Haiti postpones presidential election

Philippe denies the accusations and said the United States has no legal authorization to make arrests on Haitian soil. I won’t take part in this farce, it will be a selection not an election because there will only be one candidate”, Celestin said in an interview with AFP earlier this week, France24 reported.

ReutersA protester draws on an electoral poster of presidential candidate Jovenel Moise during a demonstration rallying for the resignation of President Michel Martelly in Port-au-Prince, Haiti, January 23, 2016.

An anti-government protest turned violent in the capital Port-au-Prince on Friday and police fired at a group of people who appeared to be looting a shop.

“So that Martelly leaves power; so that he leaves the country. If they try to arrest me I will retaliate, because it is illegal”, Philippe said.

The second round of elections was scheduled to take place in December, but according to Financial Times, they were postponed twice, which would make Sunday’s cancellation the third time the vote has been called off.

Voicing concern at the postponement of tomorrow’s already delayed presidential elections in Haiti, United Nations Secretary General Ban Ki-moon on Saturday called on all political actors to refrain from violence and complete the electoral process peacefully without further delay. Young men threw rocks and lit tire barricades on fire downtown, sending black smoke billowing into the air.

It’s not yet clear when a new election will be held.

Electoral authorities from the island nation said the decision to cancel the elections was based on security reasons.

Mr Moise, whose top finish in the first round prompted allegations of vote-rigging, told reporters he believes he is the people’s choice and called for the run-off to be held soon and peacefully.

“We want a transitional government to set up an investigation commission that will determine the sincerity of the elections”, Assad said.

After months of political upheaval that started with violence and ballot stuffing in an August vote for lawmakers, some Haitians see the delay as a recipe for more uncertainty and prefer to push ahead.

“All of these so-called friends of Haiti are stopping us from moving forward”, mechanic Patrick Augustin said.

Those comments were echoed by the US government, which has supported the fraught election to the tune of $30 million.