AU-PRINCE: Angry protests erupted across Haiti Wednesday leaving at least one dead as President Rene Preval called for calm after his protege narrowly won a place in the runoff in disputed polls. The headquarters of Preval's ruling INITE party were set ablaze after Tuesday's late night announcement of the results of the Nov. 28 vote in which his handpicked successor Jude Celestin came in second. Celestin ousted Michel Martelly from the race for the presidency, despite earlier predictions showing the popular singer ahead in the polls – triggering widespread accusations of vote-rigging. Thousands of Martelly supporters took to the streets in the capital Port-au-Prince and the second city Cap Haitien, where gunfire erupted leaving one young man dead and two people wounded, media reports said. “Demonstrate, that is your right. But don't attack public buildings, businesses or private property,” Preval said on Haiti's national radio, calling for calm in the Caribbean nation. – Agence France
