Legislative branch: bicameral National Assembly or Assemblee Nationale consists of the Senate (27 seats; members serve six-year terms; one-third elected every two years) and the Chamber of Deputies (83 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms) elections: Senate - last held 25 June 1995, with reruns on 13 August and runoffs on 17 September, and an election for nine seats 6 April 1997 but results were disputed; next election for two-thirds of Senate postponed until May 2000; Chamber of Deputies - last held 25 June 1995, with reruns on 13 August and runoffs on 17 September (next Senate and Chamber of Deputies elections postponed until May 2000) election results: Senate - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - OPL 7, FL-leaning 7, independents 3, vacant 10; Chamber of Deputies - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - OPL 32, antineoliberal bloc 24, minor parties and independents 22, vacant 5
Judicial branch: Supreme Court or Cour de Cassation
Political parties and leaders: Alliance for the Liberation and
Advancement of Haiti or ALAH ; Assembly of
Progressive National Democrats or RDNP ; Confederation
for Democratic Unity or KID ; Democratic Consultation
Group coalition or ESPACE composed of the following
parties: Confederation for Democratic Unity KONAKOM, PANPRA,
Generation 2004, and Haiti Can or Ayiti Kapab; Generation 2004 [Claude
ROUMAIN]; Haiti Can or Ayiti Kapab ; Haitian Christian
Democratic Party or PDCH ; Haitian Democratic Party or
PADEMH ; Lavalas Family or FL ;
Mobilization for National Development or MDN ;
Movement for National Reconstruction or MRN ; Movement
for the Installation of Democracy in Haiti or MIDH ;
Movement for the Organization of the Country or MOP [Gesner COMEAU and
Jean MOLIERE]; National Alliance for Democracy and Progress [leader
NA]; National Congress of Democratic Movements or KONAKOM [Victor
BENOIT]; National Front for Change and Democracy or FNCD [Evans PAUL
and Turneb DELPE]; National Progressive Revolutionary Party or PANPRA
; Open the Gate Party or PLB ;
Struggling People's Organization or OPL ; Union
of Patriotic Democrats or UPD
Political pressure groups and leaders: Autonomous Haitian Workers or
CATH; Confederation of Haitian Workers or CTH; Federation of Workers
Trade Unions or FOS; National Popular Assembly or APN; Papaye Peasants
Movement or MPP; Popular Organizations Gathering Power or PROP; Roman
Catholic Church
International organization participation: ACCT, ACP, Caricom
(observer), CCC, ECLAC, FAO, G-77, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICRM, IDA,
IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Intelsat, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ITU,
LAES, OAS, OPANAL, OPCW, PCA, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCL,
WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO
Diplomatic representation in the US: chief of mission: Ambassador (vacant); Charge d'Affaires Louis Harold JOSEPH chancery: 2311 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: (202) 332-4090 FAX: (202) 745-7215 consulate(s) general: Boston, Chicago, Miami, New York, and San Juan (Puerto Rico)
Diplomatic representation from the US: chief of mission: Ambassador (vacant); Charge d'Affairs Les ALEXANDER to be temporary chief of mission until new ambassador is confirmed embassy: 5 Harry Truman Boulevard, Port-au-Prince mailing address: P. O. Box 1761, Port-au-Prince telephone: 22-0354, 22-0368, 22-0200, 22-0612 FAX: 23-1641
Flag description: two equal horizontal bands of blue (top) and red with a centered white rectangle bearing the coat of arms, which contains a palm tree flanked by flags and two cannons above a scroll bearing the motto L'UNION FAIT LA FORCE (Union Makes Strength)
@Haiti:Economy
Economy - overview: About 80% of the population lives in abject poverty. Nearly 70% of all Haitians depend on the agriculture sector, which consists mainly of small-scale subsistence farming and employs about two-thirds of the economically active work force. The country has experienced little job creation since President PREVAL took office in February 1996, although the informal economy is growing. Failure to reach agreements with international sponsors have denied Haiti badly needed budget and development assistance. Meeting aid conditions in 2000 will be especially challenging in the face of mounting popular criticism of reforms.