S/PV.7372 Security Council

The Security Council will now begin its consideration of the item on its agenda. At this meeting, the Council will hear briefings by the representatives of the United States and Chile, the co-leads of the Security Council mission to Haiti.

I would like to thank you, Mr. President, for scheduling today’s briefing and for your leadership on what I think we all believe was a timely and valuable mission of the Security Council to Haiti. I would also like to thank all of our colleagues on the Council who joined us in Haiti, since the participation of all 15 members underscored the Council’s consistent and unanimous commitment to Haiti’s stability, prosperity and democracy. The timing of the mission proved serendipitous for the Council’s engagement on Haiti’s troubling situation. Haiti’s failure to hold overdue parliamentary elections, attributable in part to its failure to enact an electoral law, resulted in a lapsed Parliament on 12 January, when the terms of all the members of the Chamber of Deputies and half of the Senate’s remaining 20 members ended. That development has left President Martelly running the Government under executive authority. While that circumstance is anticipated and permitted in Haiti’s Constitution, and has unfortunately happened on multiple occasions in the past, the loss of the principal check on presidential power has provoked renewed anxiety inside and outside Haiti about the health of the country’s democracy. Against that backdrop, we met with President Martelly and a number of his ministers, the 10 remaining seated senators and a range of opposition political leaders. Our message to all was consistent: all sides must redouble their efforts to engage in a constructive dialogue and come to an agreement on a framework for free, fair and inclusive elections as soon as possible, which is in the best interests of the Haitian people. We were encouraged by President Martelly’s commitment to limit his use of executive authority, to ensuring the continuity of the State and to organizing elections. Also encouraging was his stated determination to stress inclusiveness and consultation in managing State affairs, as reflected in his formation of a multiparty Government under a Prime Minister drawn from the opposition. The commitment of many opposition parties and leaders to work with the President to find a way out of the political stalemate and put the good of the Haitian people first, notwithstanding their differences, was also heartening. Checks and balances in Haiti are key, and even more important since the lapsing of the Parliament. The Council conveyed our view that the perceived legitimacy of policies and institutions hinged on the perception that they are derived from broad segments of society and have broad buy-in. We had an unexpected opportunity to meet with Haiti’s new provisional Electoral Council, installed the day of our arrival. Drawn from civil society, the provisional Council is charged with developing a framework for the elections crucial to Haiti’s stability. We were impressed with the Electoral Council’s seriousness of purpose and commitment to independence, and we offered its members our full support. We also met with leaders from Haitian civil society, in particular women’s groups who reminded us of just how much work remains to ensure justice and equality for all Haitians, as well as reminding us of civil society’s critical role in the continued stabilization and development of Haiti. They too can count on our continued support and attention, as we told them when we met. In Port-au-Prince and Cap-Haïtien, we had multiple opportunities to meet with the leadership of the United Nations Stabilization Mission in Haiti (MINUSTAH) and see first-hand the critical work the Mission is carrying out in support of its mandate — a Mission that has stuck with the Haitian people through thick and thin. From supporting the Haitian National Police to pushing for solutions to the problem of lengthy pretrial detention, the Mission is helping ensure a better future for the Haitian people. Let me again thank and commend Special Representative of the Secretary-General Sandra Honoré, her team, including troops and police, and all of MINUSTAH’s troop- and police-contributing countries for all of their support for Haiti’s stability and development. Our moving visit to Haiti’s national memorial for all who lost their lives in the earthquake, which struck five years ago this month, reminded us of the extraordinary scale of the devastation Haiti has endured and the tremendous suffering it caused. For those who have not seen the memorial, it is marked by a large piece of rubble that stands as a stark symbol of all that was destroyed on that day. Yet, in spite of the significant challenges that persist, on our trip we saw evidence everywhere of the incredible resilience and determination of the Haitian people, of rubble that has not only been cleared, but of new structures that have been put up in its place and new hopes that have been raised with them. The Haitian people will continue to have our support as they work to rebuild their country upon that hope.

I shall now make a statement in my capacity as the representative of Chile. It was an honour for my delegation to co-chair the Council’s mission to Haiti. The visit was an expression of the Security Council’s commitment to Haiti and, at the national level, a demonstration of Chile’s bilateral and multilateral support for that country. With that in mind, it is important to underscore that one of the Council’s primary goals of the trip was to highlight the importance of achieving an inclusive and constructive climate for political stability, democratic governance and development in order to promote conflict prevention. During the visit, Security Council members reaffirmed their support to Haiti and urged all political actors to urgently work together to hold partial legislative elections for the Senate, as well as partial municipal and local elections, that are free, clean, inclusive and transparent, in accordance with Haiti’s Constitution. I will not speak at length on this aspect, which was described in detail by the representative of the United States in her statement. During the visit, Council members also had an opportunity to assess the initiatives undertaken to strengthen the Haitian National Police with the aim of promoting a greater exercise of responsibility by the national authorities of the Haitian State in the maintenance of the country’s stability and security. There was recognition of the progress achieved, as well as agreement that this is one of the main areas in which challenges remained, in particular in the lead-up to the elections. Moreover, during our visit to the women’s prison of Pétionville, it was clear that there was a need to make progress towards ensuring the rule of law and security in Haiti, including access to justice. One of the aspects that most interested Council members concerned the activities related to the evaluation of the implementation of the relevant resolutions of the Council, in particular resolution 2180 (2014), given the importance of maintaining an safe and stable environment, especially during the elections to be held in 2015, and the effects of the political and social situation on Haiti’s stability and security. The activities in Cap-Haïtien can be seen in that framework, since we were able to see up close the quick impact of projects and programmes to reduce community violence developed by the United Nations Stabilization Mission in Haiti (MINUSTAH), which remain key to maintaining a stable and secure environment. With regard to the process of reconfiguring the Mission, members had an opportunity to express their different views on the process at a meeting with the Force Commander. During the specific meetings carried out with representatives of the international community, in particular with the leadership of MINUSTAH, the United Nations country team and various bilateral representations of the various countries committed to Haiti, we observed that international support continued to be fundamental. In that regard, I want to express my gratitude for the tireless work carried out by the Special Representative of the Secretary-General for Haiti, Ms. Sandra Honoré, and her team. We would like to reiterate our support for them. Finally, I want to associate myself with the tribute paid by the representative of the United States to the resilience of the Haitian people demonstrated over the five years since the devastating earthquake, which was manifested during the visit to the memorial erected in their memory. We commend the efforts made by the various Haitian Governments and by the Haitian people to overcome the tragedy and move towards reconstruction. We reiterate our solidarity with the families of the victims and with the survivors. I now resume my functions as President of the Council. On behalf of the Council, I would like to express my appreciation to all of the members of the Security Council and the Secretariat who participated in the mission for the manner in which they discharged their important responsibilities. The Security Council has thus concluded the present stage of its consideration of the item on its agenda.