Legislative and local elections overseen by UN and OAS.

• Position: United Nations and Organization of American States operations in Haiti

The Caribbean nation of Haiti on 25 June conducted an initial round of legislative and local democratic elections-the first since the return of President Jean-Bertrand Aristide to power and the restoration of that country's constitutional Government in October 1994.

A spokesman at UN Headquarters said on 26 june that the security in polling places had been "excellent overall", despite some reported incidents of violence.

The UN Mission in Haiti (UNMIH) provided technical assistance and security support for the balloting, while monitors from the Organization of American States (OAS) were responsible for observing the voting.

Lakhdar Brahimi, Special Representative of the Secretary-General, said he was "particularly pleased" with the work of UNMIH, especially the civilian police monitors, many of whom worked for 20 hours straight on election day, often in difficult circumstances.

In December 1990, under the supervision of the UN, Haiti held free and democratic elections, in which Mr. Aristide, a Roman Catholic priest, won the Presidency by a 67.5 per cent landslide. After his ousting in September 1991 following a military coup, the UN was involved in three years of complex efforts, including mediation, negotiations, dispatch of missions, sanctions and, finally, deployment of the Multinational Force (MNF). President Aristide returned to Haiti on 1 5 October 1994.

Coalition wins majority

According to results of the 25 June preliminary voting, a coalition associated with President Aristide - the Lavalas Political Platform - won a majority in all of Haiti's nine departments. The main cities were to have a Lavalas mayor, including the capital of Port-au-Prince, where incumbent mayor Evans Paul, from the National Front for Change and Democracy, had been defeated by a popular singer, Emmanuel Charlemagne. Run-off municipal and communal elections are scheduled for mid-August.

On 29 June, the Secretary-General reported (A/49/926) that the early stages of the election campaign had been "generally satisfactory", although it had begun in a "climate made heavy by protests, confusion over which candidates had been accepted, and threats of violence". There had been "sporadic acts of violence, some of them serious", he said. The staffing of electoral offices in some areas had been the "subject of dispute", giving rise to acts of intimidation. The registration process had also been "marred by threats, acts of intimidation, stone-throwing, and theft and...