PREVAL TO GET ORGANIZED SOON

C O N F I D E N T I A L PORT AU PRINCE 001184

SIPDIS

SIPDIS

STATE FOR WHA/CAR
DRL
S/CRS
SOUTHCOM ALSO FOR POLAD
STATE PASS AID FOR LAC/CAR
INR/IAA (BEN-YEHUDA)
TREASURY FOR JEFFREY LEVINE

E.O. 12958: DECL: 06/11/2011
TAGS: PGOV PREL PINR HA
SUBJECT: PREVAL TO GET ORGANIZED SOON

REF: PAUP 1178

Classified By: Ambassador Janet Sanderson for reason 1.4(b).


1. (C) Presidential advisor Alix Fils-Aime on July 27 told
Polcouns that President Preval would complete the
organization of his staff after his return from Europe on
July 6, naming a chief-of-staff and moving operations to the
national palace. Preval would not replace government staff
below the minister level in order to avoid wrangling with
political parties over jobs. Pacification of gangs and
(Fanmi Lavalas) FL militants remained a priority. Fils-Aime
estimated that the government needed to target some sort of
assistance program to 6,000-10,000 potential troublemakers.
Preval's priorities on his return to Haiti would be
consultation with political parties and civil society on
constitutional reform, most notably the issue of dual
nationality. Fils-Aime came to the Preval team only after
Preval's victory, but has become a key staffer on political
issues. He is a self-described "activist" with revolutionary
credentials who also "loves the States." He is a relaxed and
open interlocutor, but usually careful not to stray from the
Preval line. End Summary.

When Preval Gets Back...
--------------


2. (C) Polcouns met Fils-Aime at the noticeably quiet
presidential residence in Port-au-Prince -- President Preval
departed for a trip to the United States and Europe on June
25 with a large delegation in tow and is scheduled to return
on July 6. Fils-Aime insisted that the presidency remained
busy, that criticism of government inaction was unfair, and
that President Preval would settle on a "final" organization
of his staff upon his return, including the designation of a
chief-of-staff. He claimed not to know who that would be.
Asked about members of the transition team who had not joined
the cabinet, Alexis said that most, including Gabriel Varett,
Fritz Longchamps, and Ericque Pierre, would "continue to help
out," though he would not or could not describe their
precise roles. Robert Manuel "obviously" would play an
important role. The final move of staff to the national
palace awaited completion of an audit. "They (the IGOH)
stole a lot of stuff like valuable paintings" Alexis claimed.
"The Prime Minister had four official cars sent to Florida,
including the Lexus he's driving now. You guys should get it
back."


3. (C) Fils-Aime also raised Preval's worries about members
of the Presidential Security Unit (PSU). "A lot of those
guys are rotten and they have to be cleaned out first." He
added that Alexis had already issued an order that anyone in
the palace responsible for security had to be a uniformed
member of the Haitian National Police (HNP). The government
also wanted to establish a security unit responsible for all
ministers and senior officials to clarify authority and
responsibility of security forces across the government.
Polcouns reiterated that the U.S. had already trained HNP
officers for the PSU who were not employed at the palace and
that we hoped to consult with presidential advisor Robert
Manuel at the first opportunity.

Avoiding Trouble
--------------


4. (C) According to Fils-Aime, Preval planned to leave in
place the bulk of public officials, including the directors
general at the ministries (third in authority and usually in
charge of personnel),and thus avoid another complicated
round of negotiation with the political parties over jobs and
patronage. Job seekers, including former FL partisans and in
some cases violence-prone "chimeres" had appeared at
ministries and government agencies demanding their old jobs
and trying to intimidate officials. The Government's refusal
to accommodate these hooligans and the PM's strong warnings
that the government would not tolerate violence had led to a
decrease in these incidents, though they remained a "bother"
(reftel).

5. (C) Nevertheless, Fils-Aime warned that roughly 6,000
former government employees and FL partisans and another
roughly 4,000 marginalized youth and gang members remained a
threat to stability. The Preval government wanted to target
this population directly with benefits and job training.
Fils-Aime thanked the U.S. Embassy for contributing to a good
start. (Note: the Ambassador had announced a new initiative
for Cite Soleil on June 23. End Note.) Fils-Aime estimated
that based on his initial calculations, the government would
look for a total of $25 million to implement their "social
appeasement" program ("though I don't like that term") over a
period of two years. Asked if this would not unduly favor
lawless elements in poorer neighborhoods at the expense of
law-abiding citizens, Fils-Aime replied that such a program
was politically necessary, stressing that the estimated
10,000 had the potential to take up arms and destabilize the
country.

Dual Nationality a Priority
--------------


6. (C) Asked about Preval's priorities, Fils-Aime said
Preval would resume his outreach to political parties and
civil society after his return from Europe and propose
constitutional reform. Preval wanted to address dual
nationality, currently prohibited under the Haitian
constitution. Haiti had to better utilize the talent and
resources of its diaspora and attract some of those people
home.

Bio Info
--------------



7. (C) Fils-Aime was born in 1949 or 1950 (he is 56
years-old) in Haiti to a Haitian father and American mother
(Consular records indicate he has never held a U.S.
passport.) He attended high school in Brooklyn, "where I
learned more Spanish than English." He returned to Haiti and
became active in communist politics. He spent time in
Grenada working with Prime Minister Maurice Bishop and in
Nicaragua during the Sandinista regime in the agrarian
sector. The regime of Jean-Claude Duvalier imprisoned him in
solitary confinement for 18 months in the early 1980's for
his communist ties ("but they got me for the wrong reasons, I
was into things they didn't know about") The Duvalier regime
freed Fils-Aime as a result of negotiations with Former
President Carter and Andrew Young. Fils-Aime claims that he
traveled to Libya in 1986 seeking Muamar Qhaddafi's
assistance in overthrowing Jean-Claude Duvalier: Duvalier's
flight from Haiti on February 7 made the question moot.
Fils-Aime comfortably volunteered all of the above
information, adding "you must know all this since it's in my
file." "But I learned from all these experiences and I love
New York and the States."


8. (C) Fils-Aime won election to the chamber of deputies in
1985 as an independent candidate from Kenscoff and
Petionville, upper-class suburbs of Port-au-Prince. He won a
reputation as an astute, hard-working, and honest politician
who tried to work within system but stayed clear of FL
excesses. Fils-Aime joined Preval's team only after Preval's
first-round victory in February, but quickly gained
significant responsibility for outreach to political parties
and the private sector. He worked closely with Joseph
Jasmin, who became minister for parliamentary relations.
Fils-Aime is openly disdainful of Rene Momplaisir, and
bristled at the notion that they are colleagues.

Comment
--------------


9. (C) Fils-Aime has been an approachable and open
interlocutor with Polcouns since joining the Preval team.
His first instinct on most issues is to defend Preval: "It's
normal to take some time to set up your staff, look how long
it takes an American President." On a few questions, notably
the issue of criminals in government and Senate President
Joseph Lambert, he has gone beyond Preval's line and
expressed strong feelings. He again took the U.S. to task
for not acting against Lambert: "You guys have CIA, DIA, DEA,
and FBI down here, how come you never arrested him?" These
and other comments (such as his assumption we have a detailed
file on him) illustrate that he does not have a completely
accurate view of our capacity or influence in Haiti, but he
has been open to discussion and clarification of our role.
Fils-Aime does not have the long-term personal relationship
with Preval that others in the inner circle enjoy, but he has
gained important responsibilities since coming on board. We
expect that he will remain a valuable contact worth
cultivating.



SANDERSON