Port au Prince (Agenzia Fides) – Haiti experienced a period of quiet the day after the presidential and legislative elections, held on Sunday 20 March. Meanwhile counting of the votes has begun, which will culminate on 31 March with the announcement of interim results. We will have to wait until 16 April for the official results. The capital, Port au Prince, has returned to normality, like the rest of the Country, without major incident after the polls closed and the count began. Haitians voted to choose a successor to President René Preval, between the former first lady Mirlande Manigat and singer Michel Martelly, as well as to replace seven of the 30 senators and 79 of the 99 deputies.
The elections were held in an atmosphere of relative normality, although two people were killed and three others injured in separate incidents that occurred in the north of the Country. Minor incidents were also recorded in different cities. Because of irregularities in the delivery of election material to various polling stations in the capital, the time for voting was extended by one hour due to delays.
The Mission of the United Nations for the Stabilisation of Haiti (Minustah) observed that the second round of elections was held under conditions “significantly improved with respect to the first round, despite several logistical and administrative problems and isolated instances of violence around the Country.” In a statement, the UN Mission congratulated the Haitians for their “patriotic spirit, and the calm and discipline shown”, which “reveals the importance of democracy to the Haitian people.” (CE) (Agenzia Fides, 22/03/2011)
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