Protesters took to the streets of Port-au-Prince yesterday, reports AP. Thousands of Haitians came to demand that President Preval step down, angered by the decision to stay on an extra three months if elections are not conducted. AP put the number of protesters at 2000, while Reuters reported that police "used tear gas and warning shots to disperse" the crowds. Al Jazeera, looking at the causes of the protest, reported on the perceived political vacuum that has allowed significant powers to be consolidated in the executive branch and international community:

The entire lower house and one-third of the senate are no longer sitting because the earthquake prevented February's legislative elections from taking place.??"Effectively the parliament is ceasing to exist as a governing body and the people on the streets are pretty concerned about that," Al Jazeera's Seb Walker, reporting from Port-au-Prince, said.

"It concentrates power in the hands of the president and the international commission that has been set up with former US president Bill Clinton as a co-chair.

May 11, 2010

Dean Baker
TPMCafé, May 11, 2010

A New York Times editorial today makes some important points regarding Haiti’s next elections, which have yet to be scheduled, and as President Préval suggests he may need to stay on beyond the constitutional limits of his term. The editorial states: The

CNN reports on actor and aid worker Sean Penn’s efforts to save the life of a 15-year-old boy, Oriel, who contracted diphtheria – a story with a tragic end. The report does a good job describing how - despite its fixation on Penn’s personality – that the

Dean Baker
The Guardian Unlimited, May 10, 2010

Mark WeisbrotThe Guardian Unlimited, 6 de mayo, 2010En inglés

Dean Baker
Truthout, May 10, 2010