Dominican Republic and Haiti: Country Studies

Dominican Republic and Haiti: Country Studies
function to the executive branch. Subsequently, a CEP was
formed and, working with massive international assistance,
gradually oversaw the creation of a framework for parliamentary,
municipal, and communal section elections. Between
June and September 1995, the elections were held. International
observers deemed the elections "free, fair, and flawed,"
the latter characterization resulting principally from the commission's
mixed performance (see Democracy Restored, 1994-
96, ch. 6). Thousands of candidates from dozens of political
parties stood for election to communal section councils,
municipal councils, and the parliament—a total of 2,192 positions.
Few incumbents won re-election. Swept into office was a
new generation of political leaders, practically all of whom ran
either as candidates of Lavalas Political Organization (Organisation
Politique Lavalas—OPL) or one of the three other political
parties that had joined the OPL to form the Lavalas
Political Platform (Plate-forme Politique Lavalas—PPL), or
simply as Lavalas independents. In a break with Haiti's political
past, the victorious candidates were residents of the constituencies
they were elected to represent or to govern, and few
counted themselves as members of the traditional political
class (
classe politique) .
Presidential Transition, October 1995-March 1997
As Haiti's newly elected officials took office, Smarck Michel
resigned in October 1995, largely over issues linked to economic
policy. Michel had endorsed macroeconomic policies
promoted by the multilateral and bilateral donors who in January
1995 had pledged approximately US$2.8 billion in aid for
Haiti's recovery. That policy, based largely on such reform measures
as the divestiture of state enterprises ("privatization") and
reduced tariffs ("free trade"), became a contentious issue
among Lavalas partisans who did not want to undermine the
state, but rather to make it finally render services to citizens.
Michel was quickly replaced by Claudette Werleigh, the sitting
minister of foreign affairs, nominated by Aristide, whose position
on macroeconomic policies was enigmatic, and confirmed
by the new, pro-Lavalas parliament. Werleigh's government,
however, did not move on economic reform policies, thus precipitating
a slow-down in aid flows, as internationally identified
conditionalities to disbursements went unmet.
Attention to this crisis was diverted, however, by a growing
focus on the status of the presidential election scheduled for
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