"Haiti's New Bad Boy President," "Carnival King is New Leader of Haiti" are just two of the headlines in local and national news. Many Haitians here in the U.S. feel that the newspapers are making a spectacle of the election of Michael "Sweet Mickey" [Michael Martelly] to the highest political office in Haiti, the Presidency. Martelly beat his opponent Lady Mirlande Manigat, 67.57 percent to 31.74 percent but in accordance with the electoral process complaints can be filed up until April 16 when the votes will be closed. His flamboyant attire and sometimes raucous performances endeared him to some but distanced him from others. At first, his notoriety as an entertainer made it almost impossible for him to be accepted into a party to declare his political aspirations and to be thought of as a viable candidate.
Cohen,Marc J. (Author) and Gauthier,Amelie (Author)
Format:
Pamphlet
Publication Date:
Mar 2011
Published:
Real Instituto Elcano de Estudios Internacionales y Estrategicos
Location:
African American Research Center, Library, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
Notes:
7 p., Following the 20 March 2011 elections, Haiti faces a potential political stalemate whilst confronting the massive reconstruction needs created by last year's earthquake. Many organizations have criticized the government for its lack of leadership in addressing pressing issues of relief, relocation and reconstruction. This paper analyses the effects of the political situation on aid effectiveness, good governance and the strategies of the international community.
Argues that geography and geology sparked the Haitian earthquake, but the extent of the destruction was due to the massive failure of Haitian institutions, in particular the state, and international policy, which predated the earthquake.