"BOILING THE FROG": HOW THE SANDINISTAS HAVE

C O N F I D E N T I A L MANAGUA 000281

SIPDIS

SIPDIS

DEPT FOR WHA/CEN

E.O. 12958: DECL: 02/03/2016
TAGS: PGOV SOCI KDEM KCOR NU
SUBJECT: "BOILING THE FROG": HOW THE SANDINISTAS HAVE
COOKED THE CSE

Classified By: Ambassador Paul Trivelli for reasons 1.4 (b and d)


1. (C) Summary: A former top official in Nicaragua's Supreme
Electoral Council (CSE) recently described to Emboffs the
seamier side of the CSE -- an organization he claims is
riddled with corruption and fraudulent partisan influence
from top to bottom. In addition to blatant financial fraud
and mismanagement, ex-Director of Cedulation (issuance of
national/voter ID's) Dionisio Palacios reported illegal and
selective issuance of cedulas, problems with multiple voting,
and the effective subordination of the CSE to the Sandinista
Front (FSLN). In a separate meeting, current CSE senior
civil servant Rodrigo Barreto asserted that Palacios' claims
are not credible and explained CSE strategies for issuing
cedulas and registering voters. While Palacios clearly has a
bone to pick with the CSE, many of his accusations confirm
reports from other contacts and depict an institution that
has abandoned virtually all independence and credibility.
End Summary.

BOILING THE FROG
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2. (C) One way to cook a frog is to place it in a pot of
cool, comfortable water. To avoid having the frog jump to
safety, the water must heat slowly, without the frog
realizing the increasing mortal danger -- until it is cooked
and ready to eat. On February 1, former CSE Director of
Cedulation Dionisio Palacios reported a very similar scenario
at the CSE, with the FSLN in the role of the chef; the PLC,
the frog. Palacios informed us that he had worked for the
CSE in various positions since 1994 and observed a trend of
increasing partisanship and politicization. He claimed that,
despite the theoretically even division of positions between
the PLC and FSLN, virtually all technical-level functionaries
at the CSE are FSLN militants, while Liberal employees have
been gradually sidelined and very few continue to have any
real function or control (but continue to receive a salary).
When asked point blank if there are any honest people left at
the CSE, Palacios responded, "Honestly, no."


3. (C) We asked Palacios why CSE president Roberto Rivas,
supposedly a Liberal magistrate, has allowed this Sandinista
take-over and continues to side with FSLN magistrates against
the Liberals on many issues. Palacios explained that Rivas
is implicated in several cases of financial malfeasance from
his time at the CSE (this is his third consecutive term) and
before, about which the Sandinistas are aware and are ready
to exploit through the Sandinista-controlled courts should
Rivas displease them. According to Palacios, PLC leader
Arnoldo Aleman recognized Rivas' increasingly compromised
situation and plotted to have him replaced when Rivas' term
expired in 2005. However, Rivas' mentor (and rumored father)
Cardinal Miguel Obando y Bravo intervened with Aleman to save
Rivas' position. The FSLN also lobbied Aleman to retain
Rivas as part of the PLC-FSLN pact to divide the spoils in
pact-controlled government institutions.

CSE BUDGET WOES CAUSED BY RIVAS' MISMANAGEMENT
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4. (C) The CSE once operated offices in all 152
municipalities and issued cedulas in a relatively timely
manner. In 2003, the budget of the Cedulation office was
cut, and the office was no longer able to purchase sufficient
materials to issue cedulas efficiently -- a problem that has
only worsened over time. In 2004, the CSE closed most of the
municipal offices, again for budget reasons, leaving only the
central offices and 18 outposts in the departmental/regional
capitals open to serve the public. Rivas complains that the
Bolanos Administration is starving the CSE of funds for
political reasons, but according to Palacios, Rivas has
diverted massive amounts of money to increase benefits for
magistrates, including drivers, bodyguards, and lavish
expense accounts. Palacios also claims Rivas has allotted
chief CSE functionary Rodrigo Barreto an "emergency fund"
that Barreto supposedly abuses. When asked about financial
responsibility, Palacios said that Rivas bribes the external
auditors to accept internal audit reports without question.
The executive cannot force the CSE to open its books because
it is an independent branch of government, allowing Rivas to
allocate funds as he pleases.

FSLN USES CONTROL OF CSE TO MANIPULATE CEDULA ISSUANCE
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5. (C) Palacios confirmed reports that Sandinista employees
at the CSE are issuing cedulas for under-age (under 16)
Nicaraguans and foreigners based on falsified birth
certificates. He said this type of fraud is also
facilitating trafficking in persons and drugs. Palacios
stated that both the FSLN and PLC use whatever control they
have in the municipalities and electoral councils to
facilitate cedulas for their own party militants and delay or
block cedula issuance for others. He noted that the mayors
are in charge of the civil registries in the municipalities,
and therefore control the issuance of birth certificates,
required to obtain cedulas. The CSE in general does nothing
to encourage or facilitate the registration of 16-year olds
(112,000 Nicaraguans come of age each year),Palacios
claimed; rather, the political parties play that role.


6. (C) Palacios explained that, in addition to the new
registrants, 250,000 Nicaraguans file claims for damaged or
lost cedulas each year. He said that 150,000 cedulas have
been produced, but not distributed, and the CSE will probably
not make any effort to do so. The FSLN magistrates will
absolutely oppose any "plan mochila" proposed by NGOs to
distribute cedulas in remote areas because they recognize
that these efforts enfranchised primarily Liberal and
independent voters in past elections, Palacios claimed.


7. (U) During an earlier meeting, Barreto told us that the
CSE is planning projects to speed up the cedulation process
and allow voters to register at the polling place of their
choice. According to Barreto, the CSE will open new centers
in Managua and cut down the cedula processing time to 24
hours, as well as make a greater effort to issue cedulas in
other municipalities. He complained that the GON procurement
system is ridiculously bureaucratic and contributed to the
delay in cedula issuance. He also claimed that the cedula
problem "is greatly inflated" by the CSE,s political rivals.

MULTIPLE VOTING NOT DIFFICULT
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8. (C) Personally, Palacios believes that the CSE does not
have the right to suspend or reform Article 41 of the
electoral law, which allows citizens to vote at any location
if they have a valid cedula that shows they live in the area.
(Note: Article 41 is currently the subject of an intense
debate, with the Liberal parties protesting
CSE/FSLN-sponsored poll regulations that state that a voter
must appear on the list allocated to a specific voting
station. End Note.) However, he acknowledged that this law
more easily allows people to vote multiple times. Palacios
explained that a person could simply obtain a second birth
certificate by using his father's last name in addition to or
instead of his mother's, and then use the birth certificate
to apply for a second cedula. Regarding the ink used to
stain the fingers of voters to prevent this type of fraud,
Palacios asserted that a person can put grease or a similar
substance on his finger to block the absorption of the ink.
Poll workers are supposed to clean the finger before applying
the ink, but most are poorly trained and wipe the finger
after the ink is applied, he explained.


9. (U) To alleviate the potential displacement caused by the
suspension of Article 41, Barreto reported that the CSE will
open voting tables on five Sundays in three different phases
before November to allow citizens to register at the voting
location of their choice. He explained that voters will be
able to get a "verification document" from the CSE that will
allow them to vote at their preferred location even if, for
some reason, they do not appear in the pardon on voting day
-- thus avoiding the "raton loco" of the 2004 municipal
elections. The CSE will initiate a media campaign, in
conjunction with the NGO community, to inform voters of the
registration process. When queried about the large number of
deceased or absent voters on the padron and the possibility
for fraud, Barreto demurred, claiming that the strong ink
placed on voters, thumbs on election day would prevent the
same person from voting twice (unless, of course, they grease
their thumbs first).

EXPAT VOTING NOT IN THE CARDS THIS YEAR
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10. (SBU) Barreto reported that casting votes from abroad
would not be possible this year, though he personally
supports the project. He claimed that the CSE's budget
cannot support such an effort, nor is the civil registry

sufficiently organized to permit consular officers to verify
applications. Barreto commented that the CSE has held
several meetings with the MFA to discuss this issue, but that
the MFA has yet to produce a true consular registry. In any
case, Barreto argued that most eligible voters abroad already
have a cedula and may return to Nicaragua to exercise their
suffrage.

BARRETO AND PALACIOS MUTUALLY SUSPICIOUS
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11. (C) When asked about the CSE's firing of Palacios last
October, Barreto replied that Palacios and his office were
under investigation for illegally "expediting" cedulas for a
fee. At first, Barreto said that he wasn't sure if Palacios
was personally involved in the scandal, but later added that
Palacios was frustrated because he did not feel the PLC
magistrates were supporting him and he stood to lose his
"business." Regarding the veracity of Palacios, allegations
against the CSE, Barreto admitted that he has ignored
Palacios, charges, but would not afford them much
credibility in any case. Barreto did admit, however, that
Palacios "knew what was going on in Cedulation." Barreto
told us that the new Director of Cedulation, Sergio Rayo, was
sponsored by PLC magistrate Rene Herrera. He termed Rayo a
"conscientious worker."


12. (C) To Palacios, Barreto is "a servant of Roberto Rivas"
who has his sticky fingers in Rivas' CSE budget-engorged
pockets. He advised us not to trust Barreto. Palacios
informed us that Sergio Rayo is related to Rene Herrera, but
was also part of the Sandinista intelligence apparatus during
the 1980s. He said he could not confirm the current
inclination of Rayo's loyalties.

COMMENT
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13. (C) The CSE magistrates' stubborn resistance to allowing
IFES technical advisors to enter their shadowy domain lends
credence to Palacios accusations of budgetary opacity and
mismanagement. The Ambassador called Rivas on February 3 to
discuss the CSE's intransigence, and Rivas assured him that
IFES will receive a letter next week outlining what type of
assistance the CSE requires from IFES, noting that voter
education and communications are among the priorities. Rivas
claimed he is also amenable to technical support. The
Ambassador reiterated our commitment to helping him, the CSE
and the electoral process, observing that it would be a
tragedy if Rivas were the first CSE head to preside over a
seriously flawed election.
TRIVELLI