In response to an article in The Guardian concerning the ongoing political crisis in Haiti, foreign minister Bocchit Edmond describes the administration’s efforts to build a unity government and move the country forwards.
Your article states that Haiti’s crisis is far from over (Killers lurk in the shadows as Haiti chaos takes a sinister turn, 5 December).
And indeed, at this moment communities are suffering from food and fuel shortages. Pockets of violence undermine efforts to ensure public safety. Crucially, however, schools that were shut for months have begun to reopen, and we also are seeing progress toward a political resolution.
President Jovenel Moise has consistently urged politicians leading the protests that have paralysed our country for months to work with him towards a compromise and form a unity government that would allow us to set a budget, unlocking the hundreds of millions of dollars in available funding for public projects.
For months, these efforts were blocked by a small handful of politicians, including André Michel (cited at length in your article), who instead continued to stoke division and instability. Yet in recent weeks, private meetings between the president and members of the opposition appear to have made progress, and it is the administration’s hope that a unity government can soon be formed.
Your article does not clarify that the controversial PetroCaribe funds were spent not by President Moise’s administration, but previous governments, nor that the president has fiercely denied allegations against him and has committed his administration to independent inquiries and audits.
He has also taken separate bold actions to fight corruption in Haiti, like breaking up longtime, politically connected monopolies and launching a four-year $18m (£13.7m) project with the Organization of American States to strengthen our independent anti-corruption institutions.
PetroCaribe is just the tip of the iceberg for the system of corruption and cronyism that has gripped our country for far too long – genuinely tackling this corrosive issue requires an expansive approach.
President Moise’s determination to pursue negotiation, compromise and unity so that the government can get to work delivering meaningful change and improving lives is the right decision.
We have invited the Inter-American Commission of Human Rights to visit later this month, and we are dedicated to addressing and reconciling the grievances from the past months. As we approach the 10th anniversary of Haiti’s devastating 2010 earthquake this January, all political players should think seriously about doing what it takes to restore peace and build hope and opportunity, together.
Bocchit Edmond
Foreign Minister of Haiti
