Haiti's president proposes new constitution amid dispute over his term's end

Everyone agrees that the Haitian president’s term ends Feb. 7, but there’s disagreement over which year. As far as the opposition is concerned, President Jovenel Moise’s time is up next month, and they’ve protested and clashed with security forces as that day draws near. He says his term runs through 2022, and has no plans to quit before then. [ . . . ] Moise, 52, maintains that his five-year term began when he was sworn in on Feb. 7, 2017, a position supported by the Organization of American States. But the opposition -- and some legal scholars -- says the clock started ticking in 2016, in the wake of chaotic and disputed elections that led to an interim presidency and a new vote. [ . . . ] For months, the U.S., the European Union and the Organization of American States, among others, have urged new legislative elections to restore the balance of power. Instead, Moise is proposing a referendum in April to modify the constitution, followed by legislative and presidential elections in September and a run-off in November. That would essentially leave him governing by decree into 2022.
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