ELECTION HIGHLIGHTS 7: GENERAL POLLING STATIONS,

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 03 MANAMA 001942

SIPDIS

SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: DECL: 11/08/2016
TAGS: PGOV KDEM PHUM BA POL
SUBJECT: ELECTION HIGHLIGHTS 7: GENERAL POLLING STATIONS,
VOTE-BUYING

Classified By: DCM Susan L. Ziadeh for reasons 1.4 (b) and (d).


1. (C) SUMMARY: Leading Shi'a cleric Shaikh Isa Qassem
encouraged candidates and the public November 10 to lobby the
government to eliminate the ten general polling centers.
Members of the three-person High Commission for Elections
said that it would be impossible to do away with the general
centers and still hold the elections on schedule, but they
noted that the High Commission was considering permitting
candidate representatives to observe voting at these centers.
Leading Shi'a political society Al Wifaq Secretary General
Shaikh Ali Salman alleged November 13 that cash payments,
payment of utility bills, and the purchase of food for voters
were all forms of vote-buying that were occurring in the
campaign. The first official complaint against a candidate
for bribing a voter was announced publicly November 15. The
voter who filed the complaint alleged that the candidate gave
him a BD 100 ($265) check, which he turned over to
authorities, to change his address so he and his family could
vote for the candidate. Al Wasat newspaper sources claimed
November 14 that the High Commission would likely ignore four
requests from international organizations that had requested
to observe the election. In a private meeting with Emboffs,
Ministry of Justice Undersecretary Shaikh Khalid Bin Ali Al
Khalifa said that the decision whether or not to allow
international observers was political and beyond the mandate
of the High Commission to make. End summary.


2. (SBU) GENERAL POLLING STATIONS: In his Friday sermon
November 10, prominent Shi'a cleric Shaikh Isa Qassem
encouraged candidates, institutions, and the people to lobby
the government for the elimination of the ten general polling
stations. He pointed out that if monitoring is restricted to
access by a candidate and his single chosen representative to
the polling center in his constituency, they would not be
able to cover the ten general stations. He added that if a
candidate cannot cover all polling stations from which he and
his competitors receive votes, there will not be overall
effective monitoring.


3. (SBU) Judge Abdulrahman Al Sayed, member of the
three-person High Commission for Elections working in
conjunction with Minister of Justice Dr. Mohamed Ali Al
Sitri, stated November 11 that the High Commission is
considering allowing candidate representatives to be present
as observers in the ten general polling stations. Fellow
member of the High Commission for Elections Judge Khalid
Ajaji stated November 14 that the elimination of the general
poll centers was impossible at this point if the elections
were to be held on schedule. He claimed that the demands for
their removal were not justified. He reminded the public
that NGOs will monitor the polls, and that judicial
authorities are directly managing the process.


4. (SBU) Twenty-six candidates signed and publicly announced
November 15 a petition of request to King Hamad that he issue
a royal decree eliminating the general polling stations.
Leading Shi'a political society Al Wifaq president Shaikh Ali
Salman was scheduled to meet with the Minister of Justice
November 16 to discuss the general poll centers, among other
election issues. Columnist Sawsan Al Shaer wrote November 15
about the general polling stations, saying that even the High
Commission for Elections admits that monitoring of the
general stations is going to be difficult. She inquired,
"How will we... ensure that the election process is fair and
transparent? Will we risk damaging the efforts of the King
to restore the trust of the voters by not resolving an issue
such as these centers that are an irritant to the public?"


5. (SBU) VOTE-BUYING, POLITICAL NATURALIZATION: Al Wifaq
president Shaikh Ali alleged in media reports November 13
that vote-buying was occurring in the forms of cash payments,
the payment of supporters' utility bills, and food purchases
for voters. He said that in the most egregious instance a
candidate offered to pay over $900,000 to purchase a building
for a women's NGO in exchange for the votes of its members.
Shaikh Ali also claimed that the GOB continued to naturalize
expatriates for political advantage. "We believe that in the
last two weeks on average 200 people weekly were referred to
the immigration authorities to obtain passports," Shaikh Ali
stated.


6. (SBU) Arabic dailies announced November 15 that a voter
filed the first official complaint against a candidate for
vote-buying, presenting as evidence a check worth BD 100
($265) allegedly given to him by a Central Governorate
candidate. The accused allegedly offered the money in
exchange for the voter to change his address to the
candidate's district and give the candidate his and his
family's votes on election day. It was reported November 16

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that the complainant was summoned to the Public Prosecution,
and he provided a full description of the situation,
including contact information for two witnesses. It was
expected that the accused candidate would be called to the
Public Prosecution November 16.


7. (C) INTERNATIONAL OBSERVERS: Arabic daily Al Wasat
sources claimed November 14 that the High Commission for
Elections was inclined to ignore the requests of four
international organizations to observe the elections. The
article said the High Commission would not issue a public
decision approving or refusing their participation in
election observation. In a meeting November 6 with MEPI
Regional Office Director and Poloff, Ministry of Justice
Undersecretary Shaikh Khalid Bin Ali Al Khalifa said that the
High Commission for Elections would not reject the requests
by international organizations to participate in election
observation. He confided that both he and the Minister of
Justice personally thought that allowing international
observers would be beneficial to the process. He said,
however, that the High Commission did not have the authority
in its mandate to decide whether to permit or refuse the
requests of international observers. This is a political
decision that would have to be made at higher levels of the
government or by other government ministries, he said.


8. (SBU) CONCERN ABOUT SUNNI PARTICIPATION: Second vice
chairman of the Council of Representatives Sunni Adel Al
Mo'awada said publicly November 12 that the Sunnis in Bahrain
are displaying indifference to the elections and are not
enthusiastic about voting. On the other hand, he said, the
Shi'a community has been energized by the elections. He
encouraged citizens of both sects to participate. In
addition, Al Mo'awada criticized the media for being against
candidates with religious tendencies and promoting liberals.


9. (SBU) WOMEN CANDIDATES: Wa'ad candidate Munira Fakhro,
who is also receiving Al Wifaq support and who many observers
recognize as having the best chances among women candidates
at winning her district, is in a tight race with her primary
competitor MP Salah Ali (Al Minbar). Results of a
pro-government Arabic daily Al Watan poll released November
16 show Ali receiving the support of 30% and Fakhro receiving
support from 28% of those polled.


10. (SBU) The campaign manager for independent candidate
Mariam Al Ruwaie, president of the recently-formed Women's
Union, was arrested by military police November 9 and charged
with breaking the law prohibiting active duty military
personnel from running in an election or serving in an
election campaign. The decision of the military court was
announced November 13, stating that Al Ruwaie's campaign
manager was sentenced to 30 days in prison. Family members
expressed shock at the verdict, claiming that no other
members of the military who were involved in election
campaigns had been jailed.


11. (SBU) VOTERS OUTSIDE BAHRAIN: The registration period
for Bahrainis living outside the country to vote in the
parliamentary elections concluded November 7, with a total of
1,160 voters registered. Voters casting their ballots at
embassies abroad will not be permitted to vote in the
municipal races. Those voting at embassies will vote on
November 21 for the first round and November 28 for the
second round. Bahrain Transparency Society (BTS) president
Jasim Al Ajmi said publicly November 13 that BTS had received
approval to monitor the embassy voting and is making plans to
send representatives to three or four of the embassies with
the highest number of registrants.


12. (C) COMMENT: The general polling stations are
controversial because of concerns that the government may try
to use them to influence the outcomes of tight races in
specific constituencies. The government defends their use,
saying they serve to encourage people to vote because they
will be set up in convenient locations, such as the airport,
a shopping mall, large industrial plants like aluminum
manufacturer ALBA, and other similar spots. Critics contend
that Bahrain is not a large country - as one contact said,
"This isn,t China" - and voters should not have any trouble
getting to the voting centers in their home constituencies.
Of greatest concern is the general voting center located at
the King Fahd causeway connecting Bahrain to Saudi Arabia.
There are reportedly thousands of Saudis who, because of
their ancestral roots in Bahrain, have Bahraini citizenship.
They are overwhelmingly Sunni and, because they have no real
ties to Bahrain, are susceptible to arguments in favor of
voting for specific candidates. Those opposing the general
voting centers consider the voting center at the causeway to
be a concession to the convenience of the Saudi-Bahrainis,

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who are expected to cast their votes according to the wishes
of the government.

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