Mylena Fiori and Aloisio Milani
Reporters - Agência Brasil

Brasília - Representatives of Brazil, Argentina, the United States, Canada, Chile, and France are arriving in Haiti today (18) for a political visit. These countries comprise a nucleus of the United Nations (UN) stabilization mission in Haiti (MINUSTAH). Diplomats and representatives of the six countries will be in Haiti to accompany the organization of general elections scheduled to be held on February 7.

According to the general undersecretary for South America in the Ministry of Foreign Relations, ambassador José Eduardo Martins Felício, the purpose of the "political mission" is to insist that the elections not be postponed once again. The provisional government of Haiti issued its most recent call for elections in response to an official request from the UN Security Council. The elections had already been officially postponed three times.

The "political mission" will remain in Haiti until Sunday (22) and will meet with parties and local leaders. 34 candidates from different parties are running for president. If none of the candidates receives a majority of the votes, that is, 50%+1, a runoff will be held on March 19. The Haitian general elections, provided for in the UN resolution that authorized dispatching the peace mission, will choose replacements for the provisional government, which was installed after the ouster of ex-president Jean Bertrand Aristide, in February, 2004.

Translation: David Silberstein