WASHINGTON, DC – The Secretary General of the Organization of American States, José Miguel Insulza, reiterated that the organization he heads will continue to work in the areas of institutionalization and strengthening of democracy in the Caribbean country that was struck by an earthquake in January, in a speech during the “World Summit on the Future of Haiti: Solidarity beyond the Crisis,” held June 1 and 2 in Punta Cana, Dominican Republic, with the participation of, among others, the President of the Republic of Haiti, René Préval, and former President of the United States of America and United States Special Envoy to Haiti, Bill Clinton.
Recalling the initiatives and meetings that have taken place since the earthquake, the Secretary General said the OAS has, from the beginning been with the government of Haiti and the rest of the international community in coordinating efforts of reconstruction and normalization of the lives of the Haitian people. “The Organization of American States, which has from the beginning been working with the Government of Haiti, and with the rest of the international community and the inter-American system, will fulfill its task in the institutional pillar.”
With respect to the strengthening of the electoral process, the Secretary General insisted on the importance of meeting with the established electoral calendar. “We are working with the United Nations in the next presidential, legislative and local elections and we are going to support the Provisional Electoral Council (CEP) in the updating of the electoral registry, in the organization of the civic education campaign, in the adequate functioning of the tabulation centers and in the use of computerized electoral programs,” Insulza told the Summit’s participants.
Another initiative in which the OAS has been supporting the Government and people of Haiti since 2005 is the modernization of the civil registry and identification systems. In this regard, the head of the top hemispheric organization said he hopes “to be able to provide this year identity documents to 4.3 million adult Haitians, to expand the civil registry to minors and to replace the identity documents of people who lost them during the earthquake.”
“Thanks to this civil identification, citizens will be able to adequately exercise their civil, political, economic and social rights; and the State will have the necessary information to draw up plans for development and strengthen its democratic initiatives,” Insulza said.
In his speech in the Dominical Republic the Secretary General referred to the efforts of the OAS involving the modernization of the cadastre system and land ownership infrastructure. “Less than five percent of the land parcels are documented or recorded, and while there continue to be only traditional customs there will be no possibility to attract foreign investment,” he warned, adding that this challenge could impact the efforts of recovery of businesses and the economic development of the country, and that for this reason the regional organization has assigned great importance to said task.
“After a series of consultations with Haitian authorities, the OAS elaborated a seven-year program to modernize the cadastre system and the infrastructure of land property rights. The objective of this program is to support the efforts of reconstruction with all the necessary information involving land, in particular geodesic characteristics and the tax and property laws,” he explained.
The Summit, convened by the Government of the Dominican Republic, seeks to create permanent ties of solidarity between the international community and Haiti, and to contribute to begin the work of reconstruction. During the one-and-a-half-day event, representatives from various governments and international entities participated, among them the Primer Minister of Haiti, Jean-Max Bellerive, and the Special Representative of the UN Secretary General in Haiti, Edmond Mulet.
