Haiti President Martelly to EuroFora on EU help versus Hazards, for Development and Rule of Law

*Strasbourg/EU Parliament/Angelo Marcopolo/- EU's plans to develop High-Tech capacities for dealing with Major Hazards, as a part of Humanitarian but also Development policies, often through International Cooperation (f.ex. also with China : Comp. a recent, relevant "EuroFora"s NewsReport), can certainly be of particular importance and usefulness for Countries as Haiti, which have already been hit by such Major Catastrophes,  as the recent Deadly Haiti giant Earthquake, etc., replied the President of the Country to a question raised by "EuroFora", during his visit to EU Parliament in Strasbourg as invited keynote speaker for this November 2012 Plenary session.

Haiti's President spoke to "EuroFora" after co-chairing a debate with MEPS at EU Parliament's Foreign Affairs Committee, in a exceptionaly joint meeting with the Development and ACP-EU committees, attended by several mainstream MEPs, as, f.ex., the President of Germany's "Adenauer" Foundation, and former EU Parliament's President, Hans-Gert Poettering, former EU Commissioner Luis Michel from Belgium, etc, which followed earlier meetings that he had in Brussels with EU Council's President, Herman Van Rompuy and EU Commission's President Jose Barroso, before addressing, tommorrow in Strasbourg, EU Parliament's Plenary as a keynote speaker invited by EU Parliament's President Martin Schultz.

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- "EuroFora" asked Haiti President Joseph Martelly and EU Parliament's Development Committee vice-Chairwoman Striffler, if they found that recent thoughts for the EU to create a kind of Mechanism, using also High-Tech. tools, such as Space Technology, (Satellites, Earth Observation, etc) and other Scientific Research, due to help prevent or protect from Natural/Manmade Catastrophes, as well as in order to act as a Rapid Reaction force immediately aftewards, while also extending Aid longer so that it could deal with widespread, serious damages, reconstruction, etc., almost as it's currently done in Haiti, (f.ex. about displaced People's relocation, housing, etc).
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    -  Such kind of  "European help is the greatest and more important cooperation for Haiti", stressed in reply to "EuroFora"s Question, President Martelly.
 - And, here is "a (relevant) Information" : 

  - "Europe gave us (Haiti), as a Gift, a Satellite Antena, which would allow to foresee, and anticipate" such Major Hazards, observed the President of the country to "EuroFora", smiling, obviously satisfied with that move.

    + Martelly also agreed with "EuroFora" that his country, which has a particular "Symbolic" value on such issues, would certainly try to particiate to any International Cooperation related to Hazards' preventtion, detection, and/or rapid reaction, and/or rectification.
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    -  In fact, "as you know, there is a big problem between Humanitarian and Development issues,  in fact ..., so that there is a lot of work to be done, both on dealing with Urgencies, and with Development", EU Parliament's Development Committee's vice President, French MEP Striffler, added in relation with "EuroFora"s question.

- "That's why we are in the process of working both with EU Commissioner Piebalgs and with EU Commissioner Georgieva, on this big issue, for which we are meeting eachother once every Month", she pointed out.

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    Meanwhile, World-famous, Strasbourg-based Seismologist, Professor Michel Granet, who had been interviewed by International Media as Reuters,  etc., among the first Experts on the causes and the aftermaths of the Terrible Haiti Earthquake, has recently agreed, in principle, with "EuroFora"'s suggestion to seriously examine proposals to create, in Strasbourg's Region Alsace, in cooperation with Germany and Switzerland, a new Scientific Research Pole focused on "Earth Sciences" lato sensu, including Natural/Man-made Hazards, Sustainable Development, Space Technology, etc., inspired by a 2005 classification of the Strasbourg-based European Science Founcation and a recent idea supported by Alsace Region's President Philippe Richert, (comp. recent, and earlier Prof. Granet's statements to "EuroFora"), which could certainly be useful in cases of dramatic events similar to that which already occured at Haiti.
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    + Earlier, Haiti's President, replying  to various MEPs' questions, stressed, as a matter of general Principle, particularly true in the case of Haiti's History, that a main Condition for Haiti and any such Country to fully restore its Independence and Sovereignity, is to become, at first, able to previously restore the Rule of Law, ("Etat de Droit", in the original in French), that is to say, the system of Justice, with Courts, Police and a National Defense force, etc.

    - Indeed, questioned by MEPs about whether  the maintainance of a controversial Foreign Force, mainly monitored by the USA, under a UN mandate, was good, or not, for Haiti, President Martelly observed that, obviously, it wasn't normal for a Country which wanted to be Independent and fully Sovereign, to have such a Foreign Force quasi-permanently stationed in its National Territory. So, we (Haiti), certainly, aren't happy to have it. "But, at the same time, we need it", as he observed,  "because it's still necessary in order to compensate for the current lack or insufficience of a Fully functional and Efficient National Police, Defense Force, etc., coupled with a Justice System with Courts, Judges, Legislation, and other ingredients indispensable for the full restoration of the Rule of Law.

    I.e. another domain where Europe, f.ex. through an adequate cooperation of EU funded CoE's expertise aid, could certainly be of great help to countries as Haiti, as far as the restoration of Rule of Law is concerned..
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(+"DraftNews", as already sent earlier to "EuroFora"s Subscribers/Donors. A more accurate, full Final Version might be published asap).

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