Wyclef Jean is 'stressed' after Haiti ordeal

Hip-hop singer Wyclef Jean has been admitted to hospital because of stress and fatigue following his unsuccessful attempt to stand for president in Haiti.

The 37-year-old Grammy Award winner checked into a hospital over the weekend but is expected to be out later this week, said his representative, Marian Salzman.

Mr Jean announced a bid for Haiti's presidency in August but finally ended his leadership ambitions last week after an ill-starred campaign that started in a blaze of publicity but faltered amid questions over funding for his philanthropic work and concerns for his security during the campaign after receiving death threats.

The former Fugees star had told Time magazine as he prepared to run that he would be the only man who could get the diaspora and Haiti's elite families to co-operate. However, he was accused of lacking strong plans for what he would do to rebuild Haiti after the devastating earthquake.

He was one of 15 candidates who was excluded from running in the November elections. No reason was given for his being excluded by the authorities but it was thought that it was because he had not met constitutional requirements including living in Haiti.

Presidential candidates must own property in Haiti, have always held a Haitian passport, and have lived in the country for five consecutive years. Jean fulfilled the last of those requirements only on a technicality, having spent the first nine years of his life there.

He was born on the outskirts of Haiti's capital, Port-au-Prince but grew up in New York and lives in New Jersey.

Mr Jean was "suffering from stress and fatigue based on the gruelling eight weeks he's had," according to his representative and he now "planned to take it easy".

Mr Jean is also planning to release a new album.