A/HRC/14/44 ___________________________________________________________________________________________________________ A systematic effort should be made to involve civil society organizations, women’s organizations, development organizations, and peasants’ organizations. 59. The principles of the reconstruction should be based on a long-term vision of the rule of law, a concept understood to cover all rights, not just the civil and political ones. The issue of the rule of law cannot be resolved simply by reforming the judicial institutions and the procedures of criminal law, the police and the prison system or by combating corruption. It must always be kept in mind that establishing the rule of law also means ensuring the proper functioning of the institutions and public services which, in addition to guaranteeing the security of persons and property, must also guarantee the exercise by all citizens of all the human rights proclaimed in the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights. And that is an enormous commitment for the international community, for it will have to incorporate in its reconstruction plans that constantly reiterated interdependence of civil and political rights and economic, social and cultural rights. 60. The reconstruction plans should envisage the restoration of a sustainable environment as part of a more decentralized and fairer development designed to protect the people against natural hazards. 61. The reconstruction should be equitable and seek to reinforce rights and not to give priority to the richest and most prosperous areas, but rather to adopt an equitable approach to the regions and zones to be reconstructed inspired by a vision of a fairer society. 62. The reconstruction should aim at strengthening the system for protecting rights and freedoms (justice, administrative justice, police, Ombudsman’s Office). 63. The reconstruction should give increased attention to the needs of internally displaced persons and base itself on the general framework of the Guiding Principles and the recommendations contained in the report of the Representative of the Secretary-General on the human rights of internally displaced persons, entitled “Protection of internally displaced persons in situations of natural disasters” (A/HRC/10/13/Add.1) and give particular attention to the most vulnerable population groups – women, children and persons with disabilities. 64. Where financing operations are concerned, donors should avoid giving with one hand and taking away with the other; the contractual debts of the Haitian State should be cancelled, and the aid granted should be in form of gifts rather than loans. III. Reforms to be continued 65. A large part of the report submitted to the Human Rights Council in June 2009 was devoted to issues connected with the reform of the justice system, the vetting of the National Police,14 and the prison system. The independent expert indicated that matters were improving but that a number of vital issues remained pending. Although the earthquake struck Port-au-Prince and the neighbouring towns, its impact went far beyond the mere destruction of buildings, and the three institutions (justice, police and prisons) were seriously affected throughout the country. That is why, leaving aside the short- and 14 The vetting (or certification) of police officers is one of the aspects of the support furnished by MINUSTAH in the effort to upgrade the professionalism of the National Police. This process is designed to verify the suitability of candidate police officers to join the force. Serving officers are also subject to vetting. Inquiries are made with families and other close relatives and court or criminal records are looked into in order to ensure that the officer or candidate is morally and legally qualified to join the force. 14 GE.10-13204 (EXT)

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