Haiti will conduct a recount of its presidential election in full view of monitors and potentially the
three leading candidates after days of riots sparked by an alleged rigged poll.
Haitians took to the streets on Wednesday after it was announced that entertainer Michel “Sweet Micky” Martelly had
been narrowly eliminated but the government-backed candidate, Jude Celestin,
and former First Lady Mirlande Manigat would enter a January
runoff.
Council President Gaillot Dorsainvil told Haitian radio tally sheets would be
recounted in the presence of international observers and electoral
officials.
The majority of the 18 candidates have complained of the results being tainted by fraud and voter intimidation. Even the US Embassy raised questions, saying the preliminary results appeared to be in conflict with reports from observers who monitored the count.
Earlier, Martelly called for calm from his supporters, many of whom hit the streets of the country’s capital, Port-au-Prince, torching barricades adn political offics, and clashing with UN peacekeepers.
The soldiers, mostly Indians and Pakistanis working together, responded by firing tear gas.
It’s been a tough time for the Caribbean country: January’s earthquake led to a cholera outbreak that has killed 2000 people so far. And as if that’s not bad enough, US Republican Party goofball Sarah Palin will visit the country in an effort to boost her foreign affairs credentials.
See the action in Port-au-Prince below:
