HAITI ELECTIONS: DONOR FRUSTRATION GROWS,

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 PORT AU PRINCE 001757 SIPDIS STATE FOR WHA/EX, WHA/CAR, S/CRS, INR/IAA STATE PASS AID FOR WHA/CAR SOUTHCOM ALSO FOR POLAD E.O. 12958: DECL: 12/22/2018 TAGS: PGOV PREL KDEM EAID HA CA SUBJECT: HAITI ELECTIONS: DONOR FRUSTRATION GROWS, POLITICAL PARTIES STEP UP REF: A. PORT AU PRINCE 1673 ¶B. PORT AU PRINCE 1136 ¶C. PORT AU PRINCE 1517 ¶D. PORT AU PRINCE 1559 ¶E. PORT AU PRINCE 1649 ¶F. PORT AU PRINCE 1560 ¶G. PORT AU PRINCE 1644 Classified By: CDA Thomas C. Tighe for reasons 1.4(b) and (d). ¶1. (C) Summary: Frustration grows in the international donor community as President Rene Preval has yet to issue a Presidential Decree (''Arrete'') to hold elections for one-third of the senate, planned for April. Canada and the European Commission have made clear they will not disburse funds without the Arrete that demonstrates Preval's political commitment to the electoral process. The Provisional Electoral Council (CEP) is slowly moving ahead to implement the electoral calendar, while pressing donors for a quick release of funds. Despite threats by some political parties to boycott the elections, all of the major political parties (Fusion, Lavalas, Lespwa, OPL) have met the December 18 registration deadline. Lavalas representatives predict big gains in the senate, and a majority of the newly installed Departmental Electoral Bureaus (BED) are alleged to be Lavalas party members or affiliates. End summary. PREVAL TO CEP: CLARIFY NUMBER OF SENATE SEATS OPEN -------------- -------------- ¶2. (C) President Preval has yet to issue a Presidential Decree, comparable to an executive order, to make the April 19 date for partial senate elections official. Provisional Electoral Council (CEP) President Frantz Verret said the CEP transmitted a letter of request to Preval requesting issuance of the decree on December 3. Preval responded that he will issue the decree as soon as the CEP clarifies the exact number of senate seats that will be open for competition. ¶3. (C) In addition to the ten vacant seats of senators whose terms expired last May, one senator died in office and another, Roudy Boulos, was expelled in the spring after an inquiry determined he held dual nationality (Haitian/American). There is uncertainty on whether eleven or twelve seats of the total 30-member body will be open for competition when the campaign season gets into gear. CEP Director General Pierre-Louis Opont told Poloff December 12 that the CEP transmitted a letter to Parliament, requesting a decision on the number of senate seats and while Parliament has not rendered a decision, the CEP is optimistic the issue will soon be resolved, motivating Preval to issue the Arrete (pronounced ''A-re-tay'' in English) and providing greater incentive for the CEP to push harder to organize elections. CANADA AND EU: NO FUNDS RELEASED WITHOUT A DECREE -------------- -------------- ¶4. (C) Pressure is mounting on the CEP to push for the Arrete, as Canadian and European Commission (EU) representatives have gone on record to urge official confirmation of the election date. At a December 10 meeting of the CEP-donor elections roundtable (table sectoriel election),Canadian and EU reps told Verret neither country would make funds available for elections if the Arrete is not issued. Verret cautioned Canada and the EU to ''be careful that their actions do not play into the hands of those who do not want elections.'' ¶5. (C) In a separate private meeting with CEP President Verret December 11, Canadian Political/Commercial Chief Adam Barratt emphasized to Verret that Canada considers Haiti a priority country for assistance, but made clear Canada could not formally approve the elections project and commit funding absent a decree. Canadian POLOFF Sohrab Farid later told Poloff Canada's stance is consistent with its position adopted during the 2005-2006 Presidential election cycle -- no decree, no disbursements. Farid saw some irony in the fact that the decree that preceded the 2006 presidential elections was released only 30 days prior to Election Day. ¶6. (C) EU Ambassador Gosetti is also frustrated that Preval has not moved on the decree, according to EU Head of Governance and Political Affairs Carolina Santrich-Badal. Santrich-Badal said Ambassador Gosetti favors a more aggressive approach with the Government of Haiti that more clearly demonstrates Preval's political will in support of elections in April. Gosetti contemplates the use of the G-10 PORT AU PR 00001757 002 OF 002 high-level consultation process as a possible srategy to consolidate international donor pressure and communicate with ''one firm voice'' that elections are key to consolidating Haitian democracy. Santrich-Badal said her remarks at the referenced donor-CEP roundtable were not meant to threaten the CEP reps, but to make clear in a more public forum the EU would not release elections funding without a political decision ''at the highest level.'' The EU is not backing away from its commitment, Santrich-Badal emphasizes, but will resist pressure by the CEP to disburse funds. (Note: It appears EU Headquarters fears a premature agreement to fund the elections might lead to funding problems and political embarrassment if the elections are not held in April, as announced by the CEP. End note) UNDP AND CEP: BE CAREFUL WITH THREATS -------------- ¶7. (C) UNDP Deputy Country Program Director Marc Andre-Franche told POLOFF he privately cautioned Canada and EU reps they should not go public with their position or risk providing some CEP members, political parties and others who do not support the elections, an opportunity to ''walk back from elections.'' Franche noted the UNDP could advance funds quickly and begin acquiring election materials (e.g., ballot boxes, voting supplies) while Canada, the EU and other donor countries determine disbursement schedules based on their funding and political priorities. This approach, he noted, might minimize delays. KEY POLITICAL PARTIES WILL PARTICIPATE -------------- ¶8. (C) According to CEP reps, twenty-seven political parties were officially registered by the December 18 deadline, including Lavalas, which was registered by Maryse Narcisse, a party hardliner. Lespwa, OPL, Fusion and several smaller political parties also met the deadline. The Alliance party did not register by the deadline. While Alliance has criticized the CEP for not fairly engaging with political parties in the lead up to the announcement, CEP officials say privately that Alliance has few funds available to campaign and is not likely to capture the voters needed to gain senate seats in April. (Comment: The fact that a number of political parties have met the December 18 election registration deadline may bode well for greater political party participation than anticipated when several parties openly criticized the CEP after the election date was announced in October. End comment) ¶9. (C) A MINUSTAH elections official (protect) estimated that 80 percent of the Departmental Electoral Board (BED) candidates, who will represent the CEP throughout the ten departments, are affiliated with Lavalas. The remaining 20 percent reportedly reflect affiliates of OPL and Fusion. CEP and MINUSTAH sources say that while Lavalas may be overly optimistic in claiming likely gains of at least eight of the 11 to 12 seats that may be open, there is little doubt Lavalas plans to actively campaign for the senate seats and has been actively recruiting. COMMENT -------------- ¶10. (C) CEP President Verret says he is optimistic the Arrete will be issued soon -- possibly before the end of the year. This scenario seems unlikely given Preval had already called a special parliamentary session December 18, to take up the national budget and other issues which are yet to be resolved. Given the difficulty in the senate of securing a quorum, it is foreseeable that Parliament will not address the senate seat question until it reconvenes in normal session in mid-January. TIGHE