COTE D'IVOIRE: THIRD MEETING OF THE INTERNATIONAL

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 ABIDJAN 000060

SIPDIS

SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: DECL: 01/20/2015
TAGS: PREL PGOV ASEC IV
SUBJECT: COTE D'IVOIRE: THIRD MEETING OF THE INTERNATIONAL
WORKING GROUP

Classified By: POL/ECON Jim Wojtasiewicz, reasons 1.4 (B) and (D).


1. (C) Summary. The subject that came in for the most
discussion at the January 15 meeting of the International
Working Group (IWG) was the future of the National Assembly,
whose mandate expired December 16. Heads of delegation
reached an initial consensus to recommend that the Assembly
remain on only as a consultative body, with no legislative
powers. However, the co-chairmen subsequently proposed, and
the IWG accepted, to recommend only that the Prime Minister
could call on individual former members of parliament for
specific tasks as needed. At the request of the UN High
Representative for Elections (HRE),the IWG also made clear
its expectation that the HRE will issue an arbitration ruling
on the deadlock in the Independent Electoral Commission (CEI)
in time for the CEI to be up and running by the next IWG
meeting. The UN Operation in Cote d'Ivoire (UNOCI),Nigeria,
and the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS)
pressed hard for the IWG to recommend that the Security
Council agree to the Secretary General's request for a 50
percent troop increase for UNOCI, but after the United States
objected, compromise language was accepted paralleling UNSCR

1633. In retrospect, in light of the four days of unrest
that followed the IWG meeting, it would have been better if
the Nigerians had kept to the consensus language recommending
that the National Assembly remain on as a collective,
consultative body. The IWG's communique may only have been a
pretext for the unrest, but more conciliatory language on the
Assembly might have removed any such pretext. End Summary.



2. (U) The Third meeting of the IWG was held January 15.
There were more high-level attendees than usual, perhaps
because people were en route to the inauguration of the new
president of Liberia the following day. The meeting was
co-chaired as usual by Nigerian Foreign Minister Oluyemi
Adenji and Special Representative of the Secretary General
(SRSG) Pierre Schori. Also in attendance were Baroness Amos,
the leader of the UK House of Lords (which carries cabinet
minister status); Louis Michel, Commissioner for Development
and Humanitarian Assistance at the European Commission;
Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma, Foreign Minister of South Africa;
Nana Akufo-Addo, Foreign Minister of Ghana; Aichatou Daoudou,
Foreign Minister of Niger; Brigitte Girardin, Minister
Delegate for Cooperation, Development and the French Speaking
Countries of France; Mohamed Ibn Chambras, Executive
Secretary of ECOWAS; Said Djinnit, Commissioner for Peace and

SIPDIS
Security of the African Union; and representatives from the
United States, Guinea, Benin, the International Organization
of French Speaking Countries, the World Bank, and the UN High
Representative for Elections in Cote d'Ivoire.


3. (C) The subject that came in for the most discussion was
the future of the National Assembly. The co-chairs hosted a
breakfast before the meeting for heads of delegation to
discuss how to respond to the Constitutional Court's ruling
that President Gbagbo could extend the mandate of the
Assembly, which expired December 16. The IWG had previously
decided at its December 6 meeting that the mandate should not
be extended. At the breakfast, consensus was quickly reached
to recommend that the Assembly continue on only as a
consultative body, without legislative powers. Even South
African Foreign Minister Zuma, who at the last meeting argued
that President Gbagbo should extend the Assembly's full
mandate, agreed to this formulation. However, when the
subject came up during the IWG meeting, Nigerian Foreign
Minister Adenji, backed by SRSG Schori, instead proposed that
the group recommend only that the Prime Minister could call
upon individual former members of parliament for specific
tasks. Minister Zuma argued strongly that the Assembly
should be kept on as a collective, consultative body, but in
the end she agreed to Adenji's formulation. There was then
extensive discussion over whether the communique from the
meeting should say that the mandate of the Assembly "can not"
be extended (France),or "should not" be extended (most other
delegations). Underlying this debate was the question of
whether the IWG has authority to decide on this issue or
whether it can only make a recommendation. In the end,
compromise language proposed by EC Commissioner Michel was
accepted, that the mandate "is not to be" extended.


4. (C) There was also considerable discussion about the
current deadlock in the Independent Electoral Commission
(CEI). At the last meeting, France pushed hard for the IWG
to strongly urge UN High Representative for Elections Antonio
Monteiro to use his arbitration authority to break the
deadlock. However, South Africa, Nigeria and others
expressed concern about Monteiro overruling a decision of the
Supreme Court. (President Gbagbo's Ivoirian Popular Front
(FPI) party boycotted the election of the executive board of
the CEI because they insisted that non-voting members of the

ABIDJAN 00000060 002 OF 002


commission must be allowed to vote on this particular
occasion. The Supreme Court, which President Gbagbo
controls, ruled that the election was invalid. The IWG wants
Monteiro to rule that the election was valid and the CEI
should begin its work immediately.) This time even stronger
concerns were expressed. Monteiro's deputy informed the IWG
that Monteiro wants ten more working days after he returns
from New York to search for a political compromise. If that
fails, he will immediately make his ruling. Monteiro's
representative asked that language committing him to this
course of action be inserted into the communique, and this
was done -- the communique notes the IWG's expectation that
Monteiro will make a ruling in time for the CEI to be
operational by the text IWG meeting.


5. (C) It is noteworthy that on both of these issues, Prime
Minister Banny, who arrived around noon to address the
meeting, asked for the IWG's support. On the National
Assembly he said there is no basis for elected
parliamentarians to remain on after their mandate has
expired. On the CEI he asked for a quick ruling by Monteiro
to allow the commission to get on with the task of organizing
elections.


6. (C) SRSG Schori spoke strongly in favor of the Secretary
General's request for a 50 percent increase in troops for the
UN Operation in Cote d'Ivoire (UNOCI). ECOWAS Executive
Director Chambas, and UNOCI commander General Fall also spoke
strongly in favor. Nigerian Foreign Minister Adenji proposed
that the IWG in its communique recommend that the Security
Council agree to the Secretary General's request. The United
States objected that this would be prejudging the decision of
the Security Council, but was told by Adenji that the
recommendation would remain because there is no veto in the
IWG. Ambasador Hooks made it clear that he objected to the
language and would not join the consensus on this point.
South African Foreign Minister Zuma then proposed compromise
language paralleling paragraph 22 of UNSCR, recommending only
that the Security Council review UNOCI force levels, and this
matter was resolved.


7. (C) Comment: In retrospect, in light of the four days of
unrest in Abidjan and western Cote d'Ivoire that followed the
issuing of the IWG communique, it would have been better if
Adenji had kept to the consensus language from the breakfast,
recommending that the National Assembly remain on as a
collective, consultative body. That said, we believe that
the IWG communique was only a pretext for the unrest, and
that in reality President Gbagbo deliberately called out the
protesters to undermine Prime Minister Banny. Still, more
conciliatory language on the Assembly might have removed any
such pretext. As it is, the IWG has now also been
undermined, especially after Nigerian President Obasanjo
issued a joint communique agreeing with President Gbagbo that
the IWG in effect has no power to determine the future of the
National Assembly. End Comment.

Hooks