AUDIENCES FORAINES PROCEEDING CLUMSILY, BUT

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 ABIDJAN 001181

SIPDIS

SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: DECL: 11/26/2017
TAGS: PGOV PREL UN IV
SUBJECT: AUDIENCES FORAINES PROCEEDING CLUMSILY, BUT
WITHOUT VIOLENCE

REF: A. ABIDJAN 1158


B. USDAO ABIDJAN 261703Z

C. ABIDJAN 909

Classified By: Pol/Econ Chief Silvia Eiriz for
Reasons 1.4 (b) and (d)


1. (SBU) SUMMARY: The audiences foraines process is
proceeding clumsily but without violence. Less than a
quarter of the planned tribunals have been deployed since the
process was launched on September 25 and public awareness
remains low. Political parties are closely monitoring the
proceedings and there have been few reports of intimidation.
As of mid November, 36,851 cases had been adjudicated. End
Summary.

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Process Clumsy But Without Violence
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2. (SBU) The audiences foraines (public tribunals issuing
birth certificates to persons over 13 whose births were never
registered) are proceeding clumsily since their September 25
launch. However, unlike in 2006, there have been no reports
of large scale violence or intimidation of participants. To
date, only 25 of 111 planned tribunals are operating. United
Nations Operation in Cote d'Ivoire (UNOCI) officials told the
diplomatic community in late October that public awareness
about the process remains limited and that the 25 tribunals
currently operating only cover 90 of the country's 727
communes. Disagreement exists about the number of persons
who must have recourse to the audiences foraines to obtain
birth documentation; estimates range between 300,000 and 3
million. Political parties have deployed representatives to
observe the audiences foraines. The Prime Minister's office
told Emboffs that, as of November 10, nearly 36,851
applications had been adjudicated and only 6 percent had been
denied. Most rejections occurred because applicants did not
apply in the jurisdiction in which they were born. A program
to issue identity documents to all Ivorians, which was
supposed to begin a month after the launch of the audiences
foraines, has not yet begun.


3. (SBU) The Ouagadougou Political Agreement (OPA) provides
that the audiences foraines will last for three months. Paul
Koffi Koffi, Deputy Director of the Prime Minister's Cabinet
confirmed October 25 that, while each audience foraine will
last only three months, the opening date of each individual
audience foraine will start the three month clock. It is
therefore quite possible that audiences foraines in some
parts of Cote d'Ivoire could continue well into 2008.

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Link To Elections
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4. (SBU) The OPA states that the supplementary certificates
issued by the audiences foraines will be the only documents
accepted for voter registration if an individual is not on
the 2000 electoral list and does not possess a birth
certificate. During the OPA negotiations, the New Forces
sought to have the nationality of the applicant included on
the certificates issued by the audiences foraines, but the
Gbagbo camp refused. The OPA provides that the certificates
will note the nationality of both parents, thereby
facilitating subsequent establishment of nationality. Judges
are noting in many of their decisions that parents'
nationality is "said to be Ivorian" since the judges do not
have time to conduct investigations. Whether these
certificates will be sufficient proof to allow the holder to
register to vote remains unclear.

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Moving Ahead
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5. (SBU) The Prime Minister's office (PMO) told Emboffs
November 20 that by the end of November, 30 new tribunals
will be deployed; by mid-December an additional 30 teams will
be deployed; and at the end of December, the final 25 teams
will be deployed. Officials in the Prime Minister's office
blame the slow deployment of tribunals on lack of funding and
administrative support (reftel A).



6. (C) Comment: Prime Minister Soro took a risk by pushing
for the launch of the audiences foraines in late September
before the civil administration and the tribunals were ready.
It was most likely a move calculated to mollify his
constituency, which includes many of those without documents.
Moreover, since the OPA gives primary responsibility for

ABIDJAN 00001181 002 OF 002


carrying out the "sortie de crise" program, which includes
the audiences foraines, President Gbagbo appears to have
effectively shifted responsibility for this process -- and
the blame for anything that goes wrong -- to the Prime
Minister. While the lack of violence is encouraging, the
apparent inability of mid-level Ivorian diplomats to organize
the audiences foraines in a timely and efficient manner
raises questions once again about how strong a political will
there is to resolve the underlying causes of the conflict.
End Comment.
NESBITT