Haitian president drops the ball on addressing corruption concerns


RENÉ PRÉVAL, president of Haiti, has been in Washington discussing how to help his earthquake-ravaged country ahead of a major international donors conference this month. Unsurprisingly, given Haiti's history of wasted and purloined foreign aid, he is being asked about the perils of corruption and what measures the Haitian government might devise to minimize misuse and theft of the billions of dollars in recovery assistance flowing into the country and the billions more expected. Surprisingly, he seems utterly unprepared to discuss the matter.

If ever there were a place and time ripe for graft, it's Haiti circa now. Despite laudable steps by Mr. Préval to get a handle on corruption in recent years, the country remains an extravagantly crooked place in the view of international donors, the business community, and, most important, its own people. Transparency International, which measures perceptions of corruption worldwide, has consistently rated Haiti among the world's most corrupt countries. Shattered institutions, an anemic state, a history of graft and the sudden deluge of aid money make Haiti a perfect storm for corruption risk, according to Roslyn Hees, an adviser to Transparency International who co-authored a handbook called "Preventing Corruption in Humanitarian Operations."

No one accuses Mr. Préval of the abuses associated with so many of his predecessors. But his insistence that Haiti's government has nothing to do with corruption since aid money is funneled from international donors to nongovernmental organizations rings hollow.

While it's true that the government is notoriously weak and lacks resources, now more than ever, it's equally true that government officials and their cronies in the private sector have enriched themselves lavishly in the past. To assert, as the president does, that such troubles all belong to history is to turn a deaf ear to donors' legitimate and pressing concerns.

What's more, it's a public relations debacle at just the moment that Haiti needs to burnish its image so that the world's outpouring of compassion can be fashioned into a long-term, multibillion-dollar recovery package. Mr. Préval, who has scarcely addressed his people in public since the Jan. 12 quake, has not shown a particular knack for outreach and message refinement. If he expects Congress, international financial institutions and the world's other major donors to pony up billions to rebuild Haiti, he can help his cause by taking concerns about corruption seriously and spelling out ways the government can help the international community to contain it.

Preval an general pa renmen repond kestyon o sije de koripsyon nan gouvenman li a!
M'te la nan konferans de Press la e jounalist yo pap mande'l pou'l te bay garanti sou zafe koripsyon.

Preval se prezidan peyi a se vre men se pa tout bagay sou lajan kap fet pou'l konnen.
Pafwa se le bagay yo finn fet se le la ke li vinn konnen e li pran sanksyon e revoke volo pousa.

Wou chonje byen ke Preval gen yon dent kont jounalist Washington Post yo kite vin an Ayiti pou vinn investigue sou zafe koripsyon.

Pandan ke li tap fe yon konversasyon avek General ameriken an e tout Brigade li yo, Preval te vire tet li e bay general la dô pou'l te pale avek jounalist Washington Post yo, Si'm pa trompe'l Preval te gen problem avek Michelle Porte, m'pa finn souje nom an byen.

Se yon bagay ki vexan pou Prezidan repond sou malversation ke mamb gouvenman li an ap fe aloske li memm PERSONELMAN pa inplike ni volo, ni foure men li nan lajan pep la.

Preval pa gen Fondasyon pou'l depoze lajan. Li pa depose lajan pep la nan bank etranje!
Li pa signen check sou nom li.
Li pa gen bizniss avek assosye!

Preval gen pou'l soti nan jwet sa kom "Mr. Clean" konparativeman a predesese li yo.

Sanble gen moun ki gen problem avek madam li pou zafe malversation e assosye madam an e la anko fok nou vini avek prev a la men.
Si se pasa se pale anpil mete la!!

Despite laudable steps by Mr. Préval to get a handle on corruption in recent years, the country remains an extravagantly crooked place in the view of international donors, the business community, and, most important, its own people.

No one accuses Mr. Préval of the abuses associated with so many of his predecessors. But his insistence that Haiti's government has nothing to do with corruption since aid money is funneled from international donors to nongovernmental organizations rings hollow.

Deja koripsyon Ayiti an lan menm kanpay ki fè yo di ke Ayiti "se peyi ki pi pòv lan emisfè oksidantal la, chaj fwa yo nonmen non Ayiti.

Mwen konprann ke Preval sòti pou fè moun sayo retire bouch yo sou Ayiti.
Li gen dwa defann gouvènman an si yo pa tolere koripsyon lan administrasyon yo.

Ou sonje tou lot jou li kouri deye yon jounalis ki tap deblatere peyi a.