Brussels, 09/12/2010 (Agence Europe) - Deeply concerned by the violence that followed the announcement of the provisional results of the first round of presidential elections on 28 November in Haiti, the EU calls on all parties concerned for calm to be restored and for the Haitian constitution to be respected in order to ensure that the final results, due on 20 December, reflect voters' wishes. Catherine Ashton, EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, delivered this message in a statement published during the evening of Wednesday 8 December. She said she was “concerned by reports of multiple irregularities that are said to have taken place during these elections and the significant differences between the projected outcome of the elections reported by the National Election Observation Council (CNO) and the preliminary results released by the CEP”. The EU will “continue to closely follow the electoral process in Haiti over the coming weeks, and stands ready to assist Haiti in the preparation for a possible second round of voting, including in any review of the reported irregularities of the first round”, Ashton assures. According to Michèle Striffler (EPP, France) the first round was held in a far from exemplary manner and the second round must be organised to ensure the ballot is honest and to thus avoid all escalation of violence. (A.N./transl.jl)