Constitutional issues, applicable electoral rules

In its interim opinion, the Venice Commission conceded that “amending the Constitution through the constitutional procedure cannot be envisaged in Haiti before the state institutions are reestablished, with due regard to the situation of necessity in Haiti” (para. 17). The Commission therefore stated that if the authorities of Haiti decided to amend the constitution, an extraconstitutional procedure would need to be followed. The question of the extent of the constitutional amendment further arose: the Commission considered that some amendments were necessary in order to remove the main elements of institutional instability, but many interlocutors felt that far more extensive amendments regarding the political system and the distribution of powers were required. The Commission stressed that any amendment under the current situation, where none of the authorities has been elected or appointed by the Haitian people, would have very limited democratic legitimacy, and that it would appear necessary to consult the Haitian people to the maximum extent possible and to use the feedback of the popular consultations carried out in the two prior unaccomplished processes of constitutional reform. The Commission expressed the view in conclusion that, if the Haitian authorities decided to amend the constitution prior to the elections, a constitutional referendum would have to be organised (para. 19).