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Martelly has met with political leaders to end Haiti crisis

Last Updated on Tuesday, 16 December 2014, 22:22 by GxMedia

Haitian President Michel Martelly

Port-au-Prince, Dec 16 (EFE).- Haitian President Michel Martelly has met legislative, judicial and political leaders to discuss the appointment of a new prime minister and moves towards overcoming the current political crisis in the country.

Martelly sat down Monday with Stevenson Jacques Thimoleon, speaker of the Lower House and Senate speaker Simon Dieuseul Desras for the talks.

The president also received the Supreme Council of Judicial Power, CSPJ, president Anel Alexis Jose and members of the Provisional Electoral Council, CEP, at the National Palace.

Prime Minister Laurent Lamothe announced his resignation Sunday after Martelly agreed with a presidential advisory committee’s report recommending the resignation to overcome the political crisis of the country, the poorest in the Western hemisphere.

The advisory committee also recommended the resignation of CSPJ president Jose as well as CEP judges.

Additionally, it also called for all political prisoners to be freed, and urged senators to sanction ammendments to the electoral law to enable elections, which have been pending for years, to be held.

Two days later, two political prisoners, Rony Timothee and Byron Odige, who were arrested during a demonstration in October, were released.

Differences between the government and the legislature in recent years has halted the democratic process, the last such instance having occurred on Oct. 26.

However, no new dates have been fixed for municipal and legislative elections which have long been pending, while the Parliament completes its term on Jan. 12.

Haiti is currently witnessing a period of unrest, led by the opposition which is seeking the resignation of Martelly whom they accuse of heading a corrupt government.

The U.N.special representative for Haiti, Sandra Honore, and other members of the international community welcomed Martelly’s decision to follow the recommendations of the advisory committee to overcome the crisis.

However, government spokesperson Lucien Jura said that the president was yet to receive Lamothe’s resignation letter, according to local news reports.