First Lady Welcomes her Haitian Counterpart

First Lady Welcomes her Haitian Counterpart
República Dominicana, Santo Domingo, 26/05/2011

Dominican First Lady, Margarita Cedeño de Fernández, welcomed her Haitian counterpart, Mrs. Sophie Martelly, at her office yesterday. Mrs. Martelly was on her first foreign visit as First Lady following the inauguration of her husband, Michel Martelly, as President of Haiti.

“This is my first visit as First Lady and I wanted to come here because we share the same island and we are brothers. I also want to thank the First Lady and President Fernández for the unconditional support you showed us after the earthquake and the love with which you did it,” said Mrs. Martelly.

Mrs. Cedeño de Fernández and Mrs. Martelly met for several hours and discussed the need to continue strengthening the bonds of cooperation between the two countries. “We are fraternal nations and the bonds that unite us are very strong. Haiti can always count on our support and solidarity,” said the Dominican Fist Lady.

Mrs. Martelly said she would never forget the outpouring of support from the Dominican Republic following the devastating earthquake that hit her country in January 2010. She added that the follow-up provided by the Dominican authorities in the effort to help rebuild and re-establish the country has also been exemplary, according to the Communications Department of the Office of the First Lady (DPD).

“This is my first visit as First Lady and I wanted to come here because we share the same island and we are brothers. I also want to thank the First Lady and President Fernández for the unconditional support you showed us after the earthquake and the love with which you did it,” said Mrs. Martelly.

Martelly travelled to the Dominican Republic with the idea of becoming familiar with the programs undertaken by the Office of the First Lady here and how they are directed toward helping those most in need, with an emphasis on health, education and the family.

The First Ladies discussed bilateral activities focusing attention on such issues as disaster prevention and management, support for women’s and children’s projects, education and especially on the subject of values

Since she was very young, the First Lady of Haiti worked in community service at the Provincial Hospital of Gonaives. She is the coordinator and co-founder of the Rosa Blanca Foundation (FRED). In 2008, she was honored by then Haitian President René Préval, with the National Order of Honor and Merit for her outstanding work in supporting the victims of the collapsed Nérette School in Petion-Ville.