President Jocelerme Privert announces his decision to leave on February 7th

JOCELERME PRIVERT: “I will leave on February 7th.” That is the headline of the front page of the daily paper “The Quotidien.”

In response to a question asked by the daily newspaper “The Quotidien”: Will you leave office on February 7th if no elected candidate, confirmed by the CEP comes out on top in these elections, the President Privert answered:

I was asked this question twice this week. My position is clear. I will leave on February 7th, 2017. Yesterday, in front of numerous member of the international community, I repeated that I will leave on February 7th.”

Also on the news this week: the resumption of work at the tabulation center. This process began on Tuesday, December 20th. The electoral Court ordered the verification of 12 %  or 1,560 votes.

“The National” wrote: “According to representatives from Fanmi Lavalas and Pitit Dessalines the first votes examined were ridden with irregularities.”

 

The verification of ballots continues

Still on the same subject: “Haiti Libres” writes:  

The verification began on Tuesday, but with much tension, difficulties and delays...

In addition, the electoral court decided after dialoguing with political parties to include 27 PVs of Jean-Charles Moise, as well as the 364 PVs of Jude Célestin handed to the court for verification purposes. This number of PV is included in the total 1,560 PV that have be to be verified.

The beginning of the verification, which was initially planned for noon didn’t actually start until about 7:00 am p.m. because of the difficulties between the parties, to get agree with each other on the method of how to select a sample of 12 percent of the PVs.

According to the method finally, adopted, the number of PVs selected randomly and by taking into account the size of every department, will be read aloud, as well as the number of votes obtained by each candidate and the motive of the PV. Then, every challenging party is entitled to a few minutes to examine it, without the touching it.  The PV be protected by plastic. They can then make their comments.

 

Escape of the prison of Gonaïves:

Seven prisoners have escaped. The incident would have occurred the night between December 19 and December 20. Two months ago, some prisoners would have tried to escape from the same prison. They were unsuccessful. But this time, having sawed the bars off a window in the back of the building, they managed to escape.

The National commented on the escape with declarations by Maryse Jonas, the governments’ Commissioner in Gonaïves. She said she was surprised that prisoners escape from this building made into a Prison, but which was not built for that purpose. In fact, the opposite would have surprised her.

Nevertheless HPN, published comments made by people in charge of the General Inspection for the Haitian National Police, and they believed that the escape of the 7 prisoners of the civil prison of Gonaïves on December 20th, 2016, was due to the carelessness of the policemen officers on duty.

 

Seizure of 3.000 tons of drug in Jamaica: this drug was intended for Haiti

On Wednesday evening at about 11:30 pm, the police of Portland (Jamaica) seized 3,000 pounds of Cannabis intended for Haiti, during a special operation in White River.

Within 21 bags, narcotics were found in a hut. Also, two individuals considered to be leading players in the business of “drug for weapons," were arrested and placed in police custody.

The Police of Portland is convinced that this Cannabis estimated at 15 million Jamaican dollars (± 120,000 US dollars), was intended to trade drugs for weapons practiced by local fishermen and their counterparts in Haiti.

The assistant Superintendent of Police Rex Swearing, Commanding Officer of the Portland Police, believes that this seizure has allowed to prevent the entry of dozens of weapons to Jamaica illegally.

 

Christmas Village in Jacmel

From December 23rd to the 25th, the Christmas Village of Jacmel enchanted the Christmas and New Year holidays for all families. Participants could discover the city’s festivities, gastronomy as well as a great diversity of arts and crafts, while adding a zest of ecology and respect for the environment. As always, Jacmel is a creative cultural destination!

The Digicel Foundation brings joy:

Last Monday, the Digicel Foundation brought joy to students St-Anne’s Presbyterian School of Yacinthe (a province of Petit-Gôave) where of youngsters between the ages of 5 and 16 received gifts. This event fell within the framework of an initiative by the Foundation for the last 4 years. Its objective is to allow children at the school, it has built, to experience "The Magic of Christmas".

Celebrating 200 years of the Lower House.

Port-au-Prince, December 9th, 2016 - (AHP) – the Chamber of Deputies is getting ready to celebrate its bicentennial. The President of the Assembly, Cholzer Chancy reminds that the lower house was established in 1816, while the senate already existed.

To celebrate 200 years of the Lower House several activities have been planned including a retreat on the logistic and the work of the parliament.

Considering the importance of this institution in the democratic process, Chancy considers that this occasion should not go unnoticed.

Deputy Patrick Norzéus, president of the ad hoc committee informed that representatives of the U.S. congress will visit the country in honor of this celebration.

 

US Haiti Aid Reports to Congress Include “Incomplete Data,” Fail to “Link Projects and Outcomes,” New Review Finds

 State Department Reports Also Fail to Adequately Identify Mistakes and Lessons Learned

WASHINGTON - A new paper from the Center for Economic and Policy Research (CEPR) and the Haiti Advocacy Working Group (HAWG) reviews reports released by the US State Department on contracts for Haiti aid and finds significant omissions and deficiencies, including incomplete data, a failure to link projects and outcomes, and a failure to adequately identify mistakes and lessons learned. The State Department reports are intended to comply with the Assessing Progress in Haiti Act, which was signed into law in August 2014. CEPR and HAWG incorporated Haitian civil society feedback in their review of these reports.

“The Assessing Progress in Haiti Act represents a significant, bipartisan effort by the US Congress to shed light on how effectively US taxpayer dollars are being used to assist Haiti with its ongoing rebuilding efforts years after its devastating 2010 earthquake,” CEPR analyst and report coauthor Alexander Main said. “Unfortunately, while State is releasing some information, there is still a great need for additional clarity and detail to obtain the transparency and accountability that people in both the US and Haiti deserve.”

“Nearly seven years after the earthquake, much of the Haitian population still struggles to meet basic needs; there has been improvement in some sectors, but key national indicators such as food security and economic growth have actually worsened,” Jasmine Huggins, paper coauthor and Senior Policy and Advocacy Officer for Church World Service, said. “As Haiti addresses future development challenges in the aftermath of Hurricane Matthew, it is critically important that we all understand how past US aid was spent, who benefitted and what lessons we have learnt from projects implemented.”

Among the shortfalls that CEPR and HAWG identify:

•    Incomplete information: There is a significant quantity of missing data at the subprime level, equivalent to 34 percent of the $300 million awarded to subprime partners.
•    No clear links between projects and outcomes: The report fails to provide information about what benchmarks and goals have and have not been met at the project level.
•    No clear picture of who the beneficiaries of US assistance are.
•    Scant information on US coordination with Haitian and international entities.
•    No information on nongovernmental capacity building.
•    A failure to identify mistakes and lessons learned.

CEPR and HAWG also noted:

Haitian [civil society] groups are largely unaware of the APHA reports, suggesting that USAID and the State Department have done little to familiarize groups with the reports. In addition, no part of the report has been translated into French or Kreyòl, rendering them inaccessible to the vast majority of Haitians.

“As organizations that partner with local Haitian civil society, we continually push the U.S. government to more and better consultation with Haitians to make international aid more accountable to the people it is intended to reach,” noted coauthor Charissa Zehr of the Mennonite Central Committee US Washington Office.

The paper’s authors attempted to remedy this by sharing selections of the State Department reports with Haitian civil society organizations, and included their feedback and questions in the CEPR/HAWG review.

The Assessing Progress in Haiti Act’s key actionable component is its reporting requirement instructing the US State Department to produce four annual reports with detailed information on the status of US aid programs in Haiti. CEPR and HAWG reviewed the 2014 and 2015 reports released by the State Department.

The Haiti Advocacy Working Group is comprised of international development, faith-based, human rights, and social justice organizations advocating on issues related to US-Haiti policy.

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The Center for Economic and Policy Research (CEPR) was established in 1999 to promote democratic debate on the most important economic and social issues that affect people's lives. In order for citizens to effectively exercise their voices in a democracy, they should be informed about the problems and choices that they face. CEPR is committed to presenting issues in an accurate and understandable manner, so that the public is better prepared to choose among the various policy options.

A plan to regulate motorcycle taxis was just revealed by the police

Police Commissioner Carl Henry Boucher explained that this plans aims at establishing a database on the owners and drivers of motorcycle taxis.

During an interview with the daily newspaper, “The National,” the police commissioner explained: “We established a database with information gathered on the motorcycles owners, the drivers, and two references supplied those concerned.”

At the launching of this project last Wednesday at the Petion-Ville Police Station, a vest was handed to each driver. Every driver will be identified by a number and a helmet sticker. A color code has also been established within the framework of this plan. Every municipality in the metropolitan zone will be assigned a color.

The head of the Haitian National Police has been very concerned about the crimes committed by motorcyclists, especially on victims coming out of banks. Boucher explained: “With the implementation of this plan, the police was able to document no less than 4,775 motorcycles, out of which 369 are suspected by the police. At this time, the owners of these motorcycles have been summoned to verify the origin of these vehicles.

This database will allow the police to go back and investigate crimes by men on motorcycle. "A person, a vest, a number" insisted the Police Commissioner, who did not say however what will take place if a motorcycle driver does not wear his vest, or if he disappears with no trace as it usually happens.

During a police stop, motorcyclists will need to provide their registration, but not their license. That way, the police know at which police station the motorcycle was registered.