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February 24, 2006
Dear Friends and Compatriots,
The February 7, 2006 Haitian election is a day of pride for all Haitians.
The Haitian people showed unprecedented discipline and courage to vote, many standing in line for up to six hours to cast their ballots.
Sixty-two percent of registered voters participated in this election.
I commend all who voted with such grace, dignity, patience and determination.
I congratulate Mr. Ren� Pr�val, the newly elected President of Haiti.
Pr�val has the wherewithal to bridge the gap between the poor and the rich, between businesspeople and politicians, between the educated and uneducated.
Pr�val has publicly and privately asked for my assistance in helping him in his new administration.
I am committed to working with President Pr�val�s government as an independent businessman and will focus my efforts on attracting investments to Haiti to create jobs.
I also thank my supporters in Haiti and the Diaspora for their encouragement, perseverance, diligence and hard work in what proved to be a challenging campaign.
A special thank you to our American friends who have also encouraged us and supported our campaign.
My campaign was a fight for Haitians everywhere, both in Haiti and in the Diaspora.
It was a fight for inclusion and participation to change the future of our beloved country.
But even with two Supreme Court decisions giving me the nod to run for the Presidency of the Republic of Haiti, the electoral council and interim government chose to keep me off the ballot.
But this chapter is now closed, and we must now all look ahead to the future.
We must be proud that our candidacy and our campaign will forever change the course of discussion of the Diaspora and the Constitution for the betterment of the country.
And this fight is not over.
I continue to be committed to a new Constitution.
The current Constitution is outdated and many of its articles discourage foreign investments, and therefore the creation of jobs.
The new constitution must restore the rights of all the Haitians in the Diaspora to participate in the socio-economic development and political affairs of this emerging democracy.
Now, let us not dwell in the past or waste time analyzing Haiti�s issues which all of us can easily recite.
Let us instead put our energies into creating positive change in the present so that all Haitians have the right and means to live productive and dignified lives, and can give their children and grandchildren the means to rise above the poverty of today and reach their potential in the future.
Accolades fraternelles et patriotiques,
Dumarsais Sim�us
