If elections pass muster, Haiti can reenter Caribbean fold
15-member Caricom kicked out Haiti after President Aristide ousted
Saturday, February 11, 2006; Posted: 2:12 p.m. EST (19:12 GMT)
PORT-OF-SPAIN, Trinidad (AP) -- Haiti will be allowed to rejoin the 15-member Caribbean Community if the recent presidential and parliamentary elections are deemed free and fair, the group said.
Haiti's membership in the group, known as Caricom, was suspended after former President Jean-Bertrand Aristide was ousted in February 2004. The group had refused to recognize Haiti's interim government and Caribbean leaders accused the United States and France of being accomplices in Aristide's ouster.
Election workers in Haiti were still tallying the vote on Saturday, but early results showed former President Rene Preval in the lead.
"If it is certified that the elections have indeed been free and fair, then Caricom stands ready to readmit Haiti into the institutions of the regional integration movement," Patrick Manning, Caricom chairman and Trinidad's prime minister, said late Friday.
Foreign leaders generally praised the elections, although the U.S. State Department said the Organization of American States needed to work with Haitian authorities to quickly correct problems, such as voters' names not appearing on registration lists.
Manning said that Haiti would likely rejoin the group at its summit in July in St. Kitts, and that he would attend the inauguration of Haiti's new president.
His comments came after Caricom ended a two-day meeting in Trinidad.
The group also agreed to set up a US$120 million (euro100 million) regional development fund following last month's launch of the Caribbean Single Market. Less developed Caribbean countries will tap the fund to help their economies compete in the market -- which allows for the free flow of goods and professionals between member states.
AP-ES-02-11-06 1323EST
Copyright 2006 The Associated Press. All rights reserved
Tags: Policy Analysis Caribbean Affairs
15-member Caricom kicked out Haiti after President Aristide ousted
Saturday, February 11, 2006; Posted: 2:12 p.m. EST (19:12 GMT)
PORT-OF-SPAIN, Trinidad (AP) -- Haiti will be allowed to rejoin the 15-member Caribbean Community if the recent presidential and parliamentary elections are deemed free and fair, the group said.
Haiti's membership in the group, known as Caricom, was suspended after former President Jean-Bertrand Aristide was ousted in February 2004. The group had refused to recognize Haiti's interim government and Caribbean leaders accused the United States and France of being accomplices in Aristide's ouster.
Election workers in Haiti were still tallying the vote on Saturday, but early results showed former President Rene Preval in the lead.
"If it is certified that the elections have indeed been free and fair, then Caricom stands ready to readmit Haiti into the institutions of the regional integration movement," Patrick Manning, Caricom chairman and Trinidad's prime minister, said late Friday.
Foreign leaders generally praised the elections, although the U.S. State Department said the Organization of American States needed to work with Haitian authorities to quickly correct problems, such as voters' names not appearing on registration lists.
Manning said that Haiti would likely rejoin the group at its summit in July in St. Kitts, and that he would attend the inauguration of Haiti's new president.
His comments came after Caricom ended a two-day meeting in Trinidad.
The group also agreed to set up a US$120 million (euro100 million) regional development fund following last month's launch of the Caribbean Single Market. Less developed Caribbean countries will tap the fund to help their economies compete in the market -- which allows for the free flow of goods and professionals between member states.
AP-ES-02-11-06 1323EST
Copyright 2006 The Associated Press. All rights reserved
Tags: Policy Analysis Caribbean Affairs
