Identifier | Created | Classification | Origin |
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08CAPETOWN210 | 2008-10-17 09:34:00 | UNCLASSIFIED//FOR OFFICIAL USE ONLY | Consulate Cape Town |
VZCZCXRO2095 RR RUEHDU RUEHJO DE RUEHTN #0210 2910934 ZNR UUUUU ZZH R 170934Z OCT 08 ZDS FM AMCONSUL CAPE TOWN TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC 2850 INFO RUEHSA/AMEMBASSY PRETORIA 6209 RUEHDU/AMCONSUL DURBAN 3172 RUEHJO/AMCONSUL JOHANNESBURG 2035 |
UNCLAS CAPE TOWN 000210 |
1. (SBU) Patricia DeLille, out-spoken leader of the Independent Democrats (ID) -- the third largest party in the Western Cape and the fourth in South Africa -- is doing double duty as some ruling African National Congress (ANC) member's contemplate leaving their party. In a recent article published in the Mail and Guardian, Ms. DeLille offered guidance on formulating a new political party. Less publicly, she is courting ANC dissenters who are choosing to migrate to the ID. 2. (SBU) At a representational event hosted by the CG on October 13, Ms. DeLille spoke with the CG and with Dr. Laurine Platzky, an ANC Western province official about the fore mentioned article. Dr. Platzky said, the article was a "common sense guideline" to developing a new party, but also noted that she was not planning to develop a new party any time soon. DeLille said the guidance she provided in the article was exactly what she followed when she split from the Pan African Congress in 2004. She also noted that although the ID has 200,000 registered voters, the party received 500,000 votes in the last election. 3. (SBU) A devoted student of the National Democratic Institute, DeLille stressed the need to have a commitment to patience and persistence. In both her article and in her conversation with the CG, DeLille stated that the efforts of a new political party should be non-stop and never ending. She also noted the need to push the agenda of a new party at every possible opportunity, from "funerals and weddings" to what DeLille referred to as "rent-a-crowds." When asked about financing for newly formed parties, she indicated that funding would always be a problem, but that it is not the main concern; relaying the party's ideological beliefs to the public is much harder than raising money, she said. In her article DeLille also addressed the issue of financing and stated that a new political party would need between 1-2 million rand to get started. She stressed that it is important to have about 20 people to set up a new party branch. DeLille added that six months is very little time to get a party ready for the next election, but if "Lekota's rebels" take over complete branches of the ANC, they have a chance. 4. (SBU) When asked by the CG why the disaffected ANC rebels might start a new party when there are dozens of other parties with which the could unite, DeLille indicated that in fact there are ANC members already defecting to the ID and that this shift had been reported in the press. (Note: South Africa's Independent Electoral Commission reported that 138 political parties are formally registered. Ninety-nine of them are registered to compete at the national level and the remainder for municipal elections. To register a party, applicants must par Rand 500 (U.S. $ 1 - 10.2 Rand), and submit signatures of 500 registered voters. End Note.) DeLille said that the ID could not allow these potential new members from the ANC to merely "drift" into her party. Rather, she and other ID members are actively courting disenfranchised members of the ANC, providing rationale for them to link their resources and membership with the ID. 5. (SBU) Note. Ms. DeLille has recently returned from the USA as a guest of the National Democratic Institute and an attendee at the Democratic Party National Convention. She told the CG that her "take- aways" from that experience were the increased and very effective use of technology in courting new members as well as the Qeffective use of technology in courting new members as well as the need to increase diversity, including young people, as a means of increasing the party base. End note. |