NDI - Haiti

Citizen Development Roadmaps Gain Lawmakers’ Attention in Haiti

rrunyan — Wed, 04 Jan 2012 19:52:31 +0000

Two years after the devastating January 2010 earthquake in Haiti, the country is attempting to rebuild with the help of development proposals prepared by citizens. These efforts, known as roadmaps, or “cahiers de charges,” have been endorsed by elected officials across the country as a way to demonstrate that they are listening to citizens and have set specific goals for reconstruction and development efforts.

Workshop discussion before the presentation of the cahier de charges in the department of Nippes

Haitians’ primary concerns are the economy, education and security, but many people have been unaware of government efforts to address those issues. NDI has helped connect citizens and government officials through a series of dialogues across the country that have included civil society representatives and local authorities, such as mayors, city councilors and other officials. Through these dialogues, the participants developed 10 roadmaps, one for each of Haiti’s local government jurisdictions, known as “departments.”

Prime Minister Garry Conille Cites Cahiers de Charges in Senate Address

In an address to the Haitian Senate on Oct. 13 Prime Minister Garry Conille included recommendations from the “cahiers de charges.” Examples of the citizen requests he cited included:

Infrastructure: Build an airport and port in the South department; roads in the Grand'Anse department; finish building the Miragoane-Baraderes road in the Nippes department
Tourism: Add professional tourism agents in the North department; establish tourist attractions, such as the residence of Toussaint Louverture in Ennery and the residence of Jean-Jacques Dessalines in Marchand-Dessalines in the Artibonite
Agriculture: Provide professional training and credit for rural farmers in the Northwest department; rebuild agricultural infrastructure, such as irrigation systems, in the Artibonite department and set up a training center for agricultural experts
Education: Provide additional schools and support to overcome the low local school attendance rate of only 37 percent in the Center department

These discussions opened the door for citizens to work with decision-makers to address the issues identified in the cahiers. And during 2010 legislative elections, the cahiers guided discussions during 15 debates, helping candidates understand the reconstruction and development needs in each department.

After the elections, NDI helped Haitian community groups, called Initiative Committees (ICs), follow up with members of parliament (MPs) to encourage them to act on the priorities outlined in the cahiers that they supported during the campaign.

In a statement to the Senate in October, Prime Minister Garry Conille cited specific proposals from the cahiers (see sidebar). Likewise, a group of senators and deputies went on national television to ask the new government to use the cahiers recommendations to make sure citizens’ needs are addressed.

In July, IC leaders began presenting the cahiers to legislators at public forums organized at the departmental level and have reached almost 30 MPs to date. These forums were conducted in eight departments: Artibonite, Center, Grand'Anse, Nippes North, Northeast, South and Southeast. Through these efforts, legislators discussed the recommendations with citizens, local authorities and grassroots groups. Follow-up meetings have underscored the interest and demand for continued interaction between elected officials and citizens.

Related:

Read local press coverage of the cahiers in Le Matin and Le Nouvelliste (in French)»
Read the English translations of both news articles»
Post-Election Haiti: What Happens Next?»

Published Jan. 4, 2011

News Coverage of Haiti Cahiers des Charges - English Translations

rrunyan — Thu, 03 Nov 2011 21:14:43 +0000

Published Date:

11/03/2011

Language:

English

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Le Matin article (English translation)	102.49 KB
Le Nouvelliste article (English translation)	116.18 KB

NDI E-news: Nigeria, Tunisia, The Roma | April 2011

fgalleto — Tue, 03 May 2011 20:23:44 +0000

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April 2011

Nigerian Elections Hold the Promise of Setting New Integrity Standard, NDI Mission Finds

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Election official with National Assembly ballot at Lugbe polling station outside Abuja.

Nigeria's recent presidential and National Assembly elections "represent a step forward from seriously flawed elections of the past" and "hold the promise of setting a new standard for integrity in Nigeria's electoral process," NDI said in a preliminary statement after the presidential poll.

The Institute fielded international observer delegations for both the April 9 National Assembly elections
and the April 16 presidential poll. The first observation mission was co-led by Joe Clark, former Canadian prime minister; Mahame Ousmane, former president of Niger; Antonio Manuel Mascarenhas Monteiro, former president of Cape Verde;
Jon S. Corzine, former U.S. senator and governor of New Jersey;
Marietje Schaake, member of the European Parliament from the Netherlands; Natasha Stott Despoja, former senator from Australia; and Kenneth Wollack, president of NDI. Clark and Ousmane stayed on as co-leaders of the presidential observation mission and were joined by Robin Carnahan, secretary of state of Missouri; and Christopher Fomunyoh, NDI senior associate and regional director for Central and West Africa.

The delegations found that, despite problems, the elections gave Nigerians a real chance to vote, and they commended the millions of Nigerians who braved long lines and hot weather to participate.

A voter marks her presidential ballot in Abuja.

NDI also partnered with a coalition of four Nigerian civil society organizations in Project 2011 Swift Count, which fielded more than 8,000 observers to conduct a parallel vote tabulation (PVT) for the presidential and gubernatorial elections, held on April 26. A PVT is a sophisticated election observation tool used to assess the integrity of the vote and count, and verify official vote totals. Observers relayed their findings by SMS messages, which were then compiled and analyzed at Project Swift Count's headquarters in Abuja.

Project Swift Count issued an interim statement
after the presidential poll confirming the results announced by Nigeria's Independent National Electoral Commission. With the northern part of the country protesting the re-election victory of President Goodluck Jonathan, Project Swift Count
called upon all candidates and their supporters to "respect the will of the Nigerian people and to accept the results in good faith." They also asked that all political leaders "immediately and clearly make statements denouncing all acts of post-election violence."

NDI also partnered with the National Elections Incidents Center (NEIC), a coalition of three civil society groups doing citizen observation of the presidential election. The NEIC catalogued and mapped incidents and irregularities in the voting on election day. The center concluded that "the accreditation and voting process was smooth and peaceful" at the polling stations they observed.

NDI's mission in Nigeria builds on a pre-election assessment
conducted by the Institute in October. NDI has been working in Nigeria since 1999 and has fielded international observation missions to previous elections there in 1999,
2003
and 2007.

NDI Commemorates International Day of Roma with Film Featuring Music by Academy Award Winner Hans Zimmer

NDI celebrated the culture and achievements of the 10 million Roma, commonly called Gypsies, with a short public awareness film released on International Day of the Roma. The film, Who are the Roma?, is scored with original music by Hans Zimmer. Read more»

Watch the film»

'Future Women Mayors' Academy Kicks Off in Mexico

The Academy for Future Women Mayors kicked off last month in the Mexican state of Michoacán to combat the low rate of women seeking and winning office at the municipal level across the country. The academy helps provide women activists with the motivation, skills and networks to position themselves to win mayoral races. Read more»

In Guinea, Political Parties Strive to Improve its Next Elections

In Guinea, more than 40 political parties agreed to a set of principles aimed at making upcoming legislative elections — only the second competitive elections in the nation's history — less violent, more inclusive, more efficient and ultimately more democratic. Read more»

Albanian Women Finish Political Leadership School with Chance to Test New Skills in May Elections

Local elections on May 8 in Albania are an opportunity to put more women in public office in a country with one of the lowest percentages of elected women in Europe. That was the message delivered by Jozefina Topalli, Albania's speaker of parliament, to women who had just completed a 10-month program on campaign management, messaging and advocacy organized by NDI. Read more»

Contribute Now to Help Build Democratic Societies

When you contribute to NDI, our board of directors will generously match your gift dollar-for-dollar, up to $1 million. Contribute»

NDI Staff Member Seeks to Bring Women into Elections, Politics in Liberia

Mardia Greaves-Bloh visited the U.S. from Liberia for three months as NDI's latest Andi Parhamovich fellow. While in Washington, D.C., Bloh researched how civil society groups build coalitions and how to ensure that women's needs are considered and accomodated throughout the election process. She will use what she learned back in Liberia for presidential and legislative elections this year. Read more»

Assessing Public Attitudes in Tunisia, Georgia, Burundi

NDI recently conducted focus group research in Tunisia with young people, the demographic that led the revolutionary movement that overthrew President Zine El Abidine Ben Ali in January. The research finds that young people are concerned about being sidelined in the transition process and have a lingering distrust of political parties. NDI is sharing these findings with Tunisian leaders in the transitional government, political parties and civil society to develop policies that are responsive to and inclusive of youth. Read more»

A recent poll conducted for NDI shows that economic and social issues are the major sources of concern for Georgians. Unemployment tops the list of those concerns, followed by rising prices. Respondents also felt that politicians were not doing enough to fix these problems. Read more»

Focus groups in Burundi, a country historically fraught with ethnic conflict between Hutus and Tutsis, show that citizens today are focused less on ethnic differences than on their regional, political and economic differences. They also continue to embrace the democratic process, despite politically motivated violence and an opposition party boycott of the 2010 elections. Read more»

Our Perspectives: Debates, Yemen, the Roma and Haiti

Don't miss these pieces by NDI staff:

Matt Dippell, debates program advisor, explains how a free press contributes to a culture of debate. Read more»

Les Campbell, director of Middle East and North Africa programs, talks to NPR's Morning Edition about the future for Yemen's President Saleh. Listen»

Catherine Messina Pajic, deputy director of Central and Eastern Europe programs, describes the plight of the Roma and ways you can help. Read more»

Jim Swigert, director of Latin American and Carribbean programs, looks at the challenges facing Haiti's new president in this speech he delivered at the U.S. Institute for Peace. Read more»

Post-Election Haiti: What Happens Next?

rrunyan — Mon, 25 Apr 2011 19:33:02 +0000

Author:

Jim Swigert

Publisher:

National Democratic Institute

Published Date:

04/20/2011

Resource Type:

Speech

Language:

English

Media Type:

PDF

English

Attachment	Size
Read the speech	51.43 KB

Post-Election Haiti: What Happens Next?

rrunyan — Wed, 20 Apr 2011 04:00:00 +0000

Source:

Jim Swigert at USIP

Article Link:

Published Date:

04/20/2011

In a panel discussion on "Post-Election Haiti: What Happens Next?" at the U.S. Institute of Peace, Jim Swigert said, "Democracy is always a work in process," and Haiti is certainly no exception.

"Elections are of course essential to democracy but not an end to themselves," said Swigert, NDI's director for Latina American and the Caribbean. "They are only part of the process of constructing democratic governance – democratic culture, rule of law, the responsiveness, transparency and accountability of government and elected leaders. Those are the challenges President Martelly and the next Haitian government and parliament must take on if they are to succeed."

NDI Calls on Haitian Presidential Candidates to Abide by Code of Conduct

rrunyan — Fri, 18 Mar 2011 17:10:38 +0000

NDI urged the two candidates competing in Haiti’s second round presidential election Sunday to abide by the terms of a code of conduct they both signed that commits them to respect election laws, reject violence, and abide by the results of the electoral process.

In the code, the two candidates – Mirlande Manigat and Michel Martelly – agreed to “accept the results of the election” and in the case of election disputes “resolve any differences through dialogue, conciliation, and mediation.” NDI facilitated the development of the code, which was released publicly on March 17. Representatives of the two candidates, pictured at left, came together on Friday for a show of solidarity in support of the code.

The candidates also committed to “banning and condemning the use of arms, physical aggression, slander, corruption and rhetoric based on discrimination (religious, ethical or sexual) as battle instruments for power.”

In the lead-up to election day, NDI called on the candidates to follow the code’s principles to ensure a credible election. The Institute noted that the first round election in November was chaotic, marred by widespread disfranchisement of voters, ballot box stuffing, and violence and intimidation.

In the poll’s aftermath, Haiti’s electoral council originally announced Manigat, a former first lady, as the top vote-getter and Jude Célestin, perceived as the favored candidate of outgoing President René Preval, in second place. Martelly, the popular Haitian singer, was third. This caused street protests and eventually a review of the results by the Organization of American States (OAS). After the OAS findings cast doubt on the results, the Provisionary Electoral Council (Conseil Electoral Provisoire, CEP) put Martelly in the runoff with Manigat.

The agreement comes during a period of high tensions and heated rhetoric in Haiti. Concern over election violence continues as campaigning comes to a close and worries grow about violence on election day and during the prolonged process for counting the ballots. Preliminary results from the CEP are not expected to be announced until March 31.

Adding a new element of uncertainty to the charged environment is the return to Haiti on March 18 of twice-exiled former president Jean-Bertrand Aristide, who had been living in South Africa since being forced out of office in 2004. Former dictator Jean Claude “Baby Doc” Duvalier remains in Haiti after a surprise return at the end of January.

The code of conduct is publicly supported by Haitian religious leaders and international organizations, including the United Nations Stabilization Mission in Haiti and the OAS. “I propose that today we seal this pact of brotherhood together in order to give birth to a new history for Haiti,” said Monsignor Pierre-Andre Dumas, the highest Haitian official in the Catholic Church who was on hand for the endorsement ceremony.

In addition to its work with the code, NDI is supporting three Haitian groups observing the elections. The Institute also helped organize presidential, Chamber of Deputy and Senate candidate debates as well as a campaign to help reduce disenfranchisement by assisting citizens to find out where to vote for Sunday’s runoff.

Since the first round elections, NDI has worked with 38 multi-party “tolerance committees” to defuse tension and potential violence around elections at the local level. The committees have brought together religious leaders, police officers, local government officials and candidates to resolve disputes in eight of 10 departments in Haiti.

Pictured Above: Representatives of the Manigat (left) and Martelly (right) campaigns greet each other at a meeting to promote the Code of Conduct.

Read the code of conduct in English and the original in French with the candidates' signatures

Related:

Published March 18, 2011

NDI E-news: Burma, Jordan, Haiti | Nov. 2010

fgalleto — Wed, 01 Dec 2010 20:57:59 +0000

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November 2010

Burma Groups Expose Intimidation, Fraud in Nov. 7 Elections

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Burmese citizens protest the 2010 elections.

Elections in Burma, the first in 20 years, along with the release of Daw Aung San Suu Kyi after years of house arrest, have brought increased attention to the situation in the autocratic Asian country. "Our thoughts and prayers are with Aung San Suu Kyi and her people," NDI Chairman Madeleine K. Albright said in a statement marking Suu Kyi's release.
"We will do everything in our power to be supportive as she continues the struggle to bring true democracy to Burma."

To highlight abuses associated with the elections,
the Burma Partnership, a coalition of media and human rights groups inside the country and civil society organizations across the border in Thailand, created the Burma Election Tracker website. It documents visually and in prose abuses suffered by Burmese citizens before, during and after election day. NDI provided technical assistance to the partnership in developing the site.

Burma Election Tracker visually displays election incidents by type and location.

Prior to the vote, the elections were widely seen as being structured to minimize opposition and ensure a victory by the ruling military junta. NDI analyzed the legal and human rights framework of Burma's new constitution and election law and concluded that the election process would be a setback for Burma's democratic development. The first-person accounts published on the election tracker support that conclusion, with incidents ranging from
violence and intimidation to fraud to abuse of government power. Due to the difficulty of getting reports out of the country, the site is able to compile only a fraction of incidents from the election.

"The reports that we gathered," the tracker said, "demonstrate that these elections were deeply flawed, and were fundamentally illegitimate, unfree, unfair and undemocratic."

NDI has helped local partners create similar websites to track information about elections, their run-up and aftermath.
In Afghanistan, NDI created an online mapping tool for the analysis of election results from 2004, 2005 and 2009 with layers of ethnographic, demographic, topographic and security data. Preliminary results from 2010 will be added soon. And in Bahrain,
monitors mapped incidents, polling locations, and ethnic and religious populations to draw broader conclusions about parliamentary elections in October.

Election Watch: Jordan, Ukraine, Côte d'Ivoire

In November, NDI fielded an
international delegation of 61 short- and long-term election observers that monitored all aspects of the electoral process in Jordan, from the campaign to balloting on election day to the counting of ballots. In a preliminary statement
issued after the Nov. 9 polls, the delegation said that while the vote was a clear improvement over the nation's 2007 elections, a number of structural shortcomings and other problems should be addressed for future polls. Read more»

After October local elections in Ukraine, NDI commented on
the deterioration of electoral freedoms since the country's presidential election earlier in the year. The Institute said it shared the concerns of Opora, Ukraine's largest domestic election monitoring organization and an NDI partner, which highlighted an atmosphere of mistrust. Read more»

In Côte d'Ivoire, people voted in October presidential elections, the first in 10 years, following a civil war. In an effort to mitigate election-related tensions, NDI worked with political parties seeking to reaffirm a campaign code of conduct
they'd signed in 2008, contributing to a peaceful election day. A runoff will be held Nov. 28. Read more»

New NDI Publications

Don't miss the latest NDI publications and contributions:

NDI President Kenneth Wollack and Governance Director K. Scott Hubli write in the Journal of Democracy about "Getting Convergence Right" on the relationship between democracy and development programs. Read more»

Writing in the Harvard International Review, Wollack discusses the history and evolution of democracy assistance and how such assistance fits into overall U.S. foreign policy goals. Read more»

Shari Bryan, NDI vice president, writes about "The Youth Bulge in Africa" in a paper presented to the National Intelligence Council. Read more»

NDI focus group research with more than 800 Southern Sudanese showed significant support for a referendum in which they will decide whether to choose unity with the North or to secede, and a strong desire for the vote to be held on schedule, in January. The report, Southern Sudan at the Crossroads, was released in September. Read more»

After passage of a series of constitutional reforms designed to expand democratic practices in Hong Kong, citizens are cautiously optimistic about the future. The Calm After the Storm compiles research and conclusions of popular opinion in Hong Kong following the reform vote last summer. Read more»

NDI Aids Haitian Groups Working on Presidential Debates, Cholera Containment

With 19 candidates running for president of Haiti, differentiating them by platform and issue can be difficult. To help Haitians make informed decisions in preparation for the Nov. 28 vote, NDI helped produce a series of six candidate debates, aired on 32 television and radio stations, that focused on substantive issues about the future of the country. Read more»

In an effort to contain Haiti's cholera outbreak, grassroots organizations known as Initiative Committees are working to educate citizens about the importance of hygiene and safe drinking water. Developed more than a decade ago with NDI support, the committees are using their networks to help with relief and rebuilding efforts in the aftermath of last January's earthquake. Read more»

Coalition to Monitor Vote for Better Elections in Nigeria

Nigeria is at an electoral crossroads. Next year's vote for president could herald a democratic turnaround or lead to further electoral fraud and possible violence. To monitor the process and verify results, a coalition of four prominent civil society groups have come together to form Project 2011 Swift Count, hoping that their independent effort will deter fraud and help restore public trust in the election. Read more»

Albanian Women Claim a Voice in Politics through Advocacy on Health Care

A multipartisan network of politically active Albanian women is advocating for better health care services for women, as well as spreading information about early detection and treatment for breast and cervical cancers. The educational campaign has reached nearly 5,000 women, and has led to free cervical cancer screening tests for women in one Albanian city. The women are also lobbying local and regional officials for more resources for women's health care. Read more»

Women Speak Out Against Discrimination in Burkina Faso

A coalition of representatives of women's and human rights organizations in Burkina Faso recently traveled to Geneva, Switzerland, to present a report on the status of women's rights in the West African country to the U.N. Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women. The coalition highlighted some of the major challenges facing Burkinabe women, including lower rates of school attendance for girls, unequal access to health care, and high rates of domestic violence. Read more»

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NDI E-news: Election Prep in Bosnia, Egypt, Afghanistan | Oct. 2010

fgalleto — Wed, 01 Dec 2010 20:52:34 +0000

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October 2010

Preparing for Election Day - Debating, Educating Assessing

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Candidates greet the moderators before debating in Bosnia.

Though the voting part of an election usually takes just a day, months and sometimes years of preparation go into making it a success. There's the preparatory work by election commissions, organizing by political parties, choosing candidates, the campaign itself, training observers, educating and motivating the electorate to participate, and creating an atmosphere in which voters feel safe enough to go to the polls. In many countries where NDI works, the Institute and its partners are involved in one or more of these aspects of election day preparation. Here are some examples:

Leading up to the Oct. 3 general elections in Bosnia, NDI partnered with two major public television stations to present a series of candidate debates.
These events, along with a series of regional town-hall style meetings, were unique for focusing on issues, and the parties' stances on those issues, rather than personal or ethnic attacks and accusations.

As Egypt prepares for legislative elections in November, a new website, www.vote4egypt.com, conveys the importance of voting. It features promotional get out the vote videos, posters and message boards, where users can discuss topics such as how to get voter identification cards and where to vote on election day. The site is part of a larger civic participation effort by the nonpartisan Bridge Center for Dialogue and Development, an NDI partner organization.

A trainer gives a presentation about her political party in Kyrgyzstan.

Before Kyrgyzstan's Oct. 10 parliamentary elections, NDI worked with women candidates and party members seeking to learn new skills needed to be effective candidates, and for gaining leadership roles within their parties.

In preparation for Afghanistan's Sept. 18 parliamentary elections, NDI conducted orientation sessions for more than 1,700 candidates (68 percent of the total), organized training for political parties, ran campaign schools for more than 240 women candidates (62 percent of the total) and provided technical assistance to FEFA, the country's largest domestic election monitoring organization. It also trained more than 36,000 candidate agents across the country to report on election day activities.

In addition to its work with local partners, NDI takes part in pre-election assessments. Recently in Jordan,
Ukraine and Nigeria, the Institute has fielded high-level delegations that have met with election officials, ruling and opposition political figures, civil society groups, journalists and others to assess the electoral environment and recommend short- and long-term improvements in the electoral process.

In Haiti, Citizens Voice Ideas and Concerns about Rebuilding

Haiti's Action Plan for National Recovery and Development is a blueprint aimed at helping Haitians rebuild and overcome the challenges posed by last January's earthquake. To ensure that citizens and local government officials have an opportunity to contribute their own ideas, initiative committees across Haiti are holding meetings to solicit advice from citizens. Read more»

Despite Violence, Voters in Afghanistan Show Commitment to Democratic Process

Although violence marred the electoral process in many parts of the country, millions of Afghans turned out to vote in legislative elections Sept. 18, showing courage and resolve to move their nation toward a more democratic future. NDI's observers released a preliminary statement lauding Afghans for their commitment to democracy while drawing attention to a number of problems with the electoral process. Read more»

New Publications Encourage Women's Political Participation

In many countries, women who want to get involved in politics lack the role models and resources to help them pursue their goals. Two new publications seek to meet those needs and encourage more women to get involved in the political process.

Aimed at young women from the Middle East and North Africa region, Confidence, Capacity, Connections: A Young Woman's Guide to Leadership is a workbook that combines ideas, strategies and advice from experts on pursuing a political career. Read more»

In Bangladesh, Who's Who: Women Leaders at a Glance profiles 134 Bangladeshi women and is designed to provide inspiration and role models to other women aspiring to leadership roles. Read more»

Iraqi National Youth Caucus Works to Turn Youth Priority Issues into Policy Changes

As Iraqis work to create a new government, a group of young people is working to perfect the civic advocacy skills they need to influence how policy is made. Members of Iraq's National Youth Caucus (NYC) came together recently to discuss their strategies for ongoing advocacy campaigns for improving high school and college education and combating the high rate of youth unemployment. Read more»

Central American Leaders See Transparency as Key to Public Security

In El Salvador, Guatemala and Honduras, more than three quarters of the population thinks public safety is the greatest problem facing the region. Recently, leaders from government, political parties, business, academia and civil society came together to discuss the link between transparency and security in Central America. At the NDI-supported event, the 150 participants identified and agreed on concrete actions to fight corruption and increase transparency. Read more»

New Partnerships Strive for More Inclusive, Stronger Parliaments

NDI recently signed two memoranda of understanding (MoU) that seek to strengthen parliaments and make them more accountable and inclusive.

In Kenya, NDI and the Commonwealth Parliamentary Association signed an MoU to collaborate on efforts to enhance representative government around the world. The association is a group of national and subnational legislatures of the Commonwealth, representing some two billion citizens from all faiths and ethnicities from six continents. Read more»

The MoU signed by NDI and the Guatemalan Congress will allow the two to create initiatives to improve the representation of indigenous people and women in Guatemala's government and to reform laws governing elections and political parties. Read more»

Democracy Updates | Partner Spotlights | In-Country Perspectives |

Democracy Dialogue | Publications | Employment

In Haiti, Presidential Debates Stay Focused on Issues

fgalleto — Mon, 15 Nov 2010 22:53:50 +0000

Haitians will go to the polls Nov. 28 to select a new president and parliament to lead the nation's reconstruction and recovery from the Jan. 12 earthquake that claimed 230,000 lives and left 1.5 million people displaced.

To help voters sort through the 19 presidential candidates, the Public Policy Intervention Group (Groupe d'Intervention en Affaires Publiques, GIAP), a group of Haitian journalists and broadcasters, sponsored a series of six debates, part of its Anvan'n Vote (Before We Vote) initiative. The debates started Oct. 13 and continued every Wednesday through Nov. 17. They were broadcast nationally on 32 television and radio stations, giving the candidates and their platforms considerable exposure. The broadcasts included sign language interpretation as well.

The debates were well received. As one journalist wrote about the third debate among candidates Jude Celestin, Eric Charles and Jean Henri Ceant, "It was also a very instructive debate, punctuated by sincere and poignant interactions. It was a feast for the mind and a good event for the exercise of democracy. Voters, rejoice!"

Patrick Denis of GIAP, Brian St. Juste of the Jamaican Debates Commission and Gabin Jean Pierre of NDI discuss debate production techniques.

Each debate featured three or four candidates who were asked questions by a panel of print and broadcast journalists as well as by an audience of citizens and representatives of civic organizations. All the debates included questions on general issues such as reconstruction, education, public safety and economic policy, as well as a selection of specific topics that varied with each debate ranging from women's issues to tourism. The format gave candidates one or two minutes to respond to the questions and offer rebuttals. Candidates also made opening and closing statements.

To support GIAP's efforts, debates practitioners from NDI and the Commission on Presidential Debates (CPD), a longtime NDI partner organization that has sponsored and produced all general election presidential and vice presidential debates in the United States since 1987, traveled to Port-au-Prince to share ideas and experiences. These experts included CPD executive producer Marty Slutsky and producer Rory Davies. An expert from the Jamaica Debates Commission, Brian St. Juste, also took part in the consultations with GIAP to add a Caribbean perspective. Together, the three organizations shared a variety of approaches to holding debates in such areas as negotiating the debate arrangements with candidates, developing engaging and informative debate formats and producing a television broadcast, among other topics.

Related:

Pictured above: The first GIAP presidential debate on Oct. 13 featuring candidates Axan Abelard, Jacques Edouard Alexis and Jean Hector Anacacis at the Villate Restaurant.

Published November 16, 2010. Updated Nov. 18, 2010.

Citizen Groups Support Efforts to Contain Cholera in Haiti

rrunyan — Wed, 27 Oct 2010 14:46:51 +0000

Grassroots Haitian organizations known as Initiative Committees are working to educate citizens about the importance of hygiene and safe drinking water in the face of a cholera outbreak that is taxing the resources of this island nation still reeling from last January’s devastating earthquake.

Grassroots Haitian organizations known as Initiative Committees (ICs) are working to educate citizens about the importance of hygiene and safe drinking water in the face of a cholera outbreak that is taxing the resources of this island nation still reeling from last January’s devastating earthquake.

Several hundred people have died among the more than 3,600 cases identified by Haiti’s health ministry since the outbreak was reported last week. The majority of the deaths have been in Artibonite, a poor, rural department about 60 miles northwest of the capital, Port-au-Prince. Health professionals are stressing prevention in hopes of staunching the spread of the disease, particularly to those living in the densely-populated slums around the capital or the approximately 1.3 million people now living in tent camps as a result of the earthquake.

Developed more than a decade ago with NDI support, the ICs have operated in 179 municipalities across the country and involve 35,000 Haitians and 3,500 civic organizations, including 400 women's groups.

ICs in the cities of Cap Haïtien, Limbe, Gonaïves and Saint Marc started a public information campaign on procedures to prevent the spread of cholera soon after news of the outbreak came. Saint Marc is in Artibonite and many of the cholera victims have sought medical assistance there. ICs in other cities, including, Lascahobas, Hinche and Maissade, launched their prevention education efforts this week.

Members of ICs have coordinated with government health officials to stay on top of the latest news and incorporate information into their education campaigns.

In recent months, the ICs have worked to promote citizen input and foster dialogues with Haitian government officials on the country’s national development and recovery plan.

Following Haiti’s devastating earthquake in January, ICs, with NDI support, established 12 citizen-run information centers around the country serving areas directly damaged by the earthquake and locations with large numbers of displaced persons. These centers disseminate information on resources for displaced persons as well as relief and reconstruction plans, put citizens in touch with local government officials, and increase transparency and oversight for long-term local rebuilding efforts.

Related:

Pictured above: Initiative committee members fill a classroom to discuss community needs in the town of Saint-Marc.

Published October 27, 2010

Ricardo Valverde

fgalleto — Fri, 22 Oct 2010 20:16:21 +0000

Ricardo Valverde serves as country director in NDI's Haiti office. Mr. Valverde, an elections expert and academic specializing in international law, human rights and democratic processes, has supported democracy-strengthening activities in more than 20 different countries in Latin America, the Caribbean and Africa. A native Spanish and fluent French speaker, he has participated in more than 60 electoral missions around the world.

Since the early 1990s, Mr. Valverde has been an officer and consultant for the Inter-American Institute of Human Rights (IIHR) and its Center for Electoral Assistance and Electoral Promotion (Centro de Asesoría y Promoción Electoral, CAPEL) based in San José, Costa Rica. In this capacity, Mr. Valverde has specialized in political rights and elections and has led numerous election assistance projects in more than 10 countries. He has also worked with political parties in the region on issues of public financing, accountability and the inclusion of marginalized groups such as youth. In addition, he has served as a consultant for the United Nations Election Assistance Unit in the Central African Republic (1999), Haiti (2000), Bolivia (2002), Honduras (2009) and for the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) in Dominican Republic (2008/2009) and Guatemala (2009).

Mr. Valverde has contributed more than 30 academic articles to distinguished publications including the Dictionary of Elections, the Latin America Electoral Law Treaty and a collective tribute to political parties and elections expert Dieter Nohlen. He also co-authored a book on the internal democratization of political parties in Bolivia, Chile and the Dominican Republic.

Mr. Valverde, a lawyer graduated from the University of Costa Rica (UCR), has received his degree in human rights and democracy from the University of Chile, and has also done other studies in Strasbourg and Paris, France.

A professor since 1988 for various universities in Costa Rica, he has also collaborated for academic centers throughout Latin America, such as the University of Chile, the Catholic University Andrés Bello in Venezuela, the Autonomous University of Chiapas in México, the Catholic University of Santo Domingo in the Dominican Republic and the University San Martin de Porres in Peru.

Mr. Valverde has been named as a distinguished guest in the cities of Quito, Ecuador
(2009) and Morelia, México (2009).

In Haiti, Citizens Voice Ideas and Concerns about Rebuilding

fgalleto — Tue, 12 Oct 2010 20:59:02 +0000

How do you rebuild from an earthquake that flattens infrastructure, leaves 1.5 million people homeless and kills more than 230,000?

The Action Plan for National Recovery and Development of Haiti seeks to answer this question and views last January's earthquake as "a window of opportunity." The draft plan spans the next 10 years and includes detailed plans for rebuilding infrastructure, water and sanitation systems; expanding housing and the labor market; and improving education, healthcare and democratic institutions.

How do you rebuild from an earthquake that flattens infrastructure, leaves 1.5 million people homeless and kills more than 230,000?

"Nobody has been spared, and no one can pick themselves up again alone," the plan states in its introduction. "We must build on this new solidarity which is expected to trigger profound changes in behavior and attitudes."

Key factors in helping to move the plan forward will be enlisting the cooperation and support of Haitian communities and individual citizens and providing them an opportunity to add their input.

One avenue for this kind of involvement is Haiti's initiative committees (ICs). Developed more than a decade ago with NDI support, the ICs have operated in 179 municipalities across the country and involve 35,000 Haitians and 3,500 civic organizations, including 400 women's groups. Before the earthquake, the IC network organized communities to conduct damage assessments after hurricanes, repair roads, facilitate medical treatment, provide potable water, and promote transparency in government development projects.

Now, ICs are coordinating a series of presentations on the action plan so their members — along with other members of the Haitian public, mayors, town council members and other local government officials — can learn the details, ask questions and add their own suggestions.

Meetings have been held around the country and are structured to address general topic areas such as agriculture, infrastructure, education and tourism. After a government official presents details of the plan, attendees split into groups depending on their interest or expertise, and then collaborate on ideas and suggestions for their particular topic. They present their suggestions to the group, and the comments are recorded by IC members so they can be incorporated into a document that will highlight a community’s priorities for reconstruction.

Haitian citizens listen to the presentation of the plan in Les Cayes.

Recently, an IC in Les Cayes, a port city on the southern peninsula, brought community members together to review the plan. Silien Mimose, speaking on behalf of area women's groups, emphasized the need to incorporate women into all aspects of reconstruction. Délimont Jean Luckner, speaking for educators, questioned the country's ability to implement universal and free public education, given the government's education track record before the earthquake. He pointed out that the school year was scheduled to begin a week after the meeting, but that no efforts had been made to open schools or reach out to homeless or displaced parents.

These dialogues are part of a larger effort that includes information sessions, communal- and departmental-level town hall meetings and regional forums to increase citizen understanding and participation in the National Plan for Reconstruction. After participating in the dialogues, IC members will work with citizens in their communities to form follow-up committees to monitor progress of reconstruction projects being carried out by local and national government in their communities.

Related:

Pictured above: A presenter at the IC meeting in Les Cayes

Published October 12, 2010

NDI E-news: Colombia, Haiti, Ukraine, Bahrain | Feb. 2010

Fri, 16 Jul 2010 21:20:53 +0000

February 2010

Chocó Women Win 2009 Madeleine K. Albright Grant

The Departmental Network of Chocó Women of Colombia (Red Departmental de Mujeres Chocoanas) has been chosen by NDI to receive the 2009 Madeleine K. Albright Grant for its work to create greater roles for women in the region's civil and political life.

The network is an umbrella group of 52 civic organizations from 18 towns in the primarily Afro-Colombian department of Chocó in the western part of the country. It will receive $25,000 for a political training school and to create a network of women political leaders in Chocó. Both will further the organization’s mission: to help Chocoan women achieve greater equality between the sexes and encourage women’s political participation. Read more»

NDI established the Madeleine K. Albright Grant in 2005 to support organizations that create greater roles for women in political and civic life. Winners are selected from a competitive pool of applicants seeking to promote women's political participation. Past recipients include the Women’s League of Burma, the Indonesian Women’s Political Caucus (KPPI), the Mostar Women’s Citizen Initiative of Bosnia-Herzegovina and the 50/50 Group of Sierra Leone.

The Madeleine K. Albright Grant is made possible through the generosity of the Melvin and Bren Simon Foundation.

Initiative Committees Working to Distribute Aid and Information in Haiti

The 7.0 magnitude earthquake that struck Haiti on Jan. 12 brought suffering and destruction to a country that was already facing major development challenges. The situation on the ground changes daily as Haitian and international relief efforts try to help the millions of citizens who now lack food, water, medical care and shelter.

In response, members of a Haitian network of community organizing groups, or Initiative Committees (ICs), are mobilizing to support national and international relief efforts. Developed over more than a decade with NDI support, the ICs are present in 179 municipalities across the country and involve 35,000 Haitians and 3,500 civic organizations, including 400 women's groups.

African Experts Lay Out Recommendations for Credible Elections

Election experts and practitioners from 25 African nations meeting in Ghana last November called for the ratification of the African Union's charter on elections and enforcement of its standards to achieve more peaceful and credible elections on the continent.

The gathering, organized by NDI and nine other organizations, issued a communiqué with recommendations for standards that could mitigate conflict and improve election processes.

Ghana was chosen as the site for the colloquium because of its successful 2008 elections, which were considered credible, despite heated political tensions and a razor-thin margin between the presidential candidates.

NDI Launches Website That Adds Transparency to Afghanistan Election Data

NDI has launched an innovative online mapping tool for analyzing election data from Afghanistan's flawed Aug. 20 presidential and provincial council elections. Designed to make the data more accessible and transparent, the site uses demographic, ethnographic, topographic and security information. The tool also identifies areas that had significant electoral irregularities.

Using a data browser that provides tools to manage a series of maps, filters and overlays, the site provides numerous ways to segment and visualize raw vote count data. Visitors can run customized queries with the results displayed as lists, charts and maps. The website uses all open source software and makes the data easily available for download in CSV format.

NDI Partner Groups Commend Ukrainian Elections, Offer Recommendations for Sunday's Runoff

After the Jan. 17 Ukrainian presidential election, two NDI partner groups that had observed the election issued statements hailing the vote as an improvement over the 2004 presidential poll but also citing shortcomings that they said should be addressed before the runoff on Feb. 7.

Both Opora and ENEMO highlighted procedural and organizational problems with the vote, including updates made to the voter lists on election day and uneven enforcement of provisions regarding mobile voting (voting from home). Both groups directed their recommendations to the Central Election Commission, which has jurisdiction over the issues.

Youth Leaders Declaration from Belgrade Summit Seeks Regional Cooperation and Peace

With the goals of increasing communication and fostering a network of politically active youth across Europe, NDI co-sponsored a three-day summit in Belgrade that brought together young people from Bosnia-Herzegovina, Croatia, Kosovo, Macedonia, Montenegro and Serbia to address issues of war crimes, rule of law, discrimination and xenophobia.

On the final day of the summit, the group released "The Belgrade Declaration," which pledged to strengthen their ties with their governments, promote new political values and use new technologies to improve communication and understanding.

Bahrain Women’s Union Calls for Action on Domestic Violence Law

The Bahrain Women's Union (BWU) launched an advocacy campaign last month calling for a law against domestic violence. The campaign kicked off with a march to demonstrate public support for addressing the issue, followed by a roundtable for MPs to discuss the cultural roots of domestic violence and ways to legislate against it. The Kingdom currently has no laws or government policies to address domestic violence, despite the fact that it has seen a sharp increase in domestic violence reports over the last four years.

Before the launch of the campaign, NDI worked with the activists to refine their advocacy plan and strategy for reaching key decision makers and allies.

The National Democratic Institute is a nonprofit, nonpartisan organization working to support and strengthen democratic institutions worldwide by promoting citizen participation, openness and accountability in government.

Maturing and Developing Democracies Share Experiences on Parliamentary Research Services

fgalleto — Mon, 12 Jul 2010 18:41:07 +0000

"Democracy," said U.S. Rep. David Price, "cannot be imposed from without but must grow from within, organically and at its own pace."

Price was speaking at a unique week-long event in Warsaw, Poland, last month that exemplified that theme. Representatives of maturing and developing democracies gathered for two purposes. The first was to commemorate the 20th anniversary of the Frost-Solomon Task Force, which in 1990-96 provided assistance from the U.S. Congress to new parliaments in Central and Eastern Europe that were emerging from communist rule. The second was a Parliamentary Staff Institute to use the lessons learned through that experience to assist representatives of 11 parliaments from different parts of the world that are making their own transitions to democratic governance.

The particular focus of the institute was the development and strengthening of parliamentary research services. It was organized by the House Democracy Partnership (HDP), a successor organization to Frost-Solomon that is chaired by Price, in cooperation with NDI and the U.S. Agency for International Development.

"Where democratic governance has taken root," Price said, "where elected leaders are already working to reform and strengthen their institutions — then commissions such as ours can provide an added boost by sharing our own experiences, good and bad...because when we speak, we speak as peers, as fellow elected officials and professional staff members who are driven by many of the same motivations and ideals. We also have firsthand knowledge of the things that make our own legislature more effective, and can bring that knowledge to bear in targeted ways."

The commemoration events were hosted by the Senate and Sejm of Poland, one of the parliaments that benefitted from the Frost-Solomon program that is now helping other countries with democratic development. Also in attendance was former U.S. Rep. Martin Frost, D-TX, for whom the task force was named along with the late U.S. Rep. Gerald B. H. Solomon, R-NY. Additional participants were Dan Mulhollan, director of the Congressional Research Service (CRS), a group of veteran CRS employees who worked with the task force and representatives from 10 Frost-Solomon countries who all shared their expertise on developing research services.

Speakers underlined the importance of reliable, impartial, timely and accurate research for parliaments drafting legislation. And they shared tips on how to engage legislators and help them see the value of research, which was a concern of a number of representatives from the 11 developing parliaments who feel the importance of their work is not recognized.

"The key to democracy is effective legislation," which requires good information, said William Robinson, former deputy director of CRS. Paul Rundquist, formerly of CRS, emphasized the significance of visibility, flexibility, confidentiality and reliability as researchers prepare information for lawmakers and encourage them to see its value.

Renata Blagniene speaks at the commemoration at the Polish Senate.

Renata Blagniene, head of the General Information Division of the Lithuanian parliament, who was one of the original Frost-Solomon participants, said the vision provided by CRS in those early days "forced us to work hard and to achieve standards." She and her team learned how to be active, be visible and gain political support for their research.

Frost-Solomon provided assistance to parliaments in 10 emerging democracies — Albania, Bulgaria, Czech Republic, Estonia, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Romania and Slovakia. Its programs were based on the principle that successful democratic transitions in the former communist countries depended on the establishment of effective democratic legislatures.

Those programs, administered by CRS, provided more than 1,200 computers, printers, faxes and other office equipment; more than 9,300 books and other materials for parliamentary libraries; and training programs for more than 2,200 staff and members. "[A] lasting positive impact on the democratic work of parliaments can be demonstrated in all of the countries," according to the task force's final report, published in 1998.

HDP comprises a bipartisan group of 20 members of the U.S. House who work to promote and support the development of democratic governments around the world. It is co-chaired by Price and U.S. Rep. David Drier, R-CA. Attending the staff institute were representatives from HDP partner legislatures in Afghanistan, Georgia, Haiti, Indonesia, Kenya, Kosovo, Liberia, Macedonia, Mongolia, Pakistan and Timor-Leste.

"While our work has evolved considerably since the first Frost-Solomon delegations 20 years ago," Price said, "one constant remains at its core: the importance of a legislative research service to an independent legislature. For policymaking is often a battle of ideas, and ideas must be supported by facts."

Related:

Pictured above: Former U.S. Rep. Martin Frost (left) and Rep. David Price (center) speak to Ibrahim Samadi, a participant in the parliamentary research service institute from Afghanistan.

Published on July 7, 2010

Victor Rojas

fgalleto — Tue, 06 Jul 2010 19:45:17 +0000

Victor Rojas serves as country director in NDI's Peru office. Mr. Rojas has more than 20 years of experience in supporting election processes and strengthening political parties in Latin America and other regions of the world. He led an election project in Nicaragua for the National Endowment for Democracy and consulted for the International Foundation for Electoral Systems as a political party expert for a USAID-funded program in Tajikistan. This experience has been complemented by his work as a campaign and government communications advisor and trainer for presidents and candidates at the national, state and local level. In this work, he often employed new media technologies and public opinion research tools to help candidates develop policy platforms that are more responsive to voters' concerns.

Mr. Rojas has served as a campaign and communications advisor for governments and a range of candidates for public office in Latin America. From 2006 to 2009, he was senior advisor to the Coalition of First Ladies and Women Leaders from Latin America on Women and AIDS. As advisor to the coalition, Mr. Rojas worked directly with the first ladies to prepare policy proposals, organize joint activities, facilitate international fundraising and convene an international congress to share policy approaches to combating HIV/AIDS.

From 2005 to 2009, Mr. Rojas also served as an in-country advisor and trainer for the U.S. and Costa Rican public opinion firms Greenberg Quinlan Rosner and Borge y Asociados. He regularly assisted candidates for presidential, legislative and municipal level offices in Bolivia, Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua and Panama in such areas as polling and focus groups, training for women candidates, and communications and strategic planning. From 2000 to 2005, he served as a communications advisor to the presidency of Costa Rica. His responsibilities included defining the government's vision, strategic development targets, monitoring and evaluation plans and response to natural disasters.

Mr. Rojas received his B.A. in history from the University of Costa Rica in 1985. In addition to his native Spanish, Mr. Rojas speaks fluent English.

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In Haiti, Presidential Debates Stay Focused on Issues

Citizen Groups Support Efforts to Contain Cholera in Haiti

Ricardo Valverde

In Haiti, Citizens Voice Ideas and Concerns about Rebuilding

NDI E-news: Colombia, Haiti, Ukraine, Bahrain | Feb. 2010

February 2010

Chocó Women Win 2009 Madeleine K. Albright Grant

Initiative Committees Working to Distribute Aid and Information in Haiti

African Experts Lay Out Recommendations for Credible Elections

NDI Launches Website That Adds Transparency to Afghanistan Election Data

NDI Partner Groups Commend Ukrainian Elections, Offer Recommendations for Sunday's Runoff

Youth Leaders Declaration from Belgrade Summit Seeks Regional Cooperation and Peace

Bahrain Women’s Union Calls for Action on Domestic Violence Law

Maturing and Developing Democracies Share Experiences on Parliamentary Research Services

Victor Rojas