Prime Minister Latortue announced the creation of an anti-corruption unit, a justice and reconciliation committee, and the formation of the Provisional Electoral Council, CEP, as soon as possible.
A series of meetings with the international sponsors will be held on 22 April in order to repair the country’s economic situation. According to Prime Minister Latortue, the Jean-Bertrand Aristide hurricane even hit the coffers of the Central Bank.
“It is in a situation of complete failure, in bankruptcy. While leaving the government, the men took all they could and left the state coffers empty. They left the country in a situation comparable to that of countries which were at war, countries where an army is in retreat. They took everything they could, including the coffers of the Central Bank. The night of President Aristide’s departure, they entered the Central Bank and took the money which was there, even the coffers of the Central Bank.”
The private sector was not neglectd either. According to the prime minister, this sector was one of the victims of the Aristide hurricane. But he did not forget the people in the poor neighbourhoods. Latortue therefore asked U.S. Secretary of State Powell to look into Haiti’s case even before the intervention of the sponsors.
While I expect we shall resume all relations with the IMF, the IADB (Inter-American Development Bank) and the World Bank, I talked to the secretary of state about the possibility of us having a sort of bridge which would allow us to deal with this problem, especially to create jobs in poor areas, such as La Saline, Cite Soleil, Raboteau in Gonaives, La Fossette in Cap-Haitien, Sainte-Helene in Jeremie and all those areas where marginalized people are living.