Identifier
Created
Classification
Origin
05ACCRA775
2005-04-22 15:19:00
CONFIDENTIAL
Embassy Accra
Cable title:  

TOGO DEVELOPMENTS: ECOWAS AND GILCHRIST OLYMPIO

Tags:  GH KDEM PGOV PREF TO 
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This record is a partial extract of the original cable. The full text of the original cable is not available.


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 ------------------E308A0 221529Z /38 
FM AMEMBASSY ACCRA
TO SECSTATE WASHDC IMMEDIATE 8349
INFO AMEMBASSY LOME IMMEDIATE 
ECOWAS COLLECTIVE
AMEMBASSY LONDON 
AMEMBASSY PARIS 
AMEMBASSY PRETORIA 
CDR USEUCOM VAIHINGEN GE
C O N F I D E N T I A L ACCRA 000775 

SIPDIS


E.O. 12958: DECL: 07/15/2014
TAGS: GH KDEM PGOV PREF TO
SUBJECT: TOGO DEVELOPMENTS: ECOWAS AND GILCHRIST OLYMPIO
SAY ELECTION MUST GO ON

Classified By: Polchief Scott Ticknor, reason 1.5 (B/D).

C O N F I D E N T I A L ACCRA 000775

SIPDIS


E.O. 12958: DECL: 07/15/2014
TAGS: GH KDEM PGOV PREF TOGO'>TO
SUBJECT: TOGO DEVELOPMENTS: ECOWAS AND GILCHRIST OLYMPIO
SAY ELECTION MUST GO ON

Classified By: Polchief Scott Ticknor, reason 1.5 (B/D).


1. (C) Summary: ECOWAS President Tandja issued a press
release April 22, sent to PolChief by Executive Director
Chambas, condemning the 3 am statements of TOGOlese Interior
Minister Boko and restating ECOWAS's commitment to retaining
the scheduled April 24 date for the TOGO election. Chambas
told PolChief he was encouraged that the election could go
off relatively peacefully. although Boko's statement could
make the situation more volatile. On behalf of Nigerian
President Obasanjo, he is inviting opposition leader
Gilchrist Olympio and Faure Gnassingbe for a meeting in Abuja
on April 25 (Olympio said yes and Chambas believes Gnassingbe
will also agree.) Olympio is determined to go ahead with the
election as scheduled. Ghanaian refugee officials and NGOs
are preparing for a possible influx of refugees from TOGO.
End summary.

--------------
ECOWAS' Chambas: The Election Should Go On
--------------


2. (C) On April 22, PolChief spoke with ECOWAS Executive
Director Mohammed Ibn Chambas, who was in Accra on his way to
Lome. When asked about Minister of Interior Boko's call for
postponing the TOGO election, Chambas said Nigerian President
Obasanjo, Ghana's President Kufuor and Niger's President
Tandja had quickly consulted today (from Indonesia and Niger)
and agreed on an ECOWAS position that the election should go
on as scheduled. ECOWAS has issued a press release to this
effect (see para 8). In addition, Chambas said Obasanjo had
asked him to invite Gilchrist Olympio and Faure Gnassingbe
for a meeting in Abuja on Monday, April 25. Olympio agreed
today and Gnassingbe had recently agreed in Niamey that this
would be a good idea, according to Chambas.


3. (C) Chambas knew this would be a difficult period, but
said that before the Boko pronouncement, he was feeling
encouraged about TOGO's election. He credited the security
forces with showing restraint, noting that opposition leader
Akitani Bob had been campaigning in northern TOGO without
incident or restriction of movement. Akitani had called
President Tandja to apologize for not being able to break his
campaign for the recent meeting in Niamey, offering to go to

Niger on Saturday, April 23. Chambas said his meeting with
Olympio today was also encouraging -- Olympio had some
complaints, but by and large was ready for the election to go
forward. ECOWAS has 150 observers on the ground in TOGO
(compared to the 30 they had for the December 2004 Ghana
election).


4. (C) According to Chambas, TOGOlese leaders see TOGO as
heading toward revolution or reform. He believes there is a
consensus for reform and a recognition that, whoever wins the
election, the only hope for TOGO is a national government of
reconciliation. The biggest danger is from militant party
supporters on both sides, who appear to be behind recent
skirmishes. He discounted reports of deaths resulting from
last weekend's violence. According to Chambas, no one has
produced evidence that individuals died because of these
events, speculating that people are falsely identifying as
political brutality bodies of petty criminals killed by mob
violence.


5. (C) Despite his overall optimism, Chambas thought Boko's
actions (which he termed "unilateral") could trigger dissent
and make the situation in TOGO more volatile. Chambas plans
to go to Abuja on April 23 to meet President Obasanjo and
prepare for Monday's meeting with Olympio and Gnassingbe.

--------------
Olympio Ready for Election
--------------


6. (C) Opposition leader Gilchrist Olympio stated in a BBC
interview on April 22 that the opposition is determined to go
forward with this election on April 24 as planned, despite
Boko's call for postponement. A top Olympio assistant (also
a relative) confirmed to PolChief this was the opposition
position, repeating Olympio's statement on the BBC that
Bokos' actions reflect a sense that the police and military,
who just voted early, supported the opposition, not the
government. The assistant confirmed that Olympio was not/not
planning to go to TOGO for the election because it was not
safe for him.

--------------
Ghana Preparing for Possible Refugee Influx


--------------


7. (U) The GOG and UNHCR have been intensifying their
preparations for a possible influx of TOGOlese refugees into
Ghana. They have prepared five sites (four in the Volta
region) which can accommodate tens of thousands of people.
They hope that many refugees would rely on hospitality from
family, friends, and good will from their ethnic Ewe
brethren. Some Ghana-based NGOs are preparing for a possible
refugee crisis and have sent staff to the border area.

--------------
Press Statement
--------------


8. (U) Following is an informal Embassy translation of the
press statement in French issued by President Tandja on
behalf of ECOWAS on April 22, 2005. We have faxed original
copies to AF/W and Embassy Lome.

President Mamadou Tandja, in his capacity in ECOWAS, follows
with grave concern the evolution of the situation in the
Republic of TOGO, and the message from the Minister of
Interior to the international press and diplomatic corps on
April 22 at 3 am which called on the interim President to
suspend the ongoing electoral process and put in place a
transition period until certain measures which he (the
Interior Minister) recommended on his own could be put in
place.

This declaration came only two days after President Tandja
hosted a very important and fruitful meeting in Niamey of
representatives of five political parties involved in the
election and two days before the April 24 election. The
President forcefully condemns this irresponsible initiative,
which undermines the efforts of ECOWAS and of the
international community, which is so deeply engaged on behalf
of the TOGOlese people and strongly desires to see the
beginning in TOGO of a durable era of peace and democracy.

The President on behalf of ECOWAS reaffirms the commitment of
ECOWAS to support the electoral process underway in TOGO, as
required by the constitution. He rejects any effort and
action taken to disturb public order and bring the country
into chaos.

The President states that the electoral process must continue
and that the election must remain on the agreed upon date of
April 24, 2005. The President asks the TOGOlese authorities
to take, together with the ECOWAS representative in TOGO, all
necessary measures to assure a good electoral process, which
has already begun for some parts of the TOGOlese population.

The President recalls the terms of his communique from Niamey
on April 20, 2005 on the responsibility of candidates,
parties, or groups of parities in the election. The
President appeals to the patriotic and civic sentiments of
all political classes of TOGO as they come out of these
difficult times, which they do not deserve.

YATES


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