Identifier
Created
Classification
Origin
06KINSHASA1310
2006-08-18 15:28:00
CONFIDENTIAL
Embassy Kinshasa
Cable title:  

DRC ELECTIONS: GIZENGA AN EMERGING FORCE

Tags:  PGOV PINR KDEM KPKO CG ELECTIONS 
pdf how-to read a cable
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FM AMEMBASSY KINSHASA
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 4629
INFO RUEHXR/RWANDA COLLECTIVE
RUCNSAD/SOUTHERN AFRICAN DEVELOPMENT COMMUNITY
RUEAIIA/CIA WASHDC
RHEFDIA/DIA WASHDC
RHMFISS/HQ USEUCOM VAIHINGEN GE
RUFOADA/JAC MOLESWORTH RAF MOLESWORTH UK
C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 KINSHASA 001310 

SIPDIS

SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: DECL: 08/18/2016
TAGS: PGOV PINR KDEM KPKO CG ELECTIONS
SUBJECT: DRC ELECTIONS: GIZENGA AN EMERGING FORCE

REF: KINSHASA 1195

Classified By: PolOff CBrown, reasons 1.4 b/d.

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 KINSHASA 001310

SIPDIS

SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: DECL: 08/18/2016
TAGS: PGOV PINR KDEM KPKO CG ELECTIONS
SUBJECT: DRC ELECTIONS: GIZENGA AN EMERGING FORCE

REF: KINSHASA 1195

Classified By: PolOff CBrown, reasons 1.4 b/d.


1. (C) Summary: Antoine Gizenga, secretary general of the
Unified Lumumbist Party (PALU),met with the Ambassador
August 17. The long-time opposition figure, who almost
certainly will likely place third in the first round of
presidential voting and is the potential kingmaker in a
second round, said elections will help restore the
sovereignty of the Congolese people. Gizenga said he and his
party do not want to see the DRC descend into violence once
again, and that he is encouraging his followers not to
respond to any "provocation" once results are announced.
Despite the current speculation of a Congo divided along
East-West lines, Gizenga believes no such division exists.
Well-spoken and even-tempered, Gizenga has emerged as a power
both Kabila and Bemba will court heavily, although the PALU
leader is playing his cards close to his chest. End summary.

--------------
GIZENGA CALLS ON ALL TO RESPECT RESULTS
--------------


2. (C) The Ambassador, accompanied by DCM and PolOff, met
August 17 in Kinshasa with PALU Secretary General Antoine
Gizenga, one of the DRC's 33 presidential candidates, as a
follow-up to a broader meeting Gizenga had with CIAT members
August 9. According to preliminary election results provided
by the Independent Electoral Commission (CEI),the
81-year-old Gizenga is currently in third place behind
President Joseph Kabila and Vice President Jean-Pierre Bemba.
Gizenga spent much of the 90-minute meeting reviewing his and
his party's long struggle in the Congo since the country
gained independence in 1960. Gizenga hopes the July 30
elections will serve to restore the sovereignty of the
Congolese people and create a democratic state based on the
rule of law. Gizenga added that people need to realize the
results of these elections will not last forever, noting
there will be future elections. Gizenga agreed that the July
30 contest was only the first step in rebuilding the DRC and
that the process of establishing peace and unity throughout
the country would be long. Though not directly commenting on

results of the first round, Gizenga's comment suggested he
expects there to be a second round runoff.


3. (C) Gizenga said he hopes all candidates in the
presidential contest understand the need to be calm before
the announcement of results, and to accept those results.
Gizenga said he thought too many people were focused only on
who will come in first, forgetting that there will be many
losers. He said politicians must understand that voters want
their leaders to respect election results and not resort to
violence afterwards.


4. (C) Gizenga said the country's political system needs to
be transformed from one based on individuals to one formed
around strong groups and political parties with clear
ideologies. The long-time opposition leader said most of the
DRC's 33 presidential candidates represented no more than a
handful of people and asked rhetorically what most candidates
and parties have as a base of support throughout the country.

--------------
NO WIDESPREAD VIOLENCE EXPECTED
--------------


5. (C) Gizenga said he does not expect there to be widespread
violence after provisional results are announced by the CEI.
(Note: The CEI is expected to released nationwide provisional
vote tallies from the presidential contest on August 20. End
note.) He has told his followers not to respond to any
"provocation" to violence which may occur in the following
weeks. Though he thought there may be some pockets of unrest,
particularly in Kinshasa, he believes any acts of violence
would be isolated and would not have much support. In fact,
Gizenga implicitly criticized the violence which took place
in Kinshasa July 27 following a rally of the MLC (ref A).


6. (C) Gizenga said PALU has deliberately remained silent on
recent events, enhancing the party's credibility and helping
maintain calm and patience among the party's followers. PALU
members are not inclined to commit destructive acts, he
claimed, noting that the party can set an example to others
with regard to peaceful demonstrations and the rule of law.
Gizenga said that those who take up arms are influenced by
"outside forces," as most Congolese do not support a return

KINSHASA 00001310 002 OF 002


to violence.


7. (C) Gizenga pledged as well to work within the system
should the need for any electoral challenges arise. He did
not claim, as many other candidates have, that the elections
were marred by "irregularities" or that election workers have
committed widespread fraud. If his party does identify cases
of potential fraud, he said, it will follow all procedures
through legal means. Gizenga pointedly recalled that PALU had
strongly opposed the 50,000 USD registration fee required for
presidential candidates, but after realizing its appeal was
not being heard, accepted the law as it stood and did not
react violently.

--------------
EAST-WEST DIVIDE NOT REAL
--------------


8. (C) Gizenga said he does not accept current theories of an
East-West schism in the DRC. He explained that the idea of an
East-West division comes from those people who want to divide
the country so as to exploit its wealth and resources.
Moreover, he said that as a result of the country's civil war
(based largely in the east),many intellectuals became fixed
on the belief that the East was "bad" while the West was
"good." In any case, Gizenga said most Congolese do not
believe in this division either. Gizenga said PALU has long
had a vision of one country, unified by one national language
(Swahili) and one national identity.

--------------
COMMENT: AN EMERGING KINGMAKER
--------------


9. (C) While a relatively marginal figure during the DRC's
transition, Gizenga is emerging as an important force and
potential kingmaker in the likely second round of
presidential elections. He is of course aware of his
new-found stature, and made sure to hit all the right notes,
projecting himself as someone willing to accept election
results and work within the system for the overall good of
the country. Gizenga appeared to be healthy, alert and
engaged, belying his reported age of 81 years (a marked
contrast to recent reports concerning the DRC's other primary
political opposition figure, Etienne Tshisekedi of the Union
for Democracy and Social Progress). Clearly both Kabila and
Bemba, the two candidates to face off in an eventual second
round, will be courting Gizenga and PALU heavily. Gizenga
began the meeting with a pointed anti-Mobutu comment,
suggesting that any possible alliance with Bemba would be
problematic. That said, a PALU alliance with Kabila is not an
obvious fit and is far from certain at this point. Gizenga is
for now, though, keeping his counsel. End comment.
MEECE