Long wait ahead for presidential election results

PORT-AU-PRINCE— Haiti's voters have spoken. But nobody's quite sure what they've said.

Even tentative results of Sunday's presidential election likely won't be known for at least 10 days, despite the fact that the election, which involved 54 presidential candidates and tens of thousands of contenders for other races, went unusually smoothly.

Few places in the world take longer to give citizens any hint of who won an election.

JetBlue to add more Boston-Haiti flights next year

JetBlue Airways is doubling down on its US-Haiti routes, adding bigger planes to its New York and Florida gateways and planning three-day-a-week summer season flights direct from Boston beginning next June. Citing a "growing demand" for travel to Port-au-Prince from the US, the move will add 50,000 additional seats for JetBlue in the US-Haiti market.

UN wants another year for Haiti mission

UNITED NATIONS — The U.N. secretary-general is recommending that the U.N. peacekeeping mission in Haiti stay for another year — which might be its final one.

The head of the mission, Sandra Honore, told the U.N. Security Council on Thursday that Ban Ki-moon wants the peacekeeping mission to extend for a year to help Haiti complete its upcoming round of elections.

She says the mission also will help the country with an “orderly and sustainable” transfer to having national authorities assume responsibility for future elections.

Kerry stops in Haiti to discuss election preparations

PORT-AU-PRINCE— U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry stopped in Haiti's capital on Oct. 6 to discuss preparations for the country's upcoming elections and encourage people to refrain from disrupting balloting after a messy parliamentary first round in August.

Voters grapple with packed field for presidency

"There are so many candidates it's impossible to focus on it all and see if a few might actually have good ideas. Right now, this whole thing really gives me a headache,'' secretary Germithe Merzilus said with an exasperated sigh as a group of partisans walked by in matching T-shirts touting a campaign.

City joins in presenting Citizenship Day: Sept. 26 at Timilty School, Roxbury

Bostonians who hope to become US citizens will get an assist this month from city officials who are teaming up with a non-profit organization to help streamline the naturalization process.

The Mayor’s Office of New Bostonians has pitched in with Pro-ject Citizenship to co-host Citizenship Day on Sat., Sept. 26, at the Timilty School in Roxbury.

Former Boston Police officer, mayoral aide Yves Dambreville killed in Haiti

Yves Dambreville was a kaleidoscope of identities -- Boston police officer, community liaison, Haitian, American, veteran, family man. The 66-year-old former officer was shot and killed in Port-au-Prince Wednesday, according to the U.S. Department of State.

Dambreville, a 33-year veteran of the police force and a committed advocate for the Haitian and larger Caribbean communities, has left behind a legacy of cultural outreach, friends and coworkers said.

“We extend our sincere condolences to his friends and family,” the State Department wrote in a statement. The department said it was “providing all appropriate consular services,” but declined to provide further information, citing privacy concerns.

Dominican truckers block border crossings into Haiti

SANTO DOMINGO, Dominican Republic— The main truckers union in the Dominican Republic on Monday blocked transport of all freight through border crossings into neighboring Haiti, citing concerns about their safety.

The Dominican truckers said they were protesting recent violence against them while in Haiti. They asserted that some 60 trucks were pelted with rocks in recent days and some were looted.

Officials exit government over Martelly's remarks to woman

PORT-AU-PRINCE— A hostile comment made by Haitian President Michel Martelly at a campaign rally has set off an uproar in his coalition government, leading a politically allied party to announce the resignation of three officials from his administration last week.

US issues new travel advisory, warns of threat of robberies near airport

The United States has updated its travel warning to its citizens, advising US citizens to "exercise caution" when visiting Haiti and "strongly" encouraging visitors to "obtain evacuation insurance." The advisory was issued by the US Embassy in Port-au-Prince online and on its Facebook page— which it uses to offer regular updates on potential security issues.

Boston Haitian Reporter

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