A/HRC/17/42 I. Introduction 1. In accordance with the mandate established by the Commission on Human Rights in its resolution 1995/70 and with Presidential Statement PRST/15/1, in which the Human Rights Council invited the new expert to undertake a mission to Haiti soon and report to it each year, the Independent Expert submits the present report to the Council at its seventeenth session. 2. The report covers the period from March 2010 to March 2011 and contains a list of recommendations addressed to the Haitian Government and the international community. 3. The Independent Expert undertook three missions to Haiti during the period under consideration1 and travelled to places outside the capital, including Jacmel, Léogane, Les Cayes and Cap-Haïtien. He wishes to thank the many Haitians whom he met on his missions as well as in Paris, New York, Brussels, Montreal and Geneva. On every occasion, he has been impressed by the open-mindedness, sense of history and commitment of all those who live and work in Haiti and by the attachment to their country evident among representatives of the Haitian diaspora abroad. 4. The Independent Expert wishes to thank the Haitian authorities, which enabled him to carry out his missions in the best conditions possible. He thanks President René Préval and Prime Minister Jean-Max Bellerive, whom he was able to meet on various occasions, for the frankness and quality of their comments. Similarly, he wishes to thank the members of the Government and the parliament for the openness with which they spoke to him of the country’s situation and prospects for improvement. 5. In Haiti, the Independent Expert also had regular meetings with Edmond Mulet, the Special Representative of the Secretary-General and Head of the United Nations Stabilization Mission in Haiti (MINUSTAH), and his deputies, Nigel Fischer and Kevin Kennedy. He also wishes to thank all the members of their team for providing efficient logistical, security and public relations support. Regular telephone conversations that he has had in between missions with the Special Representative of the Secretary-General and several members of MINUSTAH have kept him informed of political economic and security developments in Haiti. 6. The Independent Expert also thanks the officials of the main institutions of the United Nations, the Organization of American States (OAS), the Caribbean Community (CARICOM) and the Union of South American Nations whom he met and the members of the diplomatic corps in Port-au-Prince, with whom he exchanged views on a number of occasions concerning the role and activities of the international community in Haiti. 7. Lastly, the Independent Expert wishes to express his gratitude once again to the United Nations staff members who provided assistance, information and data and shared their experience with him, and pays tribute to their professionalism, determination and courage. The members of the MINUSTAH Human Rights Section and Justice Section gave him unfailing support, both in Port-au-Prince and during his travels, and shared with him their assessment of the situation and of progress made on the ongoing reforms. The Independent Expert would like to state that those two sections are invaluable partners in the execution of the mission entrusted to him by the Council. 8. The Independent Expert also travelled to Brussels, where he met with representatives of the European Commission and the European Parliament, the 1 GE.11-12426 From 22 April to 3 May 2010, from 3 to 12 September 2010 and from 20 to 27 February 2011. 3