PARAGUAY: DUARTE SPEAKS TO CONGRESS; OPPOSITION

UNCLAS ASUNCION 000708

SIPDIS

SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: PGOV PREL PA
SUBJECT: PARAGUAY: DUARTE SPEAKS TO CONGRESS; OPPOSITION
NOT IMPRESSED


1. (U) SUMMARY: During his two-hour State of the Nation
speech President Nicanor Duarte Frutos discussed progress his
government had made in tackling the country's problems. He
also displayed two very different approaches for dealing with
the opposition. On the one hand, Duarte challenged the
opposition to forge a national unity agreement centered on
helping the poor. On the other, he criticized the opposition
for being obstructionist and focused on defeating his
policies, without consideration of their merit. On 7/7, the
Ambassador met with the new oppositionist leadership of the
Senate including President Enrique Gonzalez Quintana (UNACE),
1st Vice President Armando Espinola (PLRA),and 2nd Vice
President Ana Mendoza de Acha (PPQ)),to exchange views on
priorities for the coming year. End Summary.


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Duarte's Two-Faces
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2. (U) On 7/1, President Duarte Frutos delivered his State of
the Nation address to the Congress, calling for national
unity in dealing with the country's problems. For nearly two
hours Duarte spoke about the progress the country has made
over the past year as well as the need for reconciliation and
dialogue among the parties. He stressed the importance he
attaches to helping the poor and carrying forward reform
efforts.


3. (U) Showing a completely different side, Duarte appeared
to divert from the text and tenor of his prior conciliatory
remarks to the opposition in the final moments of his speech
to criticize the opposition and accuse them of obstruction.
Alluding to the new Senate President, Enrique Gonzalez
Quintana, whose party UNACE is lead by imprisoned coup
plotter Lino Oviedo, Duarte asserted his administration would
not allow the country to return to authoritarian rule.
Duarte then took aim at the Beloved Fatherland Party (PPQ),
criticizing its efforts to unify the opposition under the
leadership of Monsignor Fernando Lugo.

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The Opposition Responds
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4. (U) Gonzalez Quintana stated that it would be difficult to
achieve national unity when, in the midst of his call for
unity, Duarte resorts to "dictatorial" attacks on the
opposition for seeking a national political agreement. He
maintained that Duarte feared a unified opposition. Other
members of the opposition offered harsher opinions of
Duarte's speech. Senator Marcelo Duarte of the PPQ accused
Duarte of being schizophrenic and not able to stay focused on
his written speech. Senator Jose Nicolas Morinigo of the
Country in Solidarity Party (PPS) said that Paraguay has two
presidents in Duarte - one who is "reasonable and democratic"
and the other who is "thoughtless and threatening."

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Ambassador Meets the New Leadership
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5. (U) On 7/7, the Ambassador met with newly elected Senator
President Enrique Gonzalez Quintana (UNACE),1st Vice
President Armando Espinola (PLRA),and 2nd Vice President Ana
Mendoza de Acha (PPQ),to exchange views on priorities for
the upcoming year. (Note: Paraguay's Congress held internal
elections last June to elect new Congressional leaders. End
note.) The Ambassador discussed the importance we attach to
military exercises, anti-money laundering legislation,
Congressional movement on the Tropical Forestation
Conservation Act, and the Millennium Challenge Account's
Threshold Program. Responding to the press reports that the
Ambassador favored Duarte in his stand off with the
opposition, the Ambassador clarified that the USG was not/not
taking sides. Rather we believe both sides need to focus on
what's best for the country. The Ambassador shared a fact
sheet on US military operations in Paraguay designed to
debunk many of the myths surrounding the operations. Acha
thanked the Ambassador for providing information about our
military programs but also raised her concerns about
clandestine missions and ulterior motives. She signaled
suspicion that US military teams were staying beyond agreed
times. The Ambassador explained the different types of
assistance programs we offer and invited the Senators to
observe future MEDRETES.


6. (U) COMMENT: Duarte's 7/1 speech rekindled the
opposition's animosity toward his administration. Vice
President Castiglioni has been reaching out to the opposition
possibly seeking to lay the groundwork for a reconciliation
between the Administration and the Congress. The opposition

remains highly critical of Duarte and suspicious of his
agenda. Our priorities, including winning congressional
approval of protections for U.S. soldiers participating in
exercises slated for 2007 could potentially get caught up in
the politics of the opposition's face off with the
government. End Comment.
CASON