LEBANON: INTERIOR MINISTER FOCUSED ON 2009

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 BEIRUT 001233

SIPDIS

DEPT FOR NEA/FO, NEA/ELA
NSC FOR ABRAMS/SINGH/YERGER/MCDERMOTT
DRL FOR KRAMER/BARGHOUT
INL FOR JOHNSON/BLOOMQUIST

E.O. 12958: DECL: 08/21/2018
TAGS: PGOV PREL KDEM PINS LE
SUBJECT: LEBANON: INTERIOR MINISTER FOCUSED ON 2009
ELECTIONS ORGANIZATION

REF: BEIRUT 01085

Classified By: Charge d'Affaires a.i. William Grant for reasons 1.4 (b)
and (d).

SUMMARY
--------------


1. (C) In a August 20 meeting with the Charge, Minister of
Interior Ziyad Baroud said he is finalizing a "master plan"
for donor nations who wish to provide technical assistance to
Lebanon for the 2009 elections. Asked about a USG offer to
assist with elections security planning, Baroud told us he
would prefer that it not be USG only. He would rather
organize a multinational effort to discuss the issue, with
the U.S. acting as one of the participants. On other
security matters, Baroud said selection of a new LAF
commander would not be placed on the cabinet's agenda until a
consensus candidate is decided and he did not think there
would be push to also replace the head of the national
police, as some media outlets have reported. End Summary.

FOR ELECTION SECURITY TRAINING, NOT U.S. ONLY
--------------


2. (C) The Charge, accompanied by Special Assistant and
PolOff, met with Interior Minister Baroud on August 20 to
discuss a number of issues. The Charge asked Baroud for
feedback on our proposal that the USG provide a tabletop
exercise for election security planning to the Lebanese Armed
Forces (LAF),Internal Security Forces (ISF),and Securite
General (reftel). Baroud was receptive and said the GOL
could benefit, but he was concerned about the optics of
training on the delicate matter of security being done only
by USG experts. He thought that a multinational team of
security experts, with USG involvement, may be preferable to
a USG bilateral program.


3. (C) Baroud said he may raise this concept with the Council
of Ministers. If it approves, he would include an appeal for
multilateral security assistance in the "master plan" he is
developing for donor support on election matters. The Charge
said our offer of assistance was flexible. Baroud pointed
out that the current national unity government is primarily
an interim government that is in place to prepare for next
year's parliamentary elections and that the cabinet would be
reluctant to make any decisions that could be perceived as
too controversial, such as relying only on USG support for
electoral security.

TRIPOLI BOMBING
--------------


4. (C) Baroud told us that both the LAF and the ISF were
doing everything in their power to solve the August 14
bombing in Tripoli which targeted a number of LAF soldiers.
Baroud felt that the bombing was linked to other political
issues and that it occurred because there had been no
reconciliation efforts made by the opposing sides after the
May 2008 clashes between pro-government and
pro-opposition/Hizballah led forces. He said the ISF and the
LAF were doing everything in their power to provide security
in the Tripoli area, but admitted that the security services
were falling short in this task.

MASTER PLAN FOR DONOR COORDINATION FOR THE ELECTIONS
--------------


5. (C) Baroud confirmed that he is completing a master plan
to present to donor countries to cover all aspects of
international assistance for the 2009 elections. He said the
Ministry of Interior itself, not the UN, would lead the
effort to coordinate donor assistance and that his master
plan would seek to harmonize the different roles of donors,
including UN, EU, Lebanese civil society groups, as well as
U.S.-funded international NGOs. Baroud wants the entire
process to be as transparent. However, he is adamant that
all participants work within the framework, rather than

BEIRUT 00001233 002 OF 002


following individual agendas. He was pleased to know of the
significant amount of assistance that USG was offering and we
promised to work with him to ensure that our implementers'
work is coordinated in a cohesive manner. When asked about
future staff augmentations to prepare for elections, Baroud
said the Ministry of Interior is in desperate need of
mid-level employees to handle the increased workload.

PARLIAMENT MOVING SLOWLY AND FOCUSED ON FEASIBLE REFORMS
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6. (C) Baroud meets twice weekly with the Parliament's
Administration and Justice Committee which is debating
electoral reform. When asked how the discussions were
proceeding, Baroud said, "Slowly. I've decided that I must
begin preparatory activities now if we are going to be ready
for election day. I've told the parliament that our
implementation, in the end, will be in line with whatever
reforms they pass. But if we do not start our planning
activities now, it will be too late."


7. (C) Baroud also felt that only feasible reforms, such as
new voter ID cards, will be pursued by the full parliament.
He said out-of-country voting, although nominally supported
by all political parties, is out of the question for the 2009
elections due to the lack of resources and capacity at the
Ministry of Foreign Affairs to administer voting overseas.
Regarding holding elections on one day, vice four days as is
the usual practice, he also said this would prove
logistically difficult since the ISF does not have enough
officers to work at the thousands of polling stations around
the country. Baroud feels that this is a critical reform,
however, and is exploring a plan to consolidate the polling
stations in order to ensure adequate security coverage by the
ISF at a reduced number of sites.


8. (C) Baroud said that opposition Christian leader Michele
Aoun's Free Patriotic Movement (FPM) MPs had been the most
knowledgeable and engaged within the parliament on electoral
reform. Baroud also told us that Parliament Speaker Nabih
Berri wants to see the Parliament pass a new electoral law
soon, probably in September, in order for the Doha Agreement
to be fully implemented and for the new electoral districts
to be codified into law.

CABINET WILL NOT CHANGE ISF CHIEF
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9. (C) Baroud also told us that the Director General of the
ISF, General Ashraf Rifi, would likely remain in his post,
despite his alleged closeness to Future Party leader Saad
Hariri. "He has a good reputation. People think he has done
his job admirably during these difficult times." Media have
speculated that the cabinet would replace Rifi and other
"security chiefs" when it meets to decide on a new commander
for the Lebanese Armed Forces, currently vacant.

COMMENT
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10. (C) Baroud is clearly still making the transition from
civil society activist to minister. His lengthy comments on
the need for consensus in the unity government may be a
reflection of the "middle ground" that President Sleiman, who
nominated Baroud, has pursued. His concern about the optics
of USG involvement in electoral reform initiatives is
reasonable and we promised to be sensitive to his concerns as
we move forward.


11. (C) We are pleased that Baroud continues to assert
himself as the lead in donor coordination for the 2009
elections. He clearly needs some additional staff to handle
the workload, but showed a willingness to delegate to some of
his advisors for follow-up with us on the technical issues.
End Comment
GRANT