So what’s up with this creepy, Vincent Price-like diplomat from Guatemala, Edmond Mulet, who is interfering so confidently in the Haitian election? An Al Jazeera report by Sebastian Walker which aired last night, reveals that Mulet contacted two candidates, Mirlande Manigat and Michel Martelly, on the same day earlier this week and told each one that they were “ahead” in the vote count. If you recall, on election day, 12 of the 18 presidential candidates, including Manigat and Martelly, held a press conference calling for the invalidation of the election due to massive fraud. With two-thirds of the presidential candidates calling for the plug to be pulled on the election, Mulet was in a pickle. His calls to Manigat and Martelly were designed to appeal to their political ambition so that they would break with the ten others and support a continuation of the vote count. And this is just what happened. Following is the Al Jazeera report by Sebastian Walker:
And, today, the media is reporting that Mulet threatened to withdraw MINUSTAH, the UN peacekeeping operation, from Haiti if the “people’s will is not respected” by validating what can only be described as a theatre of the absurd election held on November 28. Mulet is often given to dramatic expression of his opinion in interviews, but he is walking on thin ice by threatening to remove MINUSTAH from the country– last I heard, it is still the UN Security Council who decides when the peacekeepers leave.
Within the last few days, more and more Haitians have hit the streets to demand that the election be invalidated and seem steadfast in not having the international community cram it down their throats.
Just a few minutes ago, a news article quotes Haiti’s ambassador to the UN Leo Meores as saying, “We are moving forward in terms of a democratic tranistion of power.” Yet, Ban ki-moon stated, “The irregularities now seem more serious than we initially thought.” Stay tuned.
Below is the article about Mulet’s threatening to remove MINUSTAH from Haiti:
UN threatens to leave Haiti if vote results ignored
Twelve of the 18 presidential contenders are demanding that the election results be annulled after a campaign marred by violence and fraud. -AFP
Fri, Dec 03, 2010
AFP
PORT-AU-PRINCE- The United Nations will leave Haiti and world powers will stop supporting the impoverished nation if the government fails to honor election results, a top UN peacekeeper said Thursday.
“If the people’s decision is respected and recognized by Haiti’s Provisional Electoral Council, there will be no problems and the international community will be engaged in helping the new government face huge challenges,” Edmond Mulet said as the country awaited the outcome of Sunday’s presidential and legislative elections.
But he warned in an interview that “the international community will pull out of Haiti and the country will not benefit from international support and resources if the people’s decision is not respected.”
Twelve of the 18 presidential contenders are demanding that the election results be annulled after a campaign marred by violence and fraud in favor of ruling party candidate Jude Celestin.
“We continue to have faith in the members of the Provisional Electoral Council. We will see whether they are up to the circumstances and whether neither intimidation nor money can make them change their minds,” Mulet said.
Tensions meanwhile simmered in Haiti with its political future hanging in the balance as vote-counting was underway ahead of the expected release of preliminary results on Tuesday.
Protesters renewed charges of vote-rigging and cholera fears led to deadly mob violence while candidates remained split over whether to endorse the outcome. Amid growing tensions, authorities banned public demonstrations demanding President Rene Preval’s ouster.
With the impoverished Caribbean nation in limbo, between 2,000 and 3,000 opposition demonstrators peacefully took to the streets of Port-au-Prince seeking annulment of the vote to determine the successor to Preval.
An unexpected admission from the ruling INITE (UNITY) party that Celestin may have lost the vote has brought hope of a political watershed if the dysfunctional, failing nation is able to manage a relatively peaceful transition of power.
Meanwhile, the stubborn cholera epidemic, which has claimed more than 1,800 lives since mid-October, cast a shadow over the first election since a massive earthquake tore the country apart in January, killing some 250,000 people.
Expressing concern about the post-election crisis, Mulet urged for calm.
“The UN and the international community will never accept that a legitimate Haitian president leaves under pressure from the street. It would be a coup,” he said in responding to the calls for Preval’s removal.
“People have to stop this business of anticipating the departure of an elected president. These precedents in Haiti must stop. An elected government must be replaced by an elected government.”
Haiti has been plagued by dictatorships and political upheaval, and several of its past leaders have fled or been forced into exile, including Jean-Bertrand Aristide, Haiti’s first democratically elected president.
French Ambassador Didier Le Bret echoed Mulet’s concerns, telling Radio Metropole “we cannot demand to depose a legitimately elected authority under the pretext of elections not being completed successfully. It would be a coup.”
haiti-cuba-venezuela 
L rogers
December 9, 2010
I have worked in Haiti for almost 2 years.. during Hurricanes Ike and Hannah.. when the UN had the means to assist move the mud in Gonaive.. they sat by and did nothing.. It seems sad that a body we the global world created.. is allowed to commit crimes of gross negligence unretarded .. Controlling which government rules by threat to the already victimised public.. assisting them further with the importation of cholera..It was not accidental.. Cholera has frequent outbreaks in Nepal.. are we that blind to believe the UN soldiers deployed were not given a physical? The UN s regulations and physical examinations are extensive.. they are after all the UN.. Haiti will be better off.. if such a body were to vacate.. and wonder why the people who have been affected and have not been assisted get angry at even their basic rights being violated? Why, in the Sudan and most other places are the people living in the same conditions.. not their mandate, they answer.. but the millions pour in… sad that this world is so complacent while this occurs without nothing but comments to mark its happening.
magbana
December 10, 2010
Thank you for your comment. It is always good to have someone who has been in Haiti working over a period of time to weigh in with an assessment of what is going on. You have hit all the nails on the head. When the international community did not move beyond tarps and tents for Haitians displaced in the earthquake, I knew then that the policy was to let them die in what they thought would be a very busy hurricane season. When the hurricane season did not materialize in the ferocious manner predicted, I figured they would have to come up with another strategy — and they did, cholera. I agree that the cholera was purposely placed in the river and one day, someone who knows who, when and how will talk.
The UN peacekeepers were sent to Haiti as a proxy army for the US for the sole purpose of making the coup against Aristide “stick.” Aristide, then, as today, enjoys the overwhelming support of the Haitian people. The UN has committed massacres in the poorer neighborhoods of Cite Soleil and Bel Air, etc. in which they killed people indiscriminately as they slept in their beds. There is no way to make the coup “stick” so the UN along with the Haitian National Police have been on a campaign of population reduction — Aristide supporter reduction — for six years. Haiti needs to have its president, Jean-Bertrand Aristide, back in the country and the UN out, along with the coup-launiching US, France and Canada.
Thanks for writing and let us hear more in the future about you ideas on Haiti.
Mesi anpil.
HCVANALYSIS
L rogers
December 10, 2010
I am part of a small grass roots agency.. and all volunteer.. the problem with the earthquake relief situation is the donors want numbers and is number based , not quality or sustainability.. hence temporary shelters that will not stand the test of time.. when we do get funding we build permanent.. The bigger the agency the less effective they are… it is not a UN plot for the relief… that much I do know from sitting in on cluster meetings.. the issue is the people in the NGOs are getting paid.. and the longer they take the more they get paid…being a volunteer means we have limited resources so have to do the job immediately..Yes the cholera was deliberate.. no I dont necessarily agree with your statement regarding Canada.. in fact reject that completely.. .. I have no political agenda as you do.. I just want to see these people living better.. the untapped resources here are enough to feed this country.and keep everyone living in a standard to those of middle class forever…. and doubt Aristide or any Haitian govt would have that decency to put it where it belongs .. in the hands of the poor.. I have worked here as a volunteer through two disasters…. there is no community spirit.. no charity.. and a lack of humanity which most find daunting..The mindset of your people must change.. help one another.. be kind, dont put garbage in your water.. be a good citizen .. make Haiti worth visiting.. As it is tragic that such a beautiful country is laid waste by its inhabitants.. education should be free.. not robbing the poor. that has not changed.. yes Im a spoiled Canadian.. but human rights are human rights.. Slavery exists and has under each leader and did not change.. again tis the people that need to change.. You cannot blame everything on the UN .. though their crimes are heinous and should be told to leave… Quit passing the buck. change always occurs from within..No politician will change this.. you the people of Haiti need to make this change..
magbana
December 10, 2010
Everything in Haiti is political. Nothing is happenstance. A lot of the political things that happen are from the US, France and Canada as they re-arrange the pieces on the chessboard. You cannot help the people unless you take a political stand, unless you understand why the UN is there, and understand that the US, French and Canadian gov’ts met in Ottawa in 2000 to craft the overthrow of Aristide, which was a travesty for the people you are trying to help. Aristide was making good progress in social areas on behalf of the people, housing, health, literacy, doubling the minimum wage, etc. You doubt that Aristide could have the “decency” to put the power in the hands of the poor — Aristide was a parish priest who understood the poor and whom the poor know is the only politician that ever gave a damn about him. Please do not underestimate his ability to bring change in Haiti. It was the US and Canada who worked with the international financial institutions to prevent loans from going to Haiti beginning in 2000 — one of those loans was from the Inter-American Development Bank which was for a public sanitary system, something that would have been a great help today in this cholera crisis. The bottom line is that Aristide did not receive one penny in international funding from 2000-2004, yet the poor people of Haiti were enthusiastic about the social gains he was able to make.
After Aristide was kidnapped by the US on February 29, 2004, the Haitian National Police along with assistance from the UN peacekeepers killed nearly 10,000 supporters of Aristide by the time Rene Preval was elected in mid-2006. Many Haitians were arrested and the UN turned them over to the Haitian National Police death squads. And who was training the HNP during this time? The Canadian contingent of the UN peacekeepers.
After what the people of Haiti have been through recently starting with Aristide’s overthrow, to the massacres committed by the UN and the HNP, to the earthquake, to the cholera epidemic, and this sham of an election the UN tried to pull off, I would think you would be glad if the Haitians were breathing. You want to help Haitians? Make sure your country and the US, and France are never able to strip away Haiti’s sovereignty again and make sure that your country and the US and France never again negate the right of Haitians to determine who leads there country as they did with the coup of 2004. I am shocked about many of things you have said about Haitians and find it patronizing. You tell Haitians to be “good citizens.” Please understand that you are talking about the brave sons and daughters of Dessalines who fought the strongest army on earth to achieve their independence and the international community has been in their face ever since. I can only hope that you will understand what grinding, perpetual poverty does to a people. Change comes when people have hope and are inspired — that was what Aristide did for them.
I encourage you and others reading this to read the following book about Haiti. The insights about the people, the international community and Aristide are very valuable. The book is by Peter Hallward, “Damming the Flood: Haiti, Aristide, and the Politics of Containment.” This book will tell you plenty about the role of Canada. I will end where I started. Everything in Haiti is political and unless you understand the politics and history of the country, you won’t be doing much good until you decide which side you are on.
BTW, couldn’t tell, but it seems you think I am a Haitian. Not so.
Mesi anpil.
magbana
December 10, 2010
Everything in Haiti is political. Nothing is happenstance. A lot of the political things that happen are from the US, France and Canada as they re-arrange the pieces on the chessboard. You cannot help the people unless you take a political stand, unless you understand why the UN is there, and understand that the US, French and Canadian gov’ts met in Ottawa in 2000 to craft the overthrow of Aristide, which was a travesty for the people you are trying to help. Aristide was making good progress in social areas on behalf of the people, housing, health, literacy, doubling the minimum wage, etc. You doubt that Aristide could have the “decency” to put the power in the hands of the poor — Aristide was a parish priest who understood the poor and whom the poor know is the only politician that ever gave a damn about him. Please do not underestimate his ability to bring change in Haiti. It was the US and Canada who worked with the international financial institutions to prevent loans from going to Haiti beginning in 2000 — one of those loans was from the Inter-American Development Bank which was for a public sanitary system, something that would have been a great help today in this cholera crisis. The bottom line is that Aristide did not receive one penny in international funding from 2000-2004, yet the poor people of Haiti were enthusiastic about the social gains he was able to make.
After Aristide was kidnapped by the US on February 29, 2004, the Haitian National Police along with assistance from the UN peacekeepers killed nearly 10,000 supporters of Aristide by the time Rene Preval was elected in mid-2006. Many Haitians were arrested and the UN turned them over to the Haitian National Police death squads. And who was training the HNP during this time? The Canadian contingent of the UN peacekeepers.
After what the people of Haiti have been through recently starting with Aristide’s overthrow, to the massacres committed by the UN and the HNP, to the earthquake, to the cholera epidemic, and this sham of an election the UN tried to pull off, I would think you would be glad if the Haitians were breathing. You want to help Haitians? Make sure your country and the US, and France are never able to strip away Haiti’s sovereignty again and make sure that your country and the US and France never again negate the right of Haitians to determine who leads there country as they did with the coup of 2004. I am shocked about many of things you have said about Haitians and find it patronizing. You tell Haitians to be “good citizens.” Please understand that you are talking about the brave sons and daughters of Dessalines who fought the strongest army on earth to achieve their independence and the international community has been in their face ever since. I can only hope that you will understand what grinding, perpetual poverty does to a people. Change comes when people have hope and are inspired — that was what Aristide did for them.
I encourage you and others reading this to read the following book about Haiti. The insights about the people, the international community and Aristide are very valuable. The book is by Peter Hallward, “Damming the Flood: Haiti, Aristide, and the Politics of Containment.” This book will tell you plenty about the role of Canada. I will end where I started. Everything in Haiti is political and unless you understand the politics and history of the country, you won’t be doing much good until you decide which side you are on.
BTW, couldn’t tell, but it seems you think I am a Haitian. Not so.
Mesi anpil.
Haiti Justice Alliance
December 12, 2010
I wanted to take this opportunity to thank you for your posts and let you know I gave you a shout-out on my most recent blog post. It has been hard to find good, reliable analysis following the election and the few posts you’ve thrown up have been very valuable. Take care and please keep up the great Haiti commentary.
magbana
December 13, 2010
Thank you for the shout out on the Haiti Justice blog. Glad to know that you and your organization are out there working on behalf of the people of Haiti. I haven’t been able to work on this blog very much for the past several months because of work I am doing on another blog regarding Guinea in West Africa – http://guineaoye.wordpress.com
Given the last post on your blog about the duplicity of the MINUSTAH peacekeepers, you might want to do a retrospective, at some point, about massacres committed by its troops in 2005. I’ll send some suggested background to your email address. I think if readers understand what MINUSTAH did back then, they will understand that it is capable of doing the very worst sort of things.
Glad to know you are working with IJDH, Aristide Foundation, etc.
Best of luck and, once again, congratulations on the new blog.