U.S. Congressional Delegation builds partnership with Haitian Parliamentarians, expresses continued U.S. support for Haiti

WASHINGTON – On May 8-11, a delegation of U.S. congressional representatives from the House Democracy Assistance Commission (HDAC) visited Haiti.

HDAC is a permanent group of U.S. congressional leaders who work to strengthen democratic institutions around the world through dialogue and exchanges with parliaments in other nations on the subjects of transparency, legislative independence and accountability.

The group, which was led by Representative Mazie Hirono (Democrat – Hawaii), met with President Rene Preval, Prime Minister Michelle Pierre-Louis and a number of Haitian parliamentary leaders including Chamber of Deputies President Levaillant Louis-Jeune and Senate President Kelly Bastien. They also met separately with female parliamentarians.

On May 11, the delegation hosted a conference with Haitian parliamentary representatives to share experiences with legislative research and the impact of accurate information and analysis on legislation. They also discussed an upcoming U.S.-financed project to establish a legislative resource center in Haiti that would support the work of parliamentarians. “We had an excellent series of conversations that really furthered our partnership with the Haitian parliament,” said Rep. Hirono. “Good research and good infrastructure are critical to help members of parliament fulfill their responsibilities to their electorate. We want our Haitian colleagues to have the tools they need to serve the Haitian people.”

The delegation also visited a textile factory that is creating new jobs thanks to duty-free exports to the U.S. granted under the United States’ HOPE II legislation, as well as a three different health sites supported by renowned international NGO Partners in Health and the U.S. Government.

United States Government assistance to Haiti for economic development, health care, education and hurricane reconstruction – over and above substantial contributions from private U.S. citizens and organizations – was slightly over 400 million dollars in 2008.

Members of the delegation also included Rep. David Dreier (Republican – California), Rep. Jim McDermott (Democrat – Washington), Rep. Gwen Moore (Democrat -Wisconsin) and Delegate Kilili Sablan (Democrat – Northern Mariana Islands).