The proximity of the elections would affect the cooperation of the parties for the pact on Haiti

The government of President Luis Abinader intends to formulate, together with all the political parties, a united response to the Haitian crisis to use as the Dominican position on the international stage, in the latest attempt by the president to find a solution for Haiti. After many calls to the international community, for almost three years, including one before the General Assembly of the United Nations (UN), Abinader’s new initiative raises doubts about his chances of achieving something. Vice President Raquel Peña has warned about the possibility that the Haiti issue will awaken extremism and messianic leadership if a national position is not raised.

The Government faces the challenge of getting the participation of the political opposition, which, for the most part, has refused to join. But, does this refusal harm the government side more or a political leadership that waits for 2024 to ask for votes? The proximity of the electoral process is what could cause little collaboration between the opposition. The international expert in Negotiation and Mediation, Nelson Espinal Báez, analyzes: “Those of us who study these disciplines of democratic dialogues, negotiation, and consensus building, know that it is more difficult to agree on public policies and great national unity pacts when we approach a process electoral”. For this reason, he suggests that “the pact process has several stages where, sooner rather than later, the political opposition can enter and join.”

“Let’s say, then, that we are in the pre-electoral stage for 2024, we must move forward, and lay the foundations, so that the opposition enters and is incorporated,” he reflects.