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7714: Aristide acts immediately on support from Summit (fwd)
From: MKarshan@aol.com
Date: April 24, 2001
Contact: Michelle Karshan, Foreign Press Liaison
Tel.: (011509) 228-2058 or mkarshan@aol.com
President Jean-Bertrand Aristide acts immediately
on the encouragement and support received
at the Summit of the Americas
In the Summit's closing declaration, Canadian Prime Minister Jean Chretien
acknowledged that President Aristide has made progress in his efforts to
fulfill the 8-point agreement and asked him to "take rapid action on all of
the commitments made in December" and called on all parties to work "in a
spirit of openness and conciliation" to resolve the political crisis.
President Jean-Bertrand Aristide, acting immediately on this support and
encouragement, upon his return from the Summit on April 23rd, immediately
held a press conference at Haiti's International Airport once again inviting
the opposition to a "fruitful dialogue" in the spirit of "concertation,"
"consensus," and "compromise." Pleased that the OAS is responding to his
request to assist in the process, President Aristide welcomes the upcoming
meeting with the OAS and expresses confidence that there will be a positive
resolution to the political crisis in the very near future
President Aristide again appealed to the opposition saying. "This is the hour
of dialogue, this is the hour of concertation, this is the hour of consensus,
this is the hour of compromise. Our arms are open to receive all our citizens
in mutual respect to continue to find those essential solutions for
democratic growth. I am the president of all Haitians. I have an obligation
to reach out to you to invite you to sit together"
President Aristide reiterated that the government is open and encompasses
many sectors, "my government and the Provisional Electoral Council include
opposition members. What I am concerned about, as president of all Haitians,
is to allow a dialogue that can energize the participation of all citizens in
the management of public affairs. If I want to be president of all the
people, it is necessary that I do so in a way that includes the vast
majority. There is no future for Lavalas without the opposition."
Referring to the upcoming visit of the Secretary-General of the OAS, Cesar
Gaviria, to Haiti, the President stated that, "The date planned to assess the
current process is May 2nd. From now on we hope that through dialogue we will
achieve something substantial. As for us, we have been ready and we are
ready. May the others do the same so that on May 2nd we may indeed have
something substantial that I would call the end of this crisis."
Prior to his departure, President Aristide, in an address to the nation,
explained that it is critical "to find a resolution to the political crisis
in order to resolve the economic crisis." Upon his return, he indicated that
the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) and the World Bank are committed to
releasing funds as soon as there is a resolution to the crisis arising from
the May 21st elections. "If this evening, a patriotic miracle occurs in the
Haitian crisis, the IDB would be the first financial backer to resolve
several hundred millions of dollars in favor of the country."
Prior to the president's departure, while acknowledging the extreme
conditions the Haitian people are living under, he called on the nation for
peace. Upon his return he said, "I applaud all Haitians who together
maintained the country in peace while I was not here," and he complimented
the Haitian people on their intelligence and for seeking balance. President
Aristide assured the Haitian people that "one of the greatest victories that
they have won in this summit is that they have thirty-three other countries
standing beside them, so that when they cast their ballots their votes will
not be stolen through a coup d'etat." Solidifying his belief that democracy
has indeed taken hold in Haiti, he stated that, "There will be no more coups
d'etat."
On the Summit itself, President Aristide stated that, "We, the democratically
elected heads of states of the Americas, recognize the values and practices
of democracy are fundamentalThe maintenance and reinforcement of the state of
law and of scrupulous respect for the democratic system is both an overall
objective and an engagement which are essential conditions for our presence
at the Summit and for future summits. By consequence, all alterations or
unconstitutional interruptions of democratic order in a state of the
hemisphere constitutes an insurmountable obstacle to the participation of a
government and of a state of process of the Summit of the Americas."
President Aristide, in explaining his role at the Summit and the outcomes he
sought, stated "And we, the heads of states of democratically-elected
governments in the Americas, before adopting a plan of action, worked to
reinforce the representation of democracy...and the protection of human
rights and fundamental liberties. We searched to create greater prosperity
and enlarge all the economic openings in favor of social justice and the
development of human potential."
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