VIEWS FROM THE CAMPAIGN TRAIL: JUNIN DIVIDED, BUT

UNCLAS LIMA 001326 SIPDIS SENSITIVE SIPDIS E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: PGOV PINR PE SUBJECT: VIEWS FROM THE CAMPAIGN TRAIL: JUNIN DIVIDED, BUT HUMALA HAS AN EDGE REF: A. LIMA 1277 ¶B. LIMA 1154 ¶C. LIMA 658 Sensitive but Unclassified, please handle accordingly. -------------- Summary -------------- ¶1. (SBU) In Junin Department and its capital Huancayo, the commercial hub of the central sierra, community leaders told Polofff during a 3/27-29 visit that ultra-nationalist, "outsider", Union por el Peru (UPP) party presidential candidate Ollanta Humala would likely win a plurality of votes, but they expected a second round run-off. Reflecting the country's electoral uncertainty, most community leaders believed Lourdes Flores would place second, but would not discount Alan Garcia and his APRA party upsetting her bid to make it to the second round. Business and academic leaders were confident of Flores or Garcia pulling out a close win over Humala in a second round. However a popular, local radio program director, expressed concern that "las masas" (the masses) strongly favored Humala, and would carry him to the presidency. Most characterized the region's rural areas, central jungle, and marginalized urban communities as Humala's strongholds. Community leaders attributed Humala's support to a vengeful electorate that "had nothing to lose" by voting for Humala and rejecting the self-promoting, non-delivering political class. End Summary. ¶2. (SBU) Poloff visited Huancayo, the capital of Junin Department on 3/27-29 to assess electoral trends in the region. Junin has a significant mining and agricultural sector and consists of a high Andes mountain region (sierra) and a rugged jungle to the east. Poloff met with the Deputy Mayor of Huancayo Oscar Risce, the Regional Vice President Miguel Angel Garcia Ramos, 15-50 Radio News Program Director Angel Unchupaico, Director Hector Mayhuire of local leading daily "Correo", Rector of the National University of the Center Jesus David Sanchez Marin, Program Coordinator of the San Pedro Institute of Superior Education Juan Batista Privat Gomez, Chamber of Commerce (COC) President Luis Alberto Torres Garay, and COC members Marco Antonio Duran Condori and Enrique Sifuentes Martinez. Poloff also discussed the election with numerous residents on the streets and attended a rally by Socialist Party presidential candidate, Javier Diez Canseco. -------------- Humala dominant, but not invincible -------------- ¶3. (SBU) All those interviewed predicted Humala would capture the most first round votes in Huancayo and Junin. Reflecting the bitter battle for second place, most community leaders placed Unidad Nacional presidential candidate Lourdes Flores in second, but would not count out APRA presidential candidate Alan Garcia surging ahead to displace her and face Humala in a second round. All observers predicted a very close, contested race in the second round. Regional Director for Correo said that in a second round he expected most print media (national and regional) to be very critical of Humala (with the possible exception of "La Republica" and "La Razon"). Business leaders from the Chamber of Commerce said the same about the regional business sector uniting to oppose Humala in a second round. ¶4. (SBU) All observers agreed that the central jungle region east of the Andes, which longed for Fujimori and the public works projects that he brought to marginalized communities, would overwhelmingly support Humala, rejecting the other "known" politicians. Similarly, the community leaders expected rural areas in the sierra to strongly support Humala. Those interviewed said this rural and jungle support for Fujimori would not/not transfer to Alliance for the Future candidate Martha Chavez because Chavez rarely left Lima to visit the provinces and she was associated with the political class. (Note: Chavez is a Congresswoman for Lima Department. End Note.) Observers characterized the electorate in central sierra communities (population centers),including Huancayo, as being more divided, with Humala strong but with significant support for Garcia and Flores. Some interviewees mentioned pockets of support for Frente de Centro presidential candidate Valentin Paniagua, based on his ties to popular former president Fernando Belaunde. However, most agreed Paniagua's campaign had little traction. ¶5. (SBU) The party of the Regional President, Unidos por Junin (UPJ),formed a strategic alliance with Unidad Nacional and endorses Flores. (Note: UPJ broke off from Paniagua's Accion Popular before the last regional elections to form an independent, regional party. End Note.) The Huancayo Deputy Mayor Risce (of the APRA party) confessed that APRA was not as strong in Junin as it is in Peru's North and surprisingly estimated that Garcia was in third place in Junin. However, Ricse characterized the support for Flores as fickle, unlike Garcia's and Humala's. (Note: A water system concession project proposed by the municipality is being actively debated with strong opposition by some community sectors. On 3/22 a rally opposing the concession attracted 12-15,000 protesters, some burning doll effigies of the mayor. This local water concession promoted by the APRA municipal government could be a local campaign problem for the APRA party. End Note.) -------------- -------------- Humala supporters - When you ain't got nothing, you got nothing to lose -------------- -------------- ¶6. (SBU) A recurring theme from the interviewees was that Humala was capitalizing on the vote of people who feel sQ marginalized that they have nothing to lose by casting their lot with Humala; by some estimates, this is a majority of the country's population. Interviewees said Humala supporters are people disenchanted with politic who reject the political status quo. They said the electorate perceives that Toledo did not do enough to fight corruption, and that he and his family benefited from his position. Also, though Toledo created jobs and expanded the economy, those benefits did not reach the sierra provinces. Support for Humala is a reaction to these perceived government failures. The Regional Director for Correo said Humala supporters were, "voting with their livers" (emotionally) and not with their heads. Chamber of Commerce members described the cynicism that some sectors had toward Humala and politicians with the saying, "Aunque (Humala) es otro ladron, es nuevo" (Even if he is another thief, at least he is a new one.) ¶7. (SBU) Popular radio program director Unchupaico whose main audiences are "las masas" (the masses) in and around Huancayo said he perceived the Humala phenomenon as the product of a young democracy in which the C, D, and E socio-economic sectors (89 percent of the population) are not feeling the benefits of the current economic model. He said this sentiment together with a collective sense that politicians and government institutions are corrupt, has led to an extremist tendency in the poorer sectors and creates a space for a radical voice, like Humala. Humala energizes this population, which consists of the same people who supported Fujimori and subsequently Toledo in past elections, and they believe Humala will be firm, shake up the system, and satisfy their thirst for change and a better life. Unchupaico predicted Humala would win over 50 percent of the vote in neighboring departments of Ayacucho, Huancavelica, Huanuco, and parts of Junin. Unchupaico's unsolicited advice to the U.S. and the future government was that these marginalized populations needed "a lollipop, a drop of water, something" to satiate them, or they would become even more radical. ¶8. (SBU) Several working women on the street (taxi drivers, waitresses) told Poloff that there was a growing fear that Humala could become president, and they and their friends had talked, only half-jokingly, about leaving the country in that case. (Note: This fear among some Peruvians, echoed in some sectors of Lima is a relatively new phenomenon now that Humala remains at the top of the polls and people are beginning to analyze the consequences as the election draws near. End Note.) -------------- -------------- Candidate visits to Huancayo - Humala drew the biggest crowd -------------- -------------- ¶9. (SBU) The three top presidential contenders held rallies in Huancayo during the last month (Humala on 3/12, Flores on 3/18, and Garcia on 3/23). All observers agreed that Humala attracted the most people to his rally in the main plaza, followed in size by Garcia and then Flores. Most observers said it was clear that Garcia and Flores had bussed in supporters from outside of town. Those interviewed said it did not appear that the Humala campaign bussed in supporters, but many of the attendees appeared to be there out of curiosity. The size of the Humala rally is significant given that it was on a day with inclement weather and was plagued with rumors that Humala would cancel because of the accidental death on the same morning of one of his top advisors. ¶10. (U) According to observers, Flores was well received at her Huancayo rally, almost filling the main plaza (La Republica estimated 10,000 people). After her Huancayo rally she traveled south to neighboring Huancavelica where she was confronted by Humala supporters throwing rocks and bottles and chanting "Ollanta Presidente". In Huancavelica, riot police stood on stage to protect her during her speech. ¶11. (SBU) Humala previously visited Huancayo with mixed results in early February, before submission of his congressional candidate lists. University Rector Sanchez told Poloff that Humala was invited to the National University of the Center by a far left student organization. The speaking engagement turned ugly, when Humala was shouted down by a faction of his party who had voted for a list of congressional candidates that Humala had rejected in favor of his own appointments. The event, he said, was indicative of the internal conflicts within Humala's campaign during the development of the congressional lists. -------------- A Divided Congressional Delegation -------------- ¶12. (SBU) Out of 115 candidates for Junin's five congressional seats, most observers said UPP, UN, and APRA would divide the spoils. Some observers believed a Fujimorista Alliance for the Future congressional candidate could win a seat given Fujimori's legacy of support in the central jungle region. All interviewees said the Junin electorate had a poor image of Congress and the candidates. Deputy Mayor Ricse and others thought that the Junin Congressional list for Humala's UPP party was prepared at the last minute and filled with largely unknown, poorly qualified opportunists. He characterized leading UPP congressional candidate Edgard Reymundo as, "rabid". ¶13. (U) On one weekday evening, a diverse group of approximately 300 supporters for UN congressional candidate Hildebrando Tapia and Flores marched through the streets of Huancayo. On the next evening a boisterous group of about 80 UN supporters chanted and danced on a street corner of the main Huancayo plaza. A group of approximately 40 supporters of UPP congressional candidate Reymundo and Humala, primarily young men, gathered on the opposite street corner. Riot police arrived but there was no conflict. -------------- Socialist Party Candidate stumps in Huancayo -------------- ¶14. (U) Poloff attended a rally by Socialist Party presidential candidate, Javier Diez Canseco, in Huancayo's main square on 3/27 with around 1,300 attendees. Diez Canseco's main point that incited the crowd was that it was shameful for Peru to be so rich in natural resources and yet to have such high levels of poverty. He highlighted the low returns to Peru on the profits from natural gas and metals, singling out the proposed Canadian Toromocho copper project, where he said the returns to the region would be 0.51 percent, which he claimed was one-sixth of what was entitled to the region by law. Diez Canseco said mining companies were withholding some $350 million in profits and taxes from communities. (Note: Though there are disputes regarding tax assessments, there are no/no credible reports of mining companies ignoring tax requirements. End Note.) He was very critical of the Peru Trade Promotion Agreement (PTPA) saying that it was not fair for Peru to compete on the same level as the U.S. given Peru's lack of technology, deficient infrastructure, and lack of government support. Diez Canseco stoked the fears of the crowd about genetic resources, claiming that Peruvians in the future would have to pay for the genetic resource patents of popular herb "una del gato" and "mate" tea. Diez Canseco said his priorities as President would be education, health, and basic nutrition. -------------- Comment -------------- ¶15. (SBU) Junin in some ways is a microcosm of the country going into the elections - very polarized between the haves and the have-nots. On one hand, a significant cross-section of the population feels marginalized and betrayed by their own government. They feel they have nothing to lose and are willing to risk it all on a politically unknown, new face with which they can identify. On the other hand, a sector of the population wants change, but not radical change, and is frightened by the prospects of a wild card Humala government. End Comment. STRUBLE