COTE D'IVOIRE: VIEWS ON ELECTIONS

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 ABIDJAN 000900

SIPDIS

SIPDIS

STATE FOR AF/W-EPLUMB AND INR/AA-BGRAVES, LONDON AND PARIS
FOR AFRICA WATCHERS

E.O. 12958: DECL: 08/23/2017
TAGS: PGOV KDEM IV
SUBJECT: COTE D'IVOIRE: VIEWS ON ELECTIONS

REF: A. ABIDJAN 864

B. ABIDJAN 863

Classified By: CHARGE D'AFFAIRES CYNTHIA AKUETTEH FOR REASONS 1.4 (B) A
ND (D).


1. (C) Summary. Deputy Director of the Presidential Cabinet
Sarata Ottro Toure told Poloff August 23 that President
Laurent Gbagbo is committed to holding elections and that it
is possible to hold elections by December 2007 or January

2008. Toure said that, since the 2000 elections were the most
transparent elections ever held in Cote d'Ivoire, there
should be no objection to utilizing the 2000 voter register
as a basis for the creation of a new voter register.
Secretary General of the opposition party Rassemblement des

SIPDIS
Republicains (RDR) Henriette Dagin-Diabate told Poloffs
August 22 that the RDR agrees that elections must take place
quickly, but that it is critical that the elections are free
and fair in order to have lasting peace in the country.
German Political Counselor Sonja Jelineck told Poloff August
23 that there is speculation that President Gbagbo will allow
a few "audiences foraines" (tribunals that will issue
replacement birth certificates to those whose births were not
registered) to be held, declare that after the July 30 "Flame
of Peace" ceremony the civil war is over, and call for
elections around the end of 2007. End Summary.


2. (SBU) Sarata Ottro Toure, Deputy Director of the
President's Cabinet, told Poloff August 23 that President
Laurent Gbagbo is committed to the holding of elections.
Toure said the President came to power through elections and
has fought for democracy in Cote d'Ivoire throughout his
political career. According to Toure, unlike other African
countries, Cote d'Ivoire has a "culture of democracy" and is
used to holding elections. Toure stated that the 2000
elections that brought Gbagbo to the Presidency were the most
correct elections ever held in Cote d'Ivoire. Toure noted
that, for that reason, there should be no objection to using
the 2000 voter register as a basis for the creation of the
new voter register. Toure said President Gbagbo was ready to
hold elections in 2005 and argued for limiting the presidency
to only two terms in office. According to Toure, the
Constitution states that if elections cannot be held due to a
rebellion, the incumbent President stays in office. Toure
underscored the importance of the Constitution as a force to
unite the country's 60 ethnic groups.


3. (SBU) Toure stated that Cote d'Ivoire's "friends" need to
help it organize free and transparent elections. She noted
that President Gbagbo has stated that all political parties
that are signatories to the Linas-Marcoussis peace agreement
can present candidates in the election. Toure told Poloff
that it is possible to hold elections by December 2007 or
January 2008 from a technical point of view because the
country already has in place the institutions necessary to
organize the election. She stated that the National Institute
of Statistics is a body composed of technocrats that has
always organized the country's elections and "has nothing to
do" with President Gbagbo. She added that the UN has
requested its assistance in at least 2 African elections.
Comment: Acting Chief of the United Nations Operation in Cote
d'Ivoire Electoral Division Issaka Souna told Congressional
staffers Shannon Smith and Mark Clack August 14 (Reftel B)
that President Gbagbo's August 6 call for elections by
December 2007 (Reftel A) was a political declaration to show
the President's commitment to elections, but that it is
reasonable to say that elections are not possible by December

2007. End Comment.


4. (SBU) Henriette Dagre-Diabate, Secretary General of the
opposition political party RDR, told Poloffs August 22 that
the RDR is very hopeful about peace in Cote d'Ivoire. She
said she believes the country will be able to emerge from the
crisis and commence reconstruction. Dagre-Diabate said the
RDR agrees that elections must take place quickly, but
believes that it's critical that the elections are "good"
ones in order to have a lasting peace. She said Ivorians
want their identification documents quickly as well.
Dagre-Diabate stated that in order to have free and fair
elections, all who have the right to vote must be allowed to
do so, the country's electoral institutions need to do their
job, and the National Institute of Statistics must be allowed
to perform its function without any political influence.
Dagre-Diabate believes that international observers are
needed, but warned that they should not arrive "on the last
day" of the election. Dagre-Diabate noted that the RDR is
currently checking for accuracy the version of the 2000 voter
register that was recently distributed by the Independent

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Electoral Commission to all political parties that signed the
Linas-Marcoussis peace agreement. Dagre-Diabate would not
speculate on what would happen if the opposition political
parties rejected the 2000 electoral list as invalid.
Dagre-Diabate said the RDR is informing its members about the
"audiences foraines" that will issue replacement birth
certificates. She warned that bad administrative
organization could derail the "audiences foraines" and called
on "democratic nations" to assist in ensuring security for
the audiences foraines.


5. (C) German Political Counselor Sonja Jelineck told Poloff
August 23 that there is speculation that President Gbagbo
will allow a few "audiences foraines" to be held, declare
that after the July 30 "Flame of Peace" ceremony the civil
war is over and peace has returned, and call for elections
around the end of 2007. According to this scenario, Gbagbo
would argue that, since some "audiences foraines" have been
held and all political parties are allowed to field
candidates, there is no reason for the international
community to charge that the elections are not free and fair,
even if the opposition decides to boycott them.


6. (C) Comment. Toure's comment that the 2000 elections were
free and fair was surprising and would not be supported by
the opposition political parties. Even in the unlikely event
Prime Minister Soro were to convince the Forces Nouvelles to
accept an "abbreviated" identification process and elections
around the end of 2007, the unarmed opposition parties, who
already feel sidelined by the Ouagadougou Political Accord,
are unlikely to do so. The result would be a continuation of
the current political crisis with a President lacking a clear
mandate and no permanent resolution of the identification
issue, which was one of the underlying factors that led to
the civil war.


HUDDLESTON