WRITTEN QUESTION E-3141/98

by Ana Miranda de Lage (PSE) and Jesús Cabezón Alonso (PSE) to the Commission

(16 October 1998)

Subject: Situation in Haiti

The Republic of Haiti has been in a state of institutional crisis for many months. The serious economic and social situation has been exacerbated by the catastrophic consequences of the devastating hurricane George.

The extreme weakness of the political, institutional and party system could render the Republic once again ungovernable and see the return of authoritarianism.

Can the Commission say what projects aimed at normalising democracy are currently being pursued with financial assistance charged to the budget headings for democratisation and human rights?

Can the Commission say what projects it supports to promote the modernisation of the State and in particular of the judicial system in Haiti, which is essential to guarantee equal treatment for all citizens, the majority of which feel excluded from the legislative process and by the system in general?

Can the Commission say what measures it intends to adopt to ensure that the forthcoming municipal elections are fair and to encourage a significant voter turnout and thus bring to an end the dangerous trend towards abstention registered at the last elections?

Answer given by Mr Pinheiro on behalf of the Commission

(13 November 1998)

The overall democratisation and good governance strategy established by the Commission and the Haitian authorities focuses on the justice system and on certain social sectors such as health and education. It is this strategy which governs the various financial instruments used, whether under the EDF or the Community budget.

The budget heading for democratisation and human rights covers a number of projects focusing on the rule of law and access to the judicial system for underprivileged social groups. Some ECU 6,5 million has been committed since 1992 to projects including a project by the non-governmental organisation RCN (the citizens' network) to grant legal assistance and train justices of the peace (ECU 640 000), support for the presidential elections in 1995 and ECU 1 million in support for the commission set up to prepare legal and judicial reforms (CPRDJ). The first of these projects, to set up legal assistance offices outside the capital, is helping gradually to restore the population's confidence in the justice system, while the imminent and necessary reform of the judicial system has been underpinned by mechanisms to consult widely all sections of Haitian society.

In line with these projects, good governance is a focal sector of the national indicative programme for the 8th EDF, accounting for 12 % of programmable aid, or ECU 17,80 million. Three sub-sectors (education, health and justice) have been identified, and support projects for these are currently under appraisal. For these sectors, institutional capacity building will be provided to rationalise and redefine the role of the State and to support decentralisation.

Given the elections' importance for consolidating the democratic process, support for them may be considered once more precise information is available. An identification mission will be undertaken with a view to assessing genuine needs and the scope for financing.