Préval's First Year Encourages Haiti

By Kate Neeper
May 11, 2007

Event: Haiti Under René Préval: A One Year Assessment
Featuring: Robert Fatton, Jr., University of Virginia; Mark Schneider, International Crisis Group; Juan Gabriel Valdés, former head of MINUSTAH; and James Dobbins, RAND Corporation. .

One year after President Rene Préval took office, analysts are cautiously optimistic about Haiti's future, though still quick to note that the current situation remains fragile. Experts at an Inter-American Dialogue meeting on May 11 noted that while progress has been made during the first year of Préval's presidency, continued involvement on the part of the administration and the international community remain necessary to prevent Haiti's 'descent into hell.'

Robert Fatton highlighted five key gains since Préval's election last year: improved security, striking a tone of political moderation, establishing himself as a leader independent of Aristide, modest stabilization of the economy, and "masterful" foreign policy that includes gaining support from Venezuela and Cuba as well as the United States and Canada.

Fatton warned, however, that these signs of hope do not guarantee long-term growth and stability. It remains to be seen whether Haitians' common goal of regaining stability will be enough to counter the country's deep-seated societal divides. For Fatton, the success of Préval's first year means that "at long last a historic compromise between all social groups in Haiti may be in the making."

Mark Schneider emphasized the need for a long-term focus and role for the international community in "rescuing Haiti from a 'failed state' future."

While the security situation has improved and police reform is beginning, the judicial system and prisons have seen little reform, and drug trafficking threatens to overwhelm the barely functional criminal justice system. Despite credible elections, Parliament remains ineffective and local governments lack both mission and resources.

Schneider contends that Haiti is "not rebuilding the state, it's building the state." He added that Haiti lacks historical precedent of well-functioning state institutions.

Juan Gabriel Valdés, former head of the United Nations Stabilization Mission in Haiti (MINUSTAH), commended the high degree of involvement by Latin American countries and their positive role in the UN mission. He stressed the continued need for progress in vetting police, improving officer training, and coordinating security measures with the Dominican Republic. Strengthening the judiciary system also remains a constant concern.

Valdés called for more resources from the international community. It would be a disgrace, he said, if Haiti's capable new leadership became "trapped by a structure of poverty that did not allow them to transform their own country because [the international community was] not sufficiently engaged."

James Dobbins asserted that the failure of previous efforts to bring sustainable peace to Haiti was due to very short deadlines on involvement, the perception in Haiti that the peacekeepers were not impartial, and a fundamental divide within the United States on Haiti policy. Dobbins said that the Bush administration's pragmatic and limited involvement in Haiti has been for the best, given the United Nations' stronger track record in nation-building operations than the United States'.

Panelists agreed that although Préval achieved progress during his first year in office, important challenges remain. The country's security problem has turned into an equally difficult but far less bloody issue of economic development. Haitians and the international community must continue to monitor the situation to ensure an equally productive second year under Préval's administration.