MALDIVES: NEW FOREIGN, JUSTICE MINISTERS NAMED;

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 COLOMBO 001166 SIPDIS SIPDIS DEPARTMENT FOR SCA/INS AND SCA/RA E.O. 12958: DECL: 07/03/2017 TAGS: PGOV PREL PHUM MV SUBJECT: MALDIVES: NEW FOREIGN, JUSTICE MINISTERS NAMED; REFERENDUM STILL PENDING REF: A. COLOMBO 1161 ¶B. COLOMBO 1087 ¶C. COLOMBO 947 Classified By: Ambassador Robert O. Blake, Jr., for reasons 1.4(b, d). ¶1. (C) SUMMARY: President Gayoom on August 23 appointed two new cabinet ministers, Abdullah Shahid as Foreign Minister and Mohamed Muiz Adnan as Justice Minister. Shahid and Muiz were previously both senior officials in their respective ministries. In addition to the new ministers, Gayoom has appointed a new State Minister for Finance, Rilwan Shareef, and a new Central Bank Governor, Abdullah Jihad. The final official results of the referendum on Maldives' future form of government have not yet been released. The Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) is refusing to accept the results, while the Government has indicated that it will not allow a recount. The final decision may fall to the courts or the parliament. SCA/INS please see action request in final paragraph. End Summary. President Fills Key Vacancies -------------- ¶2. (C) President Gayoom appointed two new cabinet members on August 23, Abdullah Shahid as Foreign Minister and Mohamed Muiz Adnan as Justice Minister. Shahid, previously State Minister for Foreign Affairs, had submitted his resignation from that position in July, which the President rejected. Embassy contacts tell us Shahid was unhappy working for Gayoom, and that he has informed the President that his service as Foreign Minister will be "temporary." Opposition contacts tell us the new Foreign Minister has a bad reputation among the public because of suspicious financial deals he made when he was Executive Director in the President's Office. ¶3. (C) Justice Minister Muiz, previously Deputy Minister of Justice, has a clean reputation. Embassy contacts tell us he comes from a respected family; two of his brothers are lawyers with close ties to the MDP and his father is a former Attorney General. Muiz studied law at Colombo University, but according to local press, did not complete his degree. Opposition contacts tell us Muiz will not compromise on important issues and, as a result, probably will not last long in the position. Muiz was formerly a member of the Anti-Corruption Board. ¶4. (C) In addition to the new ministers, Gayoom has appointed a new State Minister for Finance, Rilwan Shareef, and a new Central Bank Governor, Abdullah Jihad. Embassy contacts tell us Shareef is intelligent and sensible, and that his promotion should bring improvements to the Finance Ministry. Two Portfolios Remain Open -------------- ¶5. (C) Gayoom has not yet filled the positions of Attorney General or Minister of Higher Education. Observers speculate that Maldivian Ambassador to the U.S. Mohamed Latheef, who has been recalled to Male, will take on the Attorney General position. There is also a rumor that Abdullah Yameen, the President's half-brother and former Minister of Higher Education, may reconcile with the President and return to his previous portfolio. Referendum Results Remain Blocked -------------- ¶6. (U) Final official results of the referendum on Maldives' form of government have not yet been released. Voters in two areas of Addu Atoll voted again on August 22, COLOMBO 00001166 002 OF 002 after the 11-member Special Majlis committee in charge of the referendum ruled that the tally forms for two ballot boxes were not completed properly. The MDP has published a 28-page report containing allegations of election fraud during the referendum and is refusing to accept the results. The Government has clearly stated it will not allow a recount, and President Gayoom told Reuters that "there has been no vote rigging at all." ¶7. (U) The 11-member referendum committee has been unable to rule on the results after the walk-out of People's Alliance opposition members, who accused the committee chairman of "manipulating the committee" to the benefit of the ruling Dhivehi Raiyyithunge Party. Twenty-seven members of the Special Majlis, the body charged with drafting the constitution, have demanded a debate on the results. Speaker of the Special Majlis Gasim Ibrahim rejected their petition, but said he may consider a motion of no-confidence against the 11-member committee -- which would return action on the referendum to the Special Majlis as a whole. ¶8. (U) Independent reports on the referendum have not yet been released. The Commonwealth's report will be released confidentially to the Special Majlis. The Human Rights SIPDIS Commission and Election Commission reports will not be released until the official result is declared. ¶9. (C) COMMENT: Gayoom's choice of Shahid, despite Shahid's desire to quit, suggests the President had few attractive options and is finding it difficult to find people he trusts or who are willing to work for him. The other appointments, however, seem uncontroversial. If official referendum results are not released soon, we may see the final decision referred to the courts or the parliament. This would do little to underpin the legitimacy of the vote. That said, we do not see a "smoking gun" that would prove tampering with the results on a scale that could affect the outcome. We expect that after perhaps a prolonged period of wrangling over the referendum, the country will move on. It will be a good sign if a conclave to continue work on drafting the new constitution takes place as planned within the next few days, including participation from the opposition parties. ¶10. (U) ACTION REQUEST: Post requests the Department send a note from A/S Boucher or U/S Burns to new Foreign Minister Abdullah Shahid congratulating him on his appointment. Ambassador will meet the new Foreign Minister on August 28 in Male, in conjunction with Embassy's hosting of a US Pavilion for the annual Hotel and Trade Expo. BLAKE