BRIDGETOWN, Barbados (CMC) – Caribbean Community (Caricom) leaders were heading into caucus on Thursday to discuss the possibility of Haiti holding long overdue elections in November with consensus yet to emerge on doing so.

The last elections in the French-speaking country were held in 2016, and following 2021 assassination of President Jovenel Moise and the subsequent security and other issues, staging an election now has become problematic.

Speaking at the ceremonial opening of the Caricom summit on Wednesday night, Barbados Prime Minister and Caricom chair, Mia Mottley, said that the situation in Haiti continues to be a major concern to the grouping “and it is not going to be sufficient just to be able to say that Haiti will have an election on
November 15”.

Informed sources told CMC that at least one prime minister is pushing for the polls to be held in Haiti, despite the current security situation where criminal gangs are seeking to take complete control of the capital, Port au Prince, and have launched several attacks, killing women and children among others.

The United Nations Security Council in 2023 passed a resolution for a Kenya-led Multinational Security Support (MSS) Mission, aimed at combating gang violence and restoring stability in the country.

“This notion that elections cannot be held because of the instability, we have to be careful,” the sources said, adding “because where there is a vacuum, that vacuum will be filled by other elements and you need a government with the legitimacy of the people, elected by the people for the people that will have the type of legitimacy to restore order in Haiti”.

The sources said that by staging the elections in Haiti this year, it would also help restore the various institutions of government in the country, warning “in the absence of that you will have a problem.”

“Now I do accept that having the elections in the prevailing situation, gang violence in particular will be challenging, but I believe that the people in CARICOM should try to work out these difficulties to hold the elections as soon as practicable as planned”.

Dominica’s Prime Minister Roosevelt Skerrit has described as “aspirational” the move towards holding the elections in November given the current security situation in the country.

“So we’re in support of elections. I believe that there is full support for elections. What we’re saying is look, stick a pin. What about the other elements, the other elements of the road map that we’ve discussed, and there’s agreement on the part of the international community to provide because elections, in our view, will not solve all of Haiti’s problems.

“It will not end the gangs. It will strengthen the gangs, because the gangs may very well have tremendous influence on the elections and who will get elected? Who will get elected, if you do not have a situation where people can feel free to exercise their franchise, because there’s no peace, there’s no security in Haiti and and and so forth.”

“So we need to ensure that the elements of the road map towards elections and restoration of law and order in Haiti are fulfilled,” he stressed.