me of a study issued by the OAS in 1954 on the economic perspectives in Haiti. Minister Nicolas felt that many of the proposals made then still hold relevancy today.

Since 1990 the OAS, sometimes in partnership with other global, regional and sub-regional entities, has provided support to Haiti to strengthen democracy, governance, rule of law and human rights. I do not need to inform you about the political challenges the country has faced in the 90’s and the early part of the new century. You know that better than I do. Since the disputed elections in 2000 the political situation in Haiti’s has been receiving the attention of the General Assembly and the Permanent Council of the OAS, where we since have adopted more than 10 resolutions outlining the mandate to the General Secretariat and positions of the collectivity of the member states. In this period several high level missions have visited Haiti to provide assistance and seek to facilitate a way forward.

In preparation for the 2006 Presidential and General Elections the OAS registered more than 4.5 million Haitians and provided them for the first time in Haitian history with a national identity card with their picture on it. In many ways Haiti has a more comprehensive and modern national identity card than many other countries in the Western Hemisphere. So far, in preparation for the outstanding partial senatorial elections, the OAS has been able to register 94% of the adult population of the country.

The organization helps to manage 141 offices all over the country. A total of 570,000 national ID cards are being delivered representing those who reached the required age since the last election and are now eligible to cast a ballot. The OAS is completing the process to allow Haiti to print ID cards locally and to expedite the distribution of the ID cards.

This flagship program, with the support of Canada, continues today and the objective is to expand the registration to include all Haitians, and possibly also Haitians living abroad.. Ultimately, the OAS’s objective is to train Haitians to manage the project and hand over the registration and issuance of ID cards to the Office of National Identity. I believe that this national database will also provide an opportunity to establish a modern cadastre as well as be useful in terms of other development initiatives.

Another important flagship program is the support to the Provisional Electoral Council and when it has been transformed into a Permanent Electoral Council in strengthening the executive capacity of the bureau of this organization. I believe that it is important in every country to professionalize, better equip and house the electoral authorities, with independent funding and training of staff, so that quality and timely elections can be delivered in accordance with the law and with minimum political intervention.

Haiti has a very complicated electoral system and calendar, which I believe needs to be revisited I do not believe that the Haitian budget can finance all the prescribed elections on its own and ultimately a healthy discussion will be required to consider how to simplify the electoral system. In a country with so many other challenges which need to be addressed urgently and adequately to provide a better living environment, I believe it makes sense to undertake such an exercise and use the saved funds for fighting extreme poverty and educating the youth, especially in the rural areas.

In the mean time the electoral cycle has not been completed. Despite the complexity of the political system in Haiti, I believe that delays in holding those elections should be avoided. During my recent visit His Excellency President Rene Preval requested the support of the OAS in the holding of the outstanding partial senatorial elections. The new electoral law presents its challenges with the obligation to have at least two voting centers in every communal section. That will increase the budget to US$17 million for these elections.

Currently the CEP is preparing the education campaign and the electoral list with the assistance of the OAS. The OAS will also establish a tabulation centre for the upcoming election. As you all know, the House of Deputies and the Senate approved the electoral law and now we are waiting on the date for the senatorial elections in 2009.

I believe it is important to create an environment of peace and stability in Haiti that does not result in volatility in the political and democratic process. Democracy is established, the people of Haiti have demonstrated that they committed to this process, it is up to the politicians and legislators to further strengthen this trust and confidence. For the OAS a peaceful consolidation of democracy and the electoral process is of critical importance.

But having a constitution, a parliament and a democratic framework is not enough to create peace, stability and prosperity. These are necessary preconditions for democratic governance and the implementation of sound economic and social policies to improve the lives of the Haitians and ultimately that is what governments are elected to do. The reality is that poor people cannot fill their stomach with admirable values and norms on how they best behave in society or feed their children and educate them. They expect democracy to deliver and improve in real terms their lives and of their children !

It is against this background that the OAS has also embarked on supporting Haiti in areas of development: trade, tourism, investment and sustainable development. All aimed at fostering an environment for job creation and income generation and increase of the productive capacity.

It would take me too much time to go into detail on what we do in each of these areas, but suffice to say that the OAS collaborates in these areas with specialized institutions, such as the Inter-American Institute for Agriculture, the Pan-American Health Organization, the Inter-American Development Bank and the Pan-American Development Foundation, the Caribbean Regional Negotiating Machinery and with the private sector. We have now the formal request from the Haitian Government to organize the proposed Haiti Trade and Investment Forum, so as to advertise the economic potential of the country to the international private sector.

The Inter-American Human Rights Commission is continuing its assistance in the area of human rights, which include training and empowerment of especially women organizations.

I believe that most critical for Haiti’s structural development and growth will be the education of its people. As stated in the Inter-American Democratic Charter, “education is key to strengthening democratic institutions, promoting the development of human potential, and alleviating poverty and fostering greater understanding among our peoples”. There is no way a country can compete globally in a society of knowledge with a majority of its people illiterate.

The OAS is currently facilitating a closer collaboration between the University of the West Indies and three universities in Haiti: the State University of Haiti, Kiskeya University and the Notre Dame University. We hope to meet in early November in Kingston, Jamaica to discuss programs of collaboration as well as student exchanges.

I believe that the relationship between the Republic of Haiti and the other member states of the Caribbean Community need to be strengthened in a meaningful way. Haiti as a full fledge member of CARICOM has to comply with rules, regulations and agreements established by the sub-regional integration entity. But to make Haiti become and be seen as one of the others, it is important to embark on a process of systematic, targeted, and structured relationship building. Not only at the level of the Government and the CARICOM Secretariat, but also and may be more so, foster a meaningful relation at the level of the people, between cultural institutions, media, sport organizations, academia, ngo’s, political parties, parliaments, etc.

Haiti faces many other challenges and bilateral and multilateral assistance is provided to address some of these fundamental issues. A concerted efforts needs to be made to modernize and strengthen critical institutions of government in Haiti and to build capacity to be able to plan, program, design, execute and monitor development initiatives.

In many areas structural reform and rehabilitation will be necessary, such as security, the judiciary, the educational system, and agriculture and land distribution. For the Haitian people to thrive, justice and security cannot be overlooked. Without security, law enforcement and a trustworthy judiciary, domestic and foreign investments cannot be attracted and policies to increase productivity and employment will fail.

The United Nations MINUSTAH troops, with a historic commitment from Latin American nations, have been, in my view quite effective in dealing with some of the critical security challenges, but they cannot stay forever in Haiti. I am convinced that at some point consideration will be given to exit strategies for these military forces. Discussions on a regular basis in the troop contributing countries signal that this discussions will need to take sooner than later. In this regard the strengthening and further expansion of the Haitian National Police will be “sine qua non” for the departure of MINUSTAH. I have observed during my recent visits to Haiti an increased visibility of the police in the streets and that has enormously improved the general feeling of safety among the public. But the HNP continues to struggle to equip new police officers and to provide them with secondary benefits.

Impact hurricanes in Haiti

I visited Haiti less than two weeks ago, in the aftermath of the passage of four hurricanes in three weeks time, Fay, Gustav, Hanna and Ike. I was able to fly to Gonaives and observe firsthand the devastation, leaving a significant part of the country under flood water, forcing thousands of people out of their homes and wreaking economic and social havoc. It is estimated that the damages caused to the agricultural sector could amount to US$200 million. The natural disaster will significantly slow down the growth rate from a 4% projection to 2.5% in 2009, and the inflation rate could soar to 20% for the same period.

I am pleased to note that a new Prime Minister and Cabinet have been approved by the Haitian legislative bodies. While it took almost five months and three nominations to arrive at consensus, I must say that from a certain perspective I am pleased that the absence of a Prime Minister did not lead to a full blown political crisis and that within the political environment of Haiti this matter could be settled. I believe that we see here an element of a functioning democracy, because on previous occasions such a situation could have deteriorated in crisis, need for external facilitation and pressure.

Prime Minister Michel Pierre-Louis could not take office at a more difficult time. While Haiti grapples with a cumbersome electoral system, the need to further strengthen democracy and the volatile relationship between the legislative bodies and the executive authorities, the food crisis, the impact of surging energy prices, unemployment, etc. etc, the Republic was battered by four hurricanes in a short period of time. I am convinced that no country in the Americas could have addressed the impact of these natural hazards effectively, but in the case of Haiti, with its damaged environment, the impact has been more grave and intense. In this regard special mention should be made of the quick response from MINUSTAH by establishing helicopter bridges to many areas, which could not be reached by road given the fact that eight bridges totally were washed away.

The challenges for this new administration therefore have been compounded extremely. We are of course pleased that internationally individuals, organizations and countries have or are mobilizing support for Haiti. Earlier this week a hearing in the US Congress called for a 300 million dollar aid package, on top of the flash appeal of the United Nations amounting to US 108 million. I support also the call for temporary protective status for some 20.000 undocumented Haitians in the USA as well as the suspension of deportations to the country.

The impact of the hurricanes does not bode well for Haiti, as not only almost one million persons have been displaced, public facilities and utilities, including hospitals and critical infrastructure, have been destroyed, but also a great deal of the productive capacity has been damaged.

While in the immediate and short term humanitarian relief, medical assistance, food supplies, shelters, and many other goods and services will be required, I am concerned about the prospects of the for the mid- and long term.

The recovery phase will require targeted management of what and where to repair and rebuild first, as well as regarding the distribution of goods and services to those most in need. This can present unique challenges to the executive capacity of Haiti, as well as the mobilization resources to rebuild bridges, roads and other critical productive infrastructure.

Taking into account the destruction of crops, the expectation is that food shortages will occur in a couple of month time. At the same time if food distribution is not targeted only to those most in need, it can structurally damage existing production capacity, thereby creating price distortions. I am afraid that if such a situation is not managed well and timely, social unrest can occur and possible creating political instability and the consequences of this we have observed earlier this year. Haiti needs a period of 12-18 months of budget support to deal effectively with the impact of the hurricanes during which period a start can be made with the rehabilitation of the agricultural sector and the reconstruction of critical physical infrastructure.

In the long term Haiti’s authorities will have to take bold decisions in terms of a structural response to hurricanes, floods, etc. These will include possibly the relocation of villages to safer areas, strict enforcement on where and how to build, but most importantly to develop a structural approach to fight the environmental crisis, which need to include re-forestation, watershed management, drainage systems, barriers, etc. The Department of Sustainable Development of the OAS is prepared to put a team together to assist Haiti in developing such a plan.

Conclusion

In conclusion I believe that, despite the many challenges, Haiti’s current political environment reflects a unique momentum for enhanced unity and commitment to structural growth and development.

After the Presidential elections of 2006 we observed a couple of developments that bode well for the future of Haiti.

The inclusive approach from President Preval in establishing the cabinet created a relative stable political platform. In previous elections we observed a fragmented political environment resulting in instability and a constant process of crisis management. I believe this inclusive approach, however weak, has also created, at least up to a couple of months ago, a better relationship between the Parliament and the Administration.

Another important development was that the new administration was able to present a policy framework and plan for social and economic development, the so called National Strategy Document for Growth and Poverty Reduction, which will need a revision to reflect the social, economic and financial consequences of the hurricanes. This may be an overly ambitious plan, but if Haiti can realize half of it, a sustained growth path would have been initiated.

I think that the new Government should reschedule the postponed donor conference in Port au Prince as soon as possible to discuss the financing and implementation modalities of the DSNCRP. I believe that it will be important for Haiti to allocate within its national budget resources to finance a substantive part of this plan. International assistance can only be additional to the required resources. It is also time to end the dependency of Haiti regarding its development initiatives from foreign aid, which if sustained over a too long period becomes counterproductive to indigenous development.

Earlier I mentioned briefly that Haiti enjoys after the 2006 elections the highest levels of political and financial support internationally. But, Haiti has received in the past billions of dollars of financial aid and today many have a feeling of “déjà vu” when certain initiatives or projects are being proposed. Therefore, in my view, it is also time to focus on sustainability of the support.

While the international community can play an important role in support of the policies and priorities identified by the Haitian authorities, a close coordination within the international community as well as with Haitian counterparts is of critical importance to achieve the best results, without duplicating efforts and wasting available resources. In the same way –and this is based on experience in another country- policy coordination or at least consultation on objectives and interests of supporting countries can contribute to a more consistent and clear relationship between the host country and the donors. Sometimes we get the feeling that agenda’s and interests of key players are not clear or in competition with other important donors, which often do not relate to the immediate needs of the country.

It is of critical importance to keep this constructive political platform alive, to use the high level of international and especially hemispheric solidarity to implement the agreed strategy for growth and poverty reduction, because no one can predict when the global or hemispheric environment changes and contributing countries will have to limit or withdraw their support. While a window of opportunity exist, it is relative and to cease it now is the best way forward for Haiti.

Rebuilding a modern state, creating a productive economy and maintaining a stable social system, will require political will and courage, unity and solidarity, in the first place among Haitians themselves. Integral to this approach should be putting the nation and its people’s needs first.

For some unidentifiable reason or feeling, I am convinced that Haitians –at home and abroad- collectively can create this true transformation and put an end to the suffering of the people. But, of course, history will tell !

I thank you very much for listening and your attention and I look forward to the proceedings of the workshop, which I am sure will provide also guidance to the Organization of American States.