U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon has appointed a new special representative for Haiti and head of the U.N. Stabilization Mission, or MINUSTAH in Haiti: Mariano Fernandez.
Fernandez is a former foreign minister of Chile. He also served as the country’s ambassador to the United States, United Kingdom, Italy, Spain and the European Union.
He will replace Edmond Mullet, who is stepping down May 31 as head of MINUSTAH.
Fernandez’s appointment comes a few days after Haiti formally welcomed its new president Michel Martelly.
Martelly’s inauguration on May 14 is the country’s first transfer of power from one democratically elected leader to one from the opposition. MINUSTAH said the new president, his government, the country’s civil society and citizens should take advantage of this “historic moment” to build a “new Haiti.”
“The day of 14 May 2011 is historic and carries with it all the hopes of change for the people of Haiti: hopes for reconstruction, progress, stability, social peace, rule of law [and] development,” the mission said in a statement issued shortly after Martelly’s inauguration.
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