ONUVEH mission in Haiti ends with success.The last contingent of the UN Observer Group for the Verification of the Elections in Haiti (ONUVEH ONUVEH United Nations Observer Group for Verification of Elections in Haiti ) left that Caribbean country on 22 February, after the Group successfully saw the nation through its first free and democractic elections and the peaceful inauguaration of President-elect Jean-Bertrand Aristide on 7 February. An attempted coup d'etat by Roger Lafontant, a former Minister of the Interior under "President for Life" Jean-Claude Duvailer and who was excluded from the presidential race, was the only serious incident before the second round of the elections. ONUVEH reported that the coup attempt on 6 January was "unanimously rejected" by the international community and quickly foiled by "the strong reaction of the population and its mobilization in urban centres", and the condemnation of the military high command. More than 70 people died and many were injured in·jure tr.v. in·jured, in·jur·ing, in·jures 1. To cause physical harm to; hurt. 2. To cause damage to; impair. 3. in violent street clashes in Port-au-Prince, Haiti's capital, and Cap Haitien Cap Hai·tien or Cap-Ha·ï·tien A city of northern Haiti on the Atlantic Ocean. Founded c. 1670, it is a tourist center. Population: 129,000. on the northern coast. Participation in the 16 December balloting in which President Aristide was elected by a landslide landslide, rapid slipping of a mass of earth or rock from a higher elevation to a lower level under the influence of gravity and water lubrication. More specifically, rockslides are the rapid downhill movement of large masses of rock with little or no hydraulic flow, was very high. However, voters showed "relative apathy apathy /ap·a·thy/ (ap´ah-the) lack of feeling or emotion; indifference.apathet´ic ap·a·thy n. Lack of interest, concern, or emotion; indifference. " in the second round held on 20 January to elect senators, deputies and local officers, ONUVEH reported. In spite of some irregularities, the population was able "to vote freely and without fear", as it had in the first round, it stated. In the second round, some 100 ONUVEH observers were deployed in the country's nine departments, visiting more than 1,200 polling stations--10 per cent of the total. The security observers closely followed the implementation of security measures Noun 1. security measures - measures taken as a precaution against theft or espionage or sabotage etc.; "military security has been stepped up since the recent uprising" security by the Haitian authorities. ONUVEH was the first UN election monitoring Election monitoring is the observation of an election by one or more independent parties, typically from another country or a non-governmental organization (NGO), primarily to ensure the fairness of the election process. There are national and international election observers. operation in an independent nation not involved in a regional conflict. The Group played a pivotal role in helping to create a climate of security conducive to the olding of democratic elections in a country still traumatized by the 1987 elections, which were cancelled after the Duvalierists unleashed a campaign of terror against voters and candidates. |
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