Through the National Pact for Stability and the Organization of Elections, the Prime Minister and his allies have expressed their desire to make changes to the Constitution. To materialize this intent, Alix Didier Fils-Aimé has already modified the mandate of the Provisional Electoral Council (CEP) and obtained the modification of the electoral decree. However, no one yet knows the nature of these changes to the Mother Law, nor who will be responsible for drafting them.
Since the 2016 elections, every successive leader at the helm of the country, whether elected or not, has manifested a desire to change the Constitution: President Jovenel Moïse, Prime Minister Ariel Henry, the Transitional Presidential Council (CPT), and now Prime Minister Alix Didier Fils-Aimé. Each time, their projects failed to mature. Under the CPT administration, the Steering Committee even presented what was supposed to be the new Constitution. However, the Presidential Council ultimately had to abandon both the project and the Steering Committee it had appointed.
In the political agreement (National Pact for Stability and the Organization of Elections) signed between Prime Minister Alix Didier Fils-Aimé, political actors, and civil society, these protagonists have put constitutional changes back on the political agenda, but this time with far more ambiguity. Articles 12, 13, and 14 of the Fils-Aimé era political agreement are dedicated to these modifications of the Mother Law. “The signatory parties agree to propose, during this exceptional period, a limited number of changes to the mother law based on consensus reached within society, in order to improve governance and guarantee the harmonious functioning of the State apparatus.”
The signatories of the political agreement indicate that “the modalities for implementing the aforementioned changes will be determined, through consultation, between the current government and the vital forces of the country, whether signatories or non-signatories of this Pact. These changes will obligatorily be submitted to popular ratification during the first round of the next elections. In the event of a favorable vote on these changes, the interim Government will take steps to make them enforceable.”
Although the government has altered the CEP’s mandate to incorporate these constitutional changes into its mission, the draft electoral decree provides no further details regarding the nature of these modifications to the country’s fundamental law. According to Article 71.1 of the draft electoral decree, “the popular consultation on a limited number of changes to the Constitution shall be held during the first round of the presidential and legislative elections.”
Article 239.1 adds: “In the framework of the popular consultation on the proposed changes to the Constitution, the ballot paper shall be titled: ‘REPUBLIC OF HAITI: PROPOSAL OF CHANGES TO THE CONSTITUTION’ and shall include the following question: ‘Do you approve the proposed changes to the Constitution? Èske w dakò ak chanjman sa yo nan Konstitisyon an?’. It contains two (2) boxes: 1. One colored green with the mention: ‘Oui / Wi’; 2. The other colored white with the mention: ‘Non’.”
Within the framework of the popular consultation on the proposed changes to the Constitution, Article 261.1 of the draft electoral decree specifies, “only ballots marked with a cross or any other sign indicating, unequivocally, the citizen’s intention to vote in the ‘Oui / Wi’ or ‘Non’ box shall be valid and counted toward the results.”
Neither the National Pact for Stability and the Organization of Elections, nor the draft electoral decree, nor the decree modifying the Electoral Council’s mission explains these famous “changes” to the Constitution mentioned by the actors. While the phrase “changes to the mother law” suggests that the stakeholders do not intend to replace the entire Constitution—as was the case under the Transitional Presidential Council—no one is currently able to say which articles are targeted or who will be tasked with working on these changes.
It is, however, pertinent to note that while the Prime Minister promises the restoration of security and the organization of elections in his public statements, he never mentions or discusses these “changes” to the Constitution. It is a referendum that neither Alix Didier Fils-Aimé nor any of his allies who signed the National Pact dare to pronounce, preferring instead to speak of changes to the Mother Law…
In parallel with election preparations, amending the Constitution requires the drafting of a document, debates, as well as several months of public communication to allow the population to become familiar with the text before the vote. In this mid-May period, there is a total blackout regarding these announced constitutional changes. Furthermore, as the days pass, it will become increasingly difficult to organize elections this year, as desired by the Prime Minister and the CEP…
