ELECTIONS OBSERVATION IN BUNIA

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 KINSHASA 001237

SIPDIS

SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: PGOV KPKO KDEM CG ELECTIONS
SUBJECT: ELECTIONS OBSERVATION IN BUNIA



1. Summary: (U) Pol Intern traveled to Bunia (Ituri District)
to observe the DRC's July 30 elections. Visits to over ten
different voting centers and approximately 100 individual
stations revealed no significant evidence of irregularities.
Despite sometimes long and cumbersome voting lines, the day
was largely notable for its calmness. Though international
observers were sparse, Congolese observers and political
party witnesses were visible throughout the district.
Respecting previously brokered agreements, militias that have
been plaguing Ituri for years did not disrupt any of the
voting in the region. Encouragingly, the district which has
approximately 1.4 million registered voters and had until
recently been mired in technical difficulties regarding the
elections, especially concerning the persistent IDP problem
was able to execute elections effectively with only a minimum
of the IDP population being excluded. Initial results based
on those polling sites observed indicated that President
Joseph Kabila won by a wide margin. End Summary.

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Smooth Sailing
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2. (U) Beginning at 6 am, Pol Intern traveled in and around
the region surrounding Bunia to observe the presidential and
legislative elections. More than ten voting centers were
visited in the area ranging from the Primary School "Lumumba"
near Bunia center to the more remote area of N'Dele and its
voting center located in the primary school "Mambesu".
Throughout the day, Pol Intern visited more than 100
individual stations and witnessed no voting irregularities.
Starting at 6 am, lines of voters waiting outside voting
stations were already quite long. Centers generally opened
on time, ranging from about 6:10 to 6:45. Though early
voting was somewhat slow, as the hours went by centers
started to process individual voters in a couple of minutes
as opposed to the 10-15 minutes seen at the beginning of
operations. By mid-afternoon virtually all stations had no
lines, save for the smaller stations that were in more
physically confined locations.


3. (U) Pol Intern observed relatively little international
observers monitoring the elections, apart from a couple of
European Commission members. (Note: MONUC forces from the
Moroccan Battalion were present at every station and many
civilian members of MONUC-Bunia were seen throughout the day.
End Note.) In almost every station, however, there were many
national observers from various faith-based organizations,
independent national observation organizations as well as
political party witnesses. The political parties most
commonly represented were the MSR-Ituri, the PPRD, the MLC,
and the Forces de Renouveau.

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All's Quiet On The Eastern Front
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4. (U) In a July 29 meeting, MONUC Head of Mission in Bunia
Charles Gomis and Political Affairs Division Chief
Nilkanthsing Jagarnath told Pol Intern about the status of
the three most troublesome militias still in operation in the
District: Mathieu Nagudjolo's MRC, Peter Karim's FNI and
Cobra Matata's FRPI (septel). Gomis and Nils were confident
that the region was under control, as each militia leader had
been met with and had agreed to respect the elections
process. In addition, Jagarnath explained that the situation
of the nearly 140,000 IDPs, approximately 40,000 were
eligible to vote. Located in the Irumu territory of the
District, the IDPs are concentrated around the villages of
Geti, Komanda, Inchomia and Kagabu. During the July 30
election, no violence was reported from any of these militias
or areas, though few, if any, of the IDPs were ultimately
able to vote. The only incident of note was a jail break in
Bunia reported to Pol Intern by MONUC Ituri Brigade Commander
General Mahoob. During the apprehension of the escapees, it
was learned that the motivation of the break was so that the
prisoners could vote. MONUC allowed the convicts to vote
before returning them to their cells.

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The Incumbent Holds Strong
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5. (SBU) At 5 pm, the prescribed closing time, Pol Intern
returned to the Lumumba Center to witness counting
procedures. Though quite lengthy and laborious due to the
number and size of the ballots, the counting went ahead with

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relatively few problems. (Note: Specifically, counting was
witnessed in voting station I (of A-J) at the Lumumba Center.
In total there were 481 ballots cast. End note.)
Illuminated by flashlight, the counting of the presidential
ballots was finished at approximately 9:30 pm with incumbent
Joseph Kabila garnering 460 votes. The remaining votes were
spread among several other candidates, with Azarias Ruberwa
(RCD) receiving nine votes, Pierre Pay Pay (CODECO) garnering
five and Jean-Pierre Bemba (MLC) getting a total of two votes
in the station. The legislative count continued into the
early morning hours and was executed with relatively few
problems. Subsequent conversations with members of other
observation delegations stationed throughout the District
revealed results along the same lines, with Kabila normally
receiving 80 percent or higher of the preliminary count.

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Comment
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5. (SBU) In general, July 30 ended the same way that it
began--in peace and in an environment that was marked only by
people's eagerness to vote. It was reported to Pol Intern by
many voters that they had walked for almost an entire day to
vote. This kind of enthusiasm speaks volumes of the will of
the people to move forward with the democratization process.
It is now incumbent upon the politicians to uphold the same
levels of dignity vis-a-vis this historic process.
MEECE