Support for Haiti.

• Author: Conaway, Janelle
• Position: OAS

THE OAS PLANS to reinforce its Special Mission to Strengthen Democracy in Haiti, following a resolution calling for the mission to have a broader role in monitoring implementation of government commitments.

David Lee, Chief of the Special Mission and the Secretary General's special representative to Haiti, told reporters in Port-au-Prince that the mission will "assist, keep an eye on, and report" on progress or problems in fulfilling the terms of agreements the government had reached through the OAS. Lee urged the Haitian government to compensate victims of the December 2001 political violence, in accordance with findings by OAS commissions that investigated the incidents and recommended reparations.

"It will be very important for the government to pay reparations as fast as possible," Lee said. "This is a very big opportunity for the country."

The recent resolution, which the Permanent Council adopted by consensus, expressed concern about the effects of the deteriorating socioeconomic situation on the Haitian people. It supported "the normalization of economic...