It's A Selection, Not An Election

Selection, not election. But in reality, this election is no where near a selection. Accusations of fraud have been barreling through the city, which has caused uprising in this country.

So this is the way the elections work: Every voter has an ID card and a specific booth they are supposed to go to. However, many people lost their cards in the January earthquake. Digicel, one of the top cell phone carriers in Haiti, has stepped in and is allowing people to call a number to be told where to go. Pretty simple process.

So here's a who's who of the people I'll be talking about.

Preval - current president and part of the INITE party

Jude Celestin - Preval's son-in-law and one of the top contenders in this election. Endorsed by Preval and part of the INITE party

Madame Manigat - former first lady, and top contender in this election

Michel "sweet mickey" Martelly - very crude rapper and top contender in this election

So those are the important people. Elections in Haiti are usually not a very safe time. The roads are shut down from 8 pm Saturday night until 8 am Monday morning. No alcohol or gasoline is sold during that time either. In the past, many riots have broken out and many people killed.

This year seems to be no different. Saturday night, gunfire was opened at a rally for Martelly. No one was injured or killed, but it is believed to be an assassination attempt on Martelly. Today, three people have already been killed due to an accusation of fraud by the INITE party.

Celestin has been accused of having tons of ballots already filled out in his favor. Also, Preval is shutting down voting booths without the proper authority of doing so. Five of the candidates are holding a press conference today to talk about the fraud. If I spoke better Creole, then I would know what they are saying, but I'm relying on some friends to let me know what is happening.

Fraud is not the only problem being faced right now. Many voters cannot find their names on the list at the voting centers they are going to. So many people will probably not get to vote. One of the voting bureaus was vandalized this morning, and overtaken by thugs. Many voting centers are shutting down early because of all the violence that is happening. There are anti-Celestin and pro-Martelly riots by the airport. Everywhere you turn in this country, there is some form of violence or demonstration happening.

Now, Madame Manigat is asking that the elections be cancelled because of all the fraud. It would not be good for the country to go through this twice. With every election, there is going to be violence, but going through this twice will not be good.

This country is angry with Preval. After the January 12 earthquake, Preval ran. Nothing has been done to help this country. Many of the voters want a president that will help the people in the tent cities have permanent homes, and that will help rebuild this country. But, like most other leaders, the election is about power and money. The winner of the election gets over one billion dollars to help the country, but most of the candidates would pocket the money, and leave the people as they are.

This country needs a God-fearing leader. It doesn't appear that will happen this year, but I believe God can work through whoever is elected. This country needs prayer as the voters are casting their ballots. This country needs prayer for there to be an absence of violence.

Please pray for Haiti today. Prayer is a powerful, powerful tool, and this country needs it so so so much. I'll be updating twitter as I find out what is going on, so if you are interested, you can follow at twitter.com/sweetkristina10

I'll try to update again later.

Until then...