BEN ALI ADVISOR DEFENDS NEW PROPOSED CRITERIA FOR

C O N F I D E N T I A L TUNIS 000496

SIPDIS

STATE FOR NEA/FO (GRAY) AND NEA/MAG (HOPKINS, HARRIS); DRL
FOR JOHNSTONE

E.O. 12958: DECL: 05/08/2018
TAGS: PREL PGOV PTER KDEM TS
SUBJECT: BEN ALI ADVISOR DEFENDS NEW PROPOSED CRITERIA FOR
PRESIDENTIAL CONTENDERS

REF: A. TUNIS 408

B. TUNIS 407

C. TUNIS 337

D. TUNIS 298

Classified By: Ambassador Robert F. Godec for reasons 1.4 (b) and (d)


1. (C) Summary: In a meeting with the Ambassador on May 8,
Minister of State and Presidential Advisor Ben Dhia defended
the GOT's proposed constitutional amendment stipulating
requirements for presidential candidates as more "liberal"
than the stringent criteria currently in the Constitution.
In answer to the Ambassador's expressed concerns that the new
criteria are narrowly defined and exclude certain candidates,
Ben Dhia countered that five opposition parties would be able
to put forward candidates, as a result of Ben Ali's
"opening." The Ambassador also discussed the situation
facing opposition newspaper al-Mowqif and coordination on
assistance with Ben Dhia. We do not expect the GOT to amend
the draft law as a result of our intervention, but we know
our concerns have been heard and urge Washington to echo
them, as appropriate. End Summary.

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Criteria for Presidential Candidates
Represent "Liberalization of the Process
--------------


2. (C) During a May 8 one-on-one tour d'horizon with Minister
of State and Presidential Advisor Abdelaziz Ben Dhia the
Ambassador expressed concern about the draft law to amend the
constitution regarding criteria for presidential candidates
for the 2009 elections. (Note: The new criteria stipulate
that secretaries general of registered political parties can
run for president, provided they had been elected and held
office for more than two years. Independent opposition
parties have rejected the proposed terms asserting that they
are designed to exclude the candidacies of certain would-be
presidential contenders. See Refs C and D.) Noting that the
law's extremely narrow terms excluded certain candidates, the
Ambassador told Ben Dhia that the law had raised questions in
Washington and elsewhere. Ben Dhia defended the proposed
law, explaining at length how it represents an improvement
over the even more stringent criteria that currently exist in
the constitution. (Note: Article 40 of the Constitution
requires the signatures of 30 mayors and/or deputies in the
Chamber of Deputies. All mayors are members of the ruling
Constitutional Democratic Rally (RCD) party. The total
number of all opposition members combined in the Chamber of
Deputies is 37.) Lamenting that the issue is being viewed
from a negative angle, Ben Dhia explained that President Ben
Ali had understood that the constitutional requirements were
too strict and had therefore decided to "liberalize" the
process. He maintained the necessity of "some controls,"
however, pointing out that even countries like France and the
United States impose eligibility criteria for presidential
candidates.


3. (C) Ben Dhia indicated that new criteria would allow
representatives from five opposition parties to run,
"including Maya Jribi," the Secretary General of the
opposition Progressive Democratic Party (PDP). On the
candidacy of Nejib Chebbi, the declared PDP candidate, Ben
Dhia indicated that it had been Chebbi's decision to step
down as Secretary General. Ben Dhia dismissed the
pretensions of Democratic Forum for Work and Liberty (FDTL)
Secretary General Mustapha Ben Jaafar, noting that in the
five years of its existence the FDTL had not held a party
congress to elect its leader. The Ambassador reiterated US
concerns and suggested that the restrictive criteria were not
positive for Tunisia.

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Defamation Suits Against Al-Mowqif "Normal"
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4. (C) Ben Dhia broached the issue of the legal problems
faced by PDP newspaper al-Mowqif, pulling out a copy of the
April 4 edition of the paper. That edition contained an
article urging the GOT to investigate reports of sub-standard
cooking oil, which prompted five vegetable oil companies to
file defamation suits (Ref B). Indicating that he reads the
opposition press regularly, he brushed off the notion that
somehow the GOT was behind the lawsuits. "Al-Mowqif is not
considered a threat to the GOT or to the RCD," he said He
asserted that it was "completely normal" for private
companies to bring defamation charges when their products are
unfairly maligned in the press. He noted that the United
States has defamation laws, too.


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ESF, USAID: Opportunities for Cooperation
--------------


5. (SBU) The Ambassador also raised the $1.2 million Congress
has appropriated in ESF for FY 2008, noting that this was the
first time since the departure of USAID in the 1990s that
Tunisia would receive ESF. He made clear that the United
States wants to work in partnership with the GOT in using
these funds. He also noted that the Embassy had officially
notified the Ministry of Foreign Affairs about the
appropriation and had solicited its views on how to spend the
funds. The Ambassador underscored, however, that we must
move quickly to obligate the funds by the end of the fiscal
year. Ben Dhia seemed aware of the new funding source and
suggested that Minister of Development and International
Cooperation Nouri Jouini would be the best interlocutor. The
Ambassador noted that he was also in touch on coordination
with Jouini, but the process so far had been slow and
bureaucratic. In addition, the Ambassador raised the
long-requested "exploratory visit" by a team from USAID which
was prepared to consider funding programs dealing with the
youth unemployment problem. Again, Ben Dhia was aware of the
background and noted that it was his understanding that
Foreign Minister Abdallah would want an agreement to govern
such a visit and any subsequent programs. The Ambassador
reiterated the Embassy's readiness to discuss the matter in
hopes of reaching a final decision soon.

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Comment
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6. (C) Ben Dhia's assertion that the new presidential
candidacy requirements represent a liberalization is a
stretch. While the law is less restrictive than the
requirements stipulated in the constitution, those criteria
haven't been used since 1994. The GOT passed exceptional
laws in 1999 and 2004 amending the presidential candidacy
criteria for those specific elections. It is true that the
law governing the 2009 elections no longer requires parties
to have seats in parliament, nor do the candidates have to
have five years of service in senior positions, as the 2004
law did. Under the new criteria, however, only elected
secretaries general with two years of service are eligible to
run. This criteria excludes two would-be independent
opposition candidates -- Nejib Chebbi for the PDP and
Mustapha Ben Jaafar for the FDTL, which cannot be a
coincidence. Of the five opposition parties that could
present candidates, one (the Social Liberal Party) has
already endorsed Ben Ali's candidacy, and another (the PDP)
has told us it is unlikely to participate if it can't choose
its own candidate. While we do not expect the GOT to amend
the draft law as a result of our intervention, it is
important that our concerns have been heard at the highest
levels. We would urge the Department to echo this message
when opportunities present themselves.
GODEC