Haitian President Jovenel Moïse assured Monday, February 22 to the UN Security Council that "democracy is doing well in Haiti" despite the political crisis.

During a rare speech (countries are generally represented by an ambassador or a minister), Jovenel Moïse indicated that his government, in four years, "had to face seven attempts to interrupt the constitutional order by violence".

"At the base of all this, there is the refusal of the democratic regime and the elections as the only way to access the management of state affairs," he said, referring to the "tireless efforts of his administration to appease the socio-political climate ".

"We are facing a powerful lobby which has great resources", he also declared during his speech which lasted 27 minutes against the 15 normally granted.

According to him, this lobby associated with "bad losers" has violently blocked the regular functioning of the Senate, preventing the government from being formalized, from voting a budget and the electoral law for elections.

Washington calls for quick elections

He promised "limited use" of presidential decrees until the next general election scheduled for September but the United States asked him to stop using them while France indicated that several of them, taken recently, were "sources of concern".

We must "put an end to the policy by decrees," said Acting Deputy US Ambassador Jeffrey DeLaurentis, for whom they should only be used for essential actions in terms of security and preparation for elections.

The American diplomat called for elections "as soon as possible to restore the constitutional role of Parliament".

Jovenel Moïse maintains that his five-year mandate at the head of the Caribbean country runs until February 7, 2022, a date rejected by part of the Haitian political class for whom he expired on February 7.

This disagreement of date is due to the fact that Jovenel Moïse was elected in a poll canceled for fraud, then re-elected a year later.

Haiti has had no deputies for a year and only a third of the senators remain in office.

"Changes needed"

Jovenel Moïse also affirmed that the number of kidnappings had "considerably decreased" in Haiti, highlighting the "aggressive" dismantling of "64 out of 102 existing gangs".

"Gang violence increased by more than 200% in 2020," replied Jeffrey DeLaurentis while Russia was also worried about a "resurgence of activity by criminal groups" in Haiti.

Just before the intervention of the Haitian president, the United Kingdom, current president of the Security Council, gave the floor to a young Haitian, Vivianne Roc, 23, who recounted her life in the midst of violence.

"Tired of living in fear", she is now a member of the NGO "Plurielles Haiti" which fights for more peace and security in the country.

The young woman expressed her "hope" that "there are courageous among the powerful to push for the changes necessary for lasting peace in Haiti".

With AFP

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