For Elections Without Violence and With Women, a Democratic Imperative

PORT-AU-PRINCE — As Haiti attempts to forge a path towards political stability and the holding of credible elections, a fundamental question persistently arises: can democracy be rebuilt without the full participation of women and in a climate of violence? The holding of the Departmental Conferences on the political participation of women and electoral violence by the Ministry for the Status of Women and Women's Rights (MCFDF), on December 4, 2025, at the Montana Hotel, placed this dual challenge at the heart of public debate. A Strong Legal Framework, But Ghostly Enforcement The observation of the experts and stakeholders present is unequivocal. Legally, the tools for equality exist. The amended Haitian Constitution enshrines the principle of a quota of at least 30% women in national decision-making bodies. Laws and international commitments reinforce this framework. Yet, on the ground, this framework often seems to be a dead letter. As expert Jérusha Vastie Michel analyzed, « It's good that there's the quota principle, but there are no measures to compel political parties to apply it ». This absence of coercive mechanisms or strong incentives allows political structures, predominantly male, to perpetuate de facto exclusion, reducing the quota to a mere declaration of intent without tangible impact. The Minister's Call: Democratic Refoundation Impossible Without Women Taking the floor to anchor the meeting in the national context, the head of the Ministry for the Status of Women and Women's Rights (MCFDF), Pedrica Saint Jean, stated that the country is going through a pivotal period of seeking stability, state authority, and citizen trust. She laid down a fundamental principle: « There is no democracy without women », thus asserting that the ongoing democratic refoundation cannot happen without them. The Minister outlined the concrete objectives of these conferences, which, according to her, consist of drawing up a departmental diagnosis, documenting electoral violence, gathering local experiences, mobilizing community stakeholders, and, ultimately, building solutions adapted to local realities. She placed particular emphasis on the persistent obstacles undermining women's political participation and, by extension, weakening democracy itself: intimidation, threats, physical, psychological, and digital violence, as well as systematic marginalization within political parties. A Strategic Mandate and a Call for National Building Madame Saint Jean also highlighted the strategic role of her ministry, which holds the national mandate for promoting women's rights and combating gender-based violence. She recalled fundamental institutional references, including Article 17.1 of the Constitution, and thanked technical and financial partners for their constant support. Concluding her address with a call for collective mobilization, she stated: « Every word spoken, every idea shared, every commitment recorded here must be carried like a stone to the national edifice. » This metaphor underscores the vision of these conferences not as an end in themselves, but as an active and indispensable contribution to the reconstruction of the State. When Electoral Violence Serves as a Weapon of Gendered Exclusion Beyond passive marginalization, women who dare to engage in politics face active threats. Electoral violence, a « global phenomenon » according to Carine Laurenceau of the BLCVFF, takes on a particularly acute gendered dimension in Haiti. It is not merely about clashes between factions, but targeted strategies to discourage and eliminate women from the political arena. Intimidation, threats, psychological violence, and increasingly, digital attacks and hate speech in the media, form a hostile environment. Viona Guerrier highlighted this last aspect, noting that these « hateful radio discourses make the task more difficult », contributing to stigmatize and and exclude women. This violence, whether physical or verbal, has an immediate deterrent effect and undermines the very quality of democracy by limiting the plurality of candidacies and voices. Conferences to Transform Observations into Action In light of this situation, the Western 1 Conferences, the first stage in a series of national consultations, aimed to move from diagnosis to action. The recommendations that emerged outline a demanding roadmap: making the quota mandatory by equipping it with effective sanctions against recalcitrant parties — securing the political space through concerted action by law enforcement and justice — promoting transparency and inclusive dialogue in the organization of elections — and finally, conducting in-depth awareness and training work to combat stereotypes and promote female leadership. The Question of Democratic Credibility The stakes far exceed the simple « women's issue. » They concern the credibility and legitimacy of the future electoral process and, beyond that, of the State that will emerge from it. A democracy that systematically excludes half of its population from its decision-making bodies is a crippled and weakened democracy. The conferences organized by the MCFDF, which are to culminate in national General Estates in December, represent a crucial opportunity. It will not be enough to produce a new declaration. The true measure of success will be the concrete translation, in the definitive electoral decree and in the practices of political parties, of the commitments made. The struggle for elections without violence and with the full participation of women is not an ancillary chapter in the reconstruction of Haiti; it is its central pillar, as Minister Pedrica Saint Jean firmly reiterated.