Haiti Senate votes in new prime minister

Five months after he was sworn in as president, Michel Martelly now has the green light to form his government after the Senate late Tuesday voted in support of his third nominee for the post of prime minister.

The lawmakers voted by a 17-3 margin, with nine abstentions, to support Dr Garry Conille, a gynaecologist who served as an aide to former United States President Bill Clinton.

He had also worked for the United Nations since 1999 in countries such as Haiti, Ethiopia, and, for a few months, in Niger

After last year's earthquake, Conille worked as chief of staff for Clinton in his position as United Nations special envoy.

Martelly nominated Conille, after the Senate had earlier this year rejected economist and businessman Daniel Rouzier for the post, and in August voted by a 16-14 margin against former Justice Minister Bernard Gousse, who was accused of prosecuting supporters of former President Jean-Bertrand Aristide.

Debate

The debate to ratify Conille, which lasted about six hours, centred on questions over his residency qualifications.

Government officials in Haiti are required to have spent five consecutive years in Haiti under the constitution, but French and Haitian Creole versions of the document don't specify when the residency period begins. Conille's job had taken him out of Haiti for years.