(No. 32 - January 21, 2011 - 4:50 p.m. ET) The Honourable Lawrence Cannon, Minister of Foreign Affairs, today reiterated Canada's concern over the ongoing political crisis in Haiti.
"Canada endorses the report of the Expert Mission of the Organization of American States to verify the preliminary results of the Haitian presidential election, and strongly urges the Provisional Electoral Council to accept and implement the report's recommendations and to proceed with the next steps of the electoral process accordingly," said Minister Cannon.
The Expert Mission of the Organization of American States (OAS) for the verification of the vote tabulation of the November 28, 2010, presidential election delivered its report to the Government of Haiti on January 13, 2011. Following the January 17 visit of OAS Secretary General José Miguel Insulza, the report was officially submitted to the Provisional Electoral Council by President René Préval on January 18. This report contains an assessment and recommendations on the vote tabulation and other factors that had an impact on the preliminary results of the first round.
The report concludes that, due to a number of factors, including fraud, the Expert Mission cannot support the preliminary results of the presidential election released on December 7, 2010.
"Canada reiterates its call for Haiti's political leaders to fulfill their democratic obligations," said Minister Cannon. "They must work to ensure that the electoral process continues so that the democratic transition can be completed as soon as possible. In order to strengthen democracy in Haiti, it is imperative that the process and the results be credible and transparent.
"As I have said many times, the international community alone cannot rebuild Haiti. Political stability can only be achieved by the Haitians themselves democratically electing an efficient, honest and responsible government to lead the people through the next critical stage of recovery and reconstruction. Time is running out."
To view the full text of the report, please visit Final Report - Expert Verification Mission of the Vote Tabulation of the November 28th, 2010 Presidential Election in the Republic of Haiti.
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For further information, media representatives may contact:
Lynn Meahan
Press Secretary
Office of the Minister of Foreign Affairs
613-995-1851
Foreign Affairs Media Relations Office
Foreign Affairs and International Trade Canada
613-995-1874
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