DRC ELECTIONS: CARTER CENTER "HOPEFUL" ABOUT VOTE

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 03 KINSHASA 001220

SIPDIS

SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: PGOV KDEM KPKO CG ELECTIONS
SUBJECT: DRC ELECTIONS: CARTER CENTER "HOPEFUL" ABOUT VOTE



1. (U) The Carter Center's election observation mission
released a preliminary statement August 1 on the DRC's July
30 elections, noting that polling stations were
"well-organized" and that election officials "competently
fulfilled" their duties. In a Kinshasa press conference, the
Carter Center's co-leader of mission John Stremlau declined
to judge yet whether the elections had been "free and fair,"
but added that Carter Center observers were "hopeful" by what
they had seen during voting operations. The Carter Center did
note certain irregularities, such as last-minute changes to
procedures, voters' lists and the number of polling stations,
any of which may have "undermined" the integrity of the
electoral process. The Carter Center expressed concern as
well that "in a number of cases those who had access to the
levers of power misused their authority and access to public
resources during the campaign." Stremlau said, though, that
it is too early to determine what impact, if any, these and
other issues may have had on voting. Overall, the Carter
Center said the DRC's election must be put in the context of
a country just emerging from a violent past and transitional
government, and as such all the "demanding aspects" of
international elections standards cannot be entirely met.


2. (U) The full text of the Carter Center's statement is as
follows:

PRELIMINARY STATEMENT ON THE JULY 30 ELECTIONS IN THE
DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC OF CONGO

This statement reflects the observations of The Carter Center
on the events of the week leading up to and including the
elections, and complements our two pre-election statements.
For the July 30 vote, The Carter Center deployed a 58-member
international delegation to observe the Democratic Republic
of Congo's presidential and legislative elections, led by the
Former Primer Minister of Canada, Joe Clark, and co-leader
John Stremlau, associate executive director of The Carter
Center.

The Carter Center conducts its election observation in
accordance with the Declaration of Principles of
International Election Observation and Code of Conduct
adopted at the United Nations in 2005. The Center was invited
by the Independent Electoral Commission (CEI) and welcomed by
all major political parties. Between April and July, Carter
Center representatives observed in every province. We
appreciate the important opportunities we have had for
effective coordination with other international and domestic
observers. The Carter Center has observed 63 elections around
the world, 13 of them in Africa.

SUMMARY OF KEY FINDINGS

- voting took place on July 30th in a generally peaceful and
orderly manner
- overall, polling stations were well organized and polling
center staff competently fulfilled their duties
- the impact of last-minute changes to voters' lists and
polling stations cannot yet be adequately assessed
- the campaign period was marked by a number of issues of
concern, in particular abuse of governmental authority
- close observation of the process will continue

GENERAL OBSERVATIONS

These historic elections are part of an extraordinary process
of transition which brought together warring parties and
forged consensus on the need for peace and democracy in the
DRC. For any first elections such as these, we are well aware
that the most demanding aspects of international elections
standards cannot be entirely met. The development of
democratic processes and institutions is a long-term project
which will require strong ongoing support from the
international community. As part of the process of moving
forward in the DRC's transition to a stable democracy,
however, The Carter Center believes that the issues raised in
this report, while preliminary, must be addressed.

Building on the work of long-term observers who have been in
the field since April, Carter Center teams observed the final
days of the election campaign, the opening and closing of
polling stations, voting operations, and the vote count. We
have also begun to observe the compilation of results.

Election procedures were on the whole conducted in a peaceful
and orderly manner throughout the country. Many polling
stations experienced delayed openings, but in most cases

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voting was underway by 7:00 am. Polling stations were
generally well organized and officials appeared to understand
the proper discharge of their responsibilities. The Center
was pleased to see numerous domestic election observers and
poll watchers from multiple parties in voting centers.

Late changes by the CEI to procedures, voters' lists and the
number of polling stations, which fortunately seem to have
caused operational disruptions in only some areas,
nonetheless undermined the safeguards intended to guarantee
integrity and transparency. The ultimate impact of such late
changes remains to be seen.

THE CAMPAIGN

The campaign period in the DRC, although largely peaceful and
democratic, was characterized by a number of issues of
concern to the Carter Center. As we have previously noted,
political parties did not always make the best use of the
campaign period to inform and educate the electorate on
matters of concern to them, and there was fairly widespread
destruction of campaign materials. We have further observed
that in a number of cases those who had access to the levers
of power misused their authority and access to public
resources during the campaign, by:

- misusing security personnel to obstruct legitimate
democratic activity
- imposing bureaucratic and practical obstacles on the free
movement of candidates
- obstructing candidates' campaign material at ports of entry

Inequitable and politically-biased media coverage was also an
issue throughout the campaign, which, despite some good
efforts, the High Media Authority (HAM) was unable to resolve
satisfactorily, primarily due to its lack of enforcement
powers. The burning and looting of buildings housing the HAM
and the National Human Rights Observatory (ONDH),and serious
violence done to some employees, during a large presidential
campaign rally in Kinshasa, was a further blow to two already
under-resourced institutions of the democratic transition.

VOTING PROCEDURES

Center observers reported some procedural irregularities, and
others have been brought to our attention. On the whole,
these appear at this point to be minor, but we have urged all
actors to take their concerns to the appropriate channels and
The Carter Center itself will continue to observe the process
closely. The Cumbersome ballot papers for the legislative
elections in certain constituencies caused some difficulty
for voters, compounded by comparatively small polling booths.
Crowded voting conditions, makeshift outdoor facilities and
the improper placement of polling booths (often to compensate
poor lighting) did not adequately protect the secrecy of
voting in some places.

A significant proportion of the Center's observers found that
voters' lists were not posted as required at polling
stations. Some stations did not receive all of their election
materials, notably the lists of omitted voters and lists of
voters struck from the roll (generated by the CEI in response
to missing and corrupted registration data and the
elimination of fraudulently registered voters). These missing
materials, which were produced very late by the CEI,
generated suspicions and may be have resulted in some
legitimate voters being unable to cast their ballots. In
other polling stations, even where the additional lists were
available, they were not always properly consulted. Election
officials also did not always consistently check voters for
indelible ink or confirm that the photo on the card matched
the cardholder. On their own, these deficiencies did not seem
to cause undue operational problems, but when taken together,
they weakened important safeguards designed to verify the
identity of voters.

Police were visible, but not intrusive at most polling
locations. There were serious breaches of security in several
places, including the destruction of a number of polling
stations, as well as attempts to prevent voters from entering
certain voting centers. While significant and deplorable,
these attacks were clearly the exception, and The Center is
pleased that the CEI immediately took steps to reopen these
polling stations by sending new material.

TABULATION


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Initial observations of the tabulation suggest that
experiences vary widely across the country. In some areas,
very few results envelopes had arrived in the Local Results
Tabulation Center (CLCR) as this statement went to press.
This may be due to the fact that votes were still being
counted in many polling stations, but it also appears that
the CEI does not have an adequate collection plan to ensure
timely delivery of results to all CLCRs. In other cases,
CLCRs have received results but do not possess the necessary
resources or organization to process them efficiently.
Bottlenecks have been reported in the reception of materials,
and there are cases of continued confusion and tensions
around the issue of payment to poll center staff. We urge the
CEI to make the smooth and effective functioning of the CLCRs
(especially transport of results) a top priority.

This results process will take weeks to complete, and that
will require patience on the part of all actors, and the
population in general. Candidates and their supporters must
be patient during a results process that will take days, and
possibly weeks, to complete. Given the need for transparency,
the CEI must ensure that final results are published for each
polling station so that they may be cross-checked by party
poll watchers and observers.

Carter Center teams will remain deployed throughout the
country to observe the ongoing tabulation process. We hope
that any election disputes can be resolved openly through the
appropriate legal channels or mediation efforts, so that the
final results are accepted with confidence by all.

End statement.
MEECE