海角大神

After two months of electoral stalemate from Haiti's disputed national election, US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton visited the Caribbean nation on Sunday with a clear message for their president: Move out of the way.

"It is important that the election go forward so there can be a new president," in a series of interviews Sunday. "There is so much work to be done in Haiti, and the international community stands ready to help."

Mrs. Clinton met with outgoing President Ren茅 Pr茅val 鈥� whose existing term expires Feb. 7鈥� and the three leading presidential candidates from an initial round of voting on Nov. 28. The two leading vote-getters are to compete in a second round of presidential voting, now set for March 20 after a delay. The electoral council has said it would finalize the ballot Wednesday.

Clinton did not mince words about who she prefers to see in the runoff, saying she would push for Mr. Pr茅val to accept the recommendation of the Organization of American States (OAS). While initial election results showed former first lady of Haiti Mirlande Manigat winning the vote and Pr茅val-backed candidate Jude C茅lestin placing second, OAS election monitors analyzed a sample of ballots and found popular singer Michel 鈥�Sweet Micky鈥� Martelly had placed second.

鈥淲e have made it very clear we support the OAS recommendations, and we would like to see those acted on,鈥� she told reporters, according to a , adding that "at this time" there was no talk of suspending aid to Haiti.

Pr茅val had initially balked at the OAS recommendation. His INITE (Unity) party, citing intimidation from the OAS, released a statement last week urging Mr. C茅lestin to step aside. C茅lestin has not announced his decision.

There may yet be a middle way conducive to all parties. Robert Fatton Jr., a Haiti expert and professor at the University of Virginia, says one option being discussed is that the electoral council will announce a statistical tie between C茅lestin and Mr. Martelly, meaning three candidates will compete in the final round.

鈥淚 wouldn鈥檛 be surprised if that鈥檚 what they did. It鈥檚 probably the easiest thing for them. That way, they would not be rejecting the OAS report, just modifying it,鈥� he says. 鈥淭he question would be whether the Americans would [support] that.鈥�

US seeks new partner

Yet the OAS report has been criticized. An independent analysis of first-round ballots by the Washington-based Center for Economic and Policy Research found C茅lestin did place second. The center recommended elections be held anew.

Yves Colon, a Haitian-born professor at the University of Miami, says the US wants to see the election impasse resolved because 鈥渆verything is hinging on the elections, meaning the reconstruction, the release of aid, everything. Nothing can be done until the election is resolved,鈥� he says.

More than a year after the 7.0-magnitude earthquake struck, the country still covered in rubble and tent cities.

With the pace of reconstruction expected to pick up this year, Mr. Colon says there is reluctance to partner with a government in which Pr茅val would still be influential.

鈥淧r茅val has not proven to be a very good partner. He鈥檚 been maneuvering behind the scenes 鈥� it鈥檚 Haitian politics as usual,鈥� he says. 鈥淎nd C茅lestin is widely seen as Pr茅val鈥檚 water boy.鈥�

Clinton said she was going to discuss whether Pr茅val would stay in office beyond Feb. 7, when the new president was originally to be inaugurated, or if an interim government would take over.