Losers In Haitian Election Cry Foul

PORT-AU-PRINCE, Jan 5 (APP - UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 05th Jan, 2017 ) - The losers in Haiti's presidential election insisted Wednesday they will not recognize political neophyte Jovenel Moise as the winner, calling the officially declared result a political coup.

But international organizations welcomed the conclusion of a tortuously long voting process that began in October 2015 and paralyzed political life in this unstable Caribbean nation that is the poorest in the Americas.

Moise was declared winner of the November 20 first round Tuesday night by the Provisional Electoral Council, with 55.6 percent of the votes. To check against fraud -- the reason for the scrapping of the election the first time Haiti tried in 2015 -- the council said right after the election that 12 percent of the ballots must be verified.

After a week of checking, the council said there was no signficant fraud. The losing candidates argued that the verification was not done properly. "Fanmi Lavalas will never accept this electoral coup," said fourth place finisher Maryse Narcisse, referring to her party.

Moise Jean-Charles, the third place finisher, also refused to recognize the result and urged people to stand up and protest. "Either we mobilize and defend our rights or we accept this electoral coup," he said.

"When the law goes against the people, the people must be outside the law," he said without explaining what exactly he meant. The runner up, Jude Celestin, has not yet spoken out pubicly. International organizations welcomed the end of the electoral saga, however. Moise will take power on February 7.