HAITI ELECTIONS: POLITICAL PARTY LANDSCAPE

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 04 PORT AU PRINCE 002945

SIPDIS

STATE FOR WHA AND USOAS

E.O. 12958: DECL: 10/12/2015
TAGS: PREL PGOV HA
SUBJECT: HAITI ELECTIONS: POLITICAL PARTY LANDSCAPE

REF: A. PAP 2412

B. 04 PAP 1874

Classified By: Charge d'Affaires, a.i., Erna Kerst for Reasons: 1.4 (b
and d)


1. (SBU) Introduction: The Provisional Electoral Council
(CEP) officially sanctioned 45 parties to participate in
upcoming elections. Traditionally, most, if not all, of the
political parties have been vehicles to catapult an
individual into the office of the presidency. Larger, more
established, parties such as OPL and Fusion of Social
Democrats (Fusion) are running candidates at all levels.
However, TetAnsanm, MOCHRENHA, UNION Pour Haiti
(MIDH/Lavalas),RDNP, Alyans (KID/PPRH),and relative
newcomers FRN, JPDN, MPH, MODEREH, KOMBA, and L'Espwa are
also running several candidates in a majority of the races.
The remainder of the 45 CEP-approved parties are
concentrating on certain seats where they have regional
presence. This message provides capsule summaries of the
most important political parties, updating ref B. End
Summary.

On the Left
--------------


3. (U) Struggling People's Organization (OPL): OPL was
originally Lavalas Political Organization, but changed its
name when Aristide broke from the party in 1994 and created
Fanmi Lavalas. The party has a strong national structure
throughout Haiti. Its doctrinaire socialist orientation is a
legacy of the late Gerard-Pierre Charles, the party's
founder, who became a committed communist while exiled in
Mexico during the Duvalier era.

Key Leaders:
Paul Denis (presidential candidate)
Edgar LeBlanc, Jr. (Secretary General, senatorial
candidate-Nippes)
Rosny Smarth (National Executive, former PM)
Suzy Castor (National Executive)


4. (SBU) Fusion Party of Social Democrats (FUSION): Fusion
formed following a successful merger of smaller parties
PANPRA, KONAKOM and Ayiti Kapab in April 2005. OPL and
TetAnsanm, both included in the original talks regarding the
merger, opted out due to differences in the proposed
power-sharing structure (OPL, the largest of the parties
involved wanted more influence) and over presidential
aspirations of the leadership. According to the party's
president, FUSION is represented in 24 of the 30 senatorial
races and 84 of the 99 deputy races. The party's president
told the Charge November 22 that Fusion is looking to control
both houses. He said that if the party could not win a
majority, it would work to create a bloc within parliament to
work with the president (regardless of the president's
party). Benoit had earlier told Poloff November 4 that if
the Fusion presidential candidate wins and Fusion has a
majority, the party would still have a representative
cabinet, offering "5 ministers out of 15" to other parties.

Key Leaders:
Serge Gilles (presidential candidate)
Victor Benoit (President of party)
Robert Auguste (Secretary General)
Micha Gaillard (spokesperson)


5. (U) Union Pour Haiti (UNION): A formal alliance between
center-right party MIDH (Movement to Introduce Democracy in
Haiti) and the Fanmi Lavalas leadership. Standard bearer
Marc Bazin has worked hard to cultivate the Lavalas masses
who supported former president Aristide. Bazin is the
ultimate survivor of Haitian politics; he served in each
successive government beginning with Jean-Claude Duvalier.

Key Leaders:
Marc Bazin (presidential candidate)
Leslie Voltaire (campaign manager)
Ivon Feuille (senatorial candidate-South)


6. (SBU) Democratic Alliance (Alyans): A formal alliance
between populist party Democratic Unity Committee (KID) and
the Popular Party for the Renewal of Haiti (PPRH). The party
is centered around well-known politician Evans Paul (aka
K-Plim, his pseudonym from a radio program in which he told
children's stories). Paul, a former mayor of Port-au-Prince,
is extremely popular in the capital, but less so in the
provinces. Alyans continues to pursue strategic alliances
and has been in contact with OPL, Fusion and to a lesser
extent PNDPH.
Key Leaders:
Evans Paul (presidential candidate)
Claude Roumain (PPRH national coordinator)

On the Right
--------------


7. (SBU) National Assembly of Progressive Democrats (RDNP):
This is perhaps founder and former president Leslie Manigat's
last run for the presidency. RDNP has a strong party
infrastructure, however, Manigat's unrelenting hold on the
reins of leadership has limited the party's growth.

Key Leaders:
Leslie Manigat (presidential candidate, former President)
Myrlande Manigat (Leslie's spouse and campaign manager;
senatorial candidate-West)


8. (U) Christian Movement for a New Haiti (MOCHRENHA):
Protestant party with regional strength in Gonaives (hometown
of the party's founder) and throughout the Artibonite and
Central Plateau. Over one thousand supporters crowded a
downtown Port-au-Prince basketball gymnasium for MOCHRENHA's
October 8 campaign launch. Presidential candidate Luc
Mesadieu promised a university in each of the Haiti's ten
Departments, increasing the Haitian National Police to 20,000
and bringing back the armed forces of Haiti. This last
promise drew the loudest applause. Axan Abellard, of
REPONSE, and rejected presidential candidate Osner Fevry
(PDCH-II) each spoke in support of Mesadieu's candidacy.

Key Leaders:
Luc Mesadieu (presidential candidate)
Sylvio Dieudonne (senatorial candidate-West)


9. (C) Heads Together (Tet Ansanm Originally a regional
party with strength in the South, Tet Ansanm gained national
notoriety after choosing Haitian-American businessman Dumas
Simeus as its presidential candidate. The CEP opted to leave
his name off the list of final presidential candidates due to
the Nationalities Commission's findings (and ignoring an
earlier Haitian supreme court ruling in Simeus' favor) that
he holds an American passport. The party is fielding
candidates across the board nationally and may form a
significant bloc within parliament. The secretary general, a
doctor by training and former Aristide Health Minister,
likely stifled his own presidential ambitions for a chance at
becoming prime minister.

Key Leaders:
Dumarsais Simeus (disputed presidential candidate)
Gerard Blot (Secretary General)

New Comers
--------------


10. (SBU) Platform for Hope (L'Espwa/L'Espoir):
Left-leaning political alliance between ESKAMP (Solidarity to
Construct a Popular Alternative),PLB (Open the Gate Party)
and KOREGA, a peasants civic organization. The party appears
to be strong in the South, Southeast and Grand Anse
departments and some cities in the north (ref A). Despite
being new on the scene, the party's presidential candidate,
former president Rene Preval, appears to be the favorite in
the presidential race. Other parties fear that Preval is
strong enough to avoid a second round and some have called
for parties to consider coalescing around a consensus
candidate to challenge the former president (septel). A
November 3 march of 3000 Preval supporters was tarnished by
some who engaged in minor violence, robbery and vandalism
along the route.

Key Leaders:
Rene Preval (presidential candidate; former President)
Bob Manuel (campaign manager, former State Secretary for
Public Security)
Joseph Jasme (ESKAMP)


11. (SBU) Committee to Build Haiti KOMBA: The left-leaning
Kombit Pour Bati Ayiti ("Combat") was co-founded in February
2005 by Aristide's Minister of Youth and Sports and a leader
of the large rural organization, Mouvement des Paysans de
Papaye (MPP, Papaya Peasants Movement). Its strong rural
backing makes KOMBA a force to contend with in this year's
elections. When the party was founded, many believed it
would be the vehicle for former president Rene Preval to
launch a bid to reclaim the presidency. To the contrary,
however, KOMBA's leadership launched tirades against Preval.
Media reported September 30 that KOMBA will back the
candidacy of independent Charlito Baker. Baker introduced
MPP founder and KOMBA co-founder Jean-Baptiste to the Charge
November 22 as Charlito's campaign manager.

Key Leaders:
Evans Lescouflair
Chavannes Jean-Baptiste (MPP)


12. (C) Mobilization for Haiti's Progress (MPH): Centrist
party founded in November 2004 by Haitian-American and
presidential candidate Samir Mourra. Mourra failed to make
it onto the final presidential ballot due to his U.S.
citizenship. Mourra has pursued the same legal strategy as
Dumas Simeus and challenged the ruling before the Supreme
Court. The case, pending before the court for over two
weeks, is now in perpetual limbo due to the natural death of
a supreme court justice November 27 (preventing the court
from reaching a quorum and the ability to render a decision
on the case). Mourra considers the CEP "corrupt" and
alleged interim Prime Minister Latortue played a personal
role in the decision to remove Dumas Simeus from the ballot
(thereby affecting his own candidacy). Mourra said he would
fully support the international community running the
elections on behalf of the CEP. MPH is fielding 16
senatorial candidates and 77 deputy candidates. Mourra
claims to be self-financing his campaign and the "4000"
(including municipal) candidacies of his party. He told
PolOff that he has spent more than $500,000 USD (Note: Mourra
runs a mortgage company in Miami Lakes where his family still
resides. End Note). MPH's philosophy is economics-based and
looks to create jobs by concentrating national production on
agriculture and attracting foreign direct investment.

Key Leaders:
Samir Mourra (presidential candidate)
Chrisler Elmira (campaign manager)
Herve Leveille (party vice president)


13. (U) Justice for Peace and National Development (JPDN):
Right of center party founded earlier this year by a former
Finance Minister who was previously head of the
Port-au-Prince bar association. The party was a merger of
three smaller defunct parties and 23 civic organizations.
The party is actively pro-FADH (former Haitian military).

Key Leader:
Rigaud Duplan (presidential candidate)


14. (SBU) The Front for National Reconstruction (FRN): A
FRN publication states the party's main objective is to
"contribute to the creation of a modern, developed state,
respectful of a democratic order..." FRN is likely to win
some seats in local and parliamentary elections, particularly
in Gonaives. Guy Phillipe, in the news repeatedly since
early last year for his involvement in the events leading up
to Aristide's downfall, announced his presidential candidacy
on July 4, 2005. For most of the past year, Phillipe has
been sounding more moderate in an attempt to erase the image
of him as a rebel leader. He applauded the stepped-up
vigilance of MINUSTAH and was included amongst political
party leaders that met with the UN Security Council here in
April. A FRN senatorial candidate once told PolOffs "our
economics is on the right; our social policy is on the left."

Key Leaders:
Guy Phillipe (presidential candidate)
Winter Etienne (spokesperson; senatorial
candidate-Artibonite)
Goodwork Noel (National Executive, member of Preliminary
National Dialogue Committee)


15. (C) Artibonite in Action (LAAA): This party was
founded earlier this year and is based in Gonaives. It is
only running candidates in the Artibonite region, the most
notable being the interim prime minister's nephew who is
running for senate. This party may have nefarious sources of
income and has already been implicated in gang-related
violence in the poorer neighborhoods of Raboteau and Jubilee
in Gonaives.

Key Leader:
Youri Latortue (senatorial candidate)


16. (U) For Us All (PONT): An off-shoot of Fanmi Lavalas.
The party was founded in Jacmel and has limited reach beyond
the South.

Key Leader:
Jean-Marie Cherestal (presidential candidate, former PM)
KERST