Supporting Haiti's Transitional Presidential Council

This is a historic moment for Haiti with the creation of the Transitional Presidential Council (CPT). Imagine someone who has lived in the mountains their entire life suddenly finding themselves on a boat for the first time. Suddenly, the boat capsizes, and they find themselves struggling to stay afloat and save their child. That’s how new and challenging this moment is for Haiti’s new Transitional Presidential Council.

Why We Need to Support the Council

For the first time in Haiti's history, various political groups, traditionally at odds, have come together. Many of us may not fully appreciate how extraordinary this achievement is. Their agreement to form this Council was nothing short of miraculous. Although this is a significant achievement, we should expect challenges along the way. An early mistake was the attempt to create a majority within the Council. However, in a positive development, the Council has corrected course. I was pleasantly surprised to see that they not only recognized this error but also swiftly developed a new approach to govern collaboratively.

Get Involved, Lean in, and Speak Up

While skepticism about the Council’s ability to manage Haiti’s major crises is understandable, we cannot remain passive observers as citizens. Critiquing is a common Haitian pastime and has its place, but for those who understand what's at stake, more is expected of us. We need to offer constructive criticism that advances the work and creates space for the Council to act beyond the interests of their respective parties and coalitions.

We should embrace President Reagan's famous phrase during the US nuclear negotiations with Russia: "trust but verify." Those who understand the moment and who -even cautiously - support the Council, we should use our voice and influence to ensure they are performing their duties effectively.

Let's seize every opportunity to propose ideas that push the Council toward making Haiti safer and more stable. Let’s do our part to make this unique experiment and in this particularly difficult time in our history a success. Haiti cannot afford to see the Transitional Presidential Council fail.