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Tuesday, 11 July, 2000, 01:13 GMT 02:13 UK
US considers action against Haiti
![]() The ballot paper of a candidate arrested during the vote
The United States is considering whether to take action against Haiti following what it described as "incomplete and inappropriate" elections there on Sunday.
Earlier, the United Nations Secretary-General, Kofi Annan, expressed concern that a second round of voting had gone ahead despite irregularities in the first round. The opposition boycotted the elections, and international observers refused to monitor them, saying the first round had favoured the party of the former Haitian President, Jean-Bertrand Aristide. Crucial poll
The poll - to restore an elected congress and senate which were suspended last year - was seen as Haiti's chance to restore democracy after decades of instability.
A BBC correspondent in the region, Peter Greste, says the elections have been critical to Haiti. The country urgently needs an elected legislature in place to run the country after more than a year-and-a-half. Haiti also desperately needs the $500m in foreign aid that donors have kept under lock and key until Haiti puts a legitimate government in place. US criticism State Department spokesman Richard Boucher said the vote was flawed by the fact that senate seats left undecided by the first round were not included. "Failure to include in the July 9 run-off election the seats not won in the first round by absolute majority as prescribed by Haitian electoral law, make this cycle of parliamentary elections incomplete and inappropriate," Mr Boucher said. However, in keeping with previous US remarks about the polls, he stressed that there was still time for the Port-au-Prince authorities to "reaffirm their commitment to a democratic outcome of the electoral process". Anan's regret UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan said on Monday that he regretted that Haiti's Government had gone ahead with weekend elections. Mr Annan said he "wished to express his regret that the electoral council and Haitian authorities chose to proceed with holding run-off parliamentary elections... without having resolved outstanding issues related to the first round." |
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