Haitians weigh whether to vote in run-off for Senate seats amid violence, political tensions

[Judi Lynn]

Haitians weigh whether to vote in run-off for Senate seats amid violence, political tensions
JONATHAN M. KATZ | Associated Press Writer
3:58 AM EDT, June 21, 2009

PORT-AU-PRINCE, Haiti (AP) — Election officials are flying street banners and sending text messages to encourage a big turnout for Sunday's hotly anticipated Senate run-offs, but many are uncertain if they will vote in an atmosphere of increasing violence and political tension.

Eleven vacant seats in the 30-member Senate are on the line, and with them, President Rene Preval's hopes of overpowering uncooperative legislators and pushing through internationally backed economic reforms and constitutional amendments that would give his successors more power.

But many Haitians are wary of voting following weeks of clashes, at least one of them deadly, between anti-government protesters and security forces, as well as fights between political parties that have left at least two people dead in provincial areas.

"If I wake up and I see that the state isn't providing security at 100 percent, I might not go and vote," said Marcel James, 33, a security guard at a Port-au-Prince bank.

The unrest is fueled by political tension, including some early jockeying for next year's planned presidential elections, as well as wrangling between the president and parliament over a proposal to increase the minimum wage. Tensions also surround the presence of 9,000 U.N. peacekeepers, who have been in Haiti since the 2004 rebellion that overthrew former President Jean-Bertrand Aristide.

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Officials in recent days hung street banners to remind people of their right to vote, while an SMS message sent by the service provider Voila on Saturday offered voters a number to text back and confirm their polling place.

The focus on turnout is a contrast from April, when Preval told a joint news conference with visiting U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton that, "People are called upon to vote, but they are not obliged to." He then quickly expressed his hope that many people would vote.

Few did.

Dady Pierre, 35, a wristwatch repairman, said he will stay home on Sunday morning and listen to the radio and neighborhood gossip before deciding whether to venture out to vote.

"Whenever there are elections in Haiti there is violence," he said. "It's something normal."

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