"THE ANGOLAN" ELECTORAL NEWS BULLETIN, VOL VI

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 LUANDA 000666 SENSITIVE SIPDIS USAID PASS TO MCNAIRN E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: PGOV PREL PHUM AO SUBJECT: "THE ANGOLAN" ELECTORAL NEWS BULLETIN, VOL VI REF: LUANDA 0651 ¶1. (U) In This Issue: - UNITA President Give Police Generally High Marks - All Hands on Deck: MPLA and UNITA Recall Staff - Catholic Church Scolds UNITA-Supporting Priest - Beauty Queen Relinquishes Crown to Support the FpD - High-Tech System Helps Voters Identify Polling Stations UNITA President Give Police Generally High Marks -------------- --- ¶2. (SBU) On Monday, August 18th, UNITA President Isaias Samakuva met with the Minister of Interior, Roberto Monterio "Ngongo," to discuss the recent violent incidents in Huambo and Bie provinces (reftel). Following the closed-door meeting, Samakuva stated that Ngondo had assured him the police would take "adequate measures to ensure that the situation is controlled." Samakuva praised the overall work of the police during the campaign period, stating that, with the exception of these recent incidents, overall the police have been "doing good work" and "acting where it is necessary." All Hands on Deck: MPLA and UNITA Recall Staff -------------- -- ¶3. (SBU) Both the ruling MPLA and main opposition party UNITA have summoned key internationally based staffers to Angola to bolster their respective campaigns. For the MPLA this means key Ambassadors and the majority of their overseas press attaches; for UNITA the recall includes their representatives in key international capitals, including Washington. In addition, both parties have beefed up staffing in key provinces by sending the skilled professionals that generally gather in Luanda and overseas to help manage grassroots provincial campaigns. Catholic Church Scolds UNITA-Supporting Priest -------------- -- ¶4. (U) During its Sunday August 17 slot of free television airtime, UNITA featured "Father Benedicto,8 a Catholic priest, who called for all "faithful" to vote for UNITA and called UNITA a "party with a good social program that will better the lot of the common person." In response, on August 18 the Catholic Church issued a communique disassociating the Church from Father Benedicto's statements and stating he will be subject to further sanctions from the Church. Though the Catholic Church was quick to disassociate itself from Father Benedicto's public partisan display, opposition parties have quietly questioned the neutrality of Angola's various Christian denominations, as MPLA leaders have appeared at various churches during the campaign period to call for full participation in the September 5 race and a vote for the "right" party. ¶5. (U) UNITA's decision to use the priest during one of its spots was controversial in view of electoral law regulations that can be interpreted as a ban on any kind of direct participation by any religious institution in election propaganda. Insiders state that UNITA's decision to use the priest was in reaction to the MPLA's use of churches to campaign. Beauty Queen Relinquishes Crown to Support the FpD -------------- -------------- ¶6. An Angolan beauty queen was reportedly forced to relinquish her crown due to her open support for the Front for Democracy (FpD). The woman, who at the start of the campaign was the reigning Ms. Kwanza Sul, was told by provincial pageant organizers to choose between her crown and her work as an announcer in FpD's nationally televised spots; she also received numerous phone calls and messages threatening her with physical violence. According to one source who heard the messages, many carried the theme that "You belong to us (the MPLA),you weren't selected as Ms. Kwanza Sul to represent another party." The woman has reportedly relinquished her crown and moved to Luanda to escape the threats and continue her work with FpD. NOTE: A key patron for all "Ms" contests in Angola is First Lady Ana Paula dos Santos, and the organization is seen as staffed by MPLA party faithful. END NOTE LUANDA 00000666 002 OF 002 High-Tech System Helps Voters Identify Polling Stations -------------- -------------- ¶7. (U) The Inter-ministerial Commission for the Electoral Process (CIPE),which was responsible for voter registration, has launched a high-tech system to help voters identify their polling station in advance of election day. Using information from their voter registration card, voters can call an automated help center, send an SMS, or use the CIPE's website (www.registoeleitoral.com) to confirm their polling station. In urban centers, CIPE has also set up kiosks in airports, markets, churches, fuel stations, banks, local administrative offices, educational institutions and public utility offices at which voters can swipe their registration card. Mission's locally-engaged staff have easily and successfully used all the high-tech systems to ascertain where to vote. On election day, people with PDAs (personal digital assistant) loaded with the entire registration database will also be deployed throughout densely populated areas, to help potentially confused voters find their correct voting location. ¶8. (SBU) CIPE has spared no expense at finding high-tech solutions to the confusion caused by a registration process that often failed to ask voters as they registered where they intended to vote. The National Electoral Commission (CNE) forecasts that 85% of potential voters will vote close to their place of residence, and the others close to their place of work. While, in theory, voters with voter registration cards in hand should be able to vote at any polling station, the CNE and CIPE are working to limit the use of provisional ballots as much as possible. MOZENA