RENEWED SKIRMISH OVER NATIONALITY DELAYING

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 ABIDJAN 000640 SIPDIS E.O. 12958: DECL: 10/29/2019 TAGS: PGOV PREL KDEM SOCI IV SUBJECT: RENEWED SKIRMISH OVER NATIONALITY DELAYING ELECTORAL LIST PUBLICATION REF: A) ABIDJAN 626 B) ABIDJAN 629 Classified By: Ambassador Wanda L. Nesbitt for reasons 1.4 (b/d) ¶1. (C) Summary: Publication of the provisional electoral list remains stalled; key Ivorian leaders cannot agree on how to deal with 1.9 million cases in which names on the list have not been matched with a historical record. President Gbagbo reportedly favors immediate publication of a list that distinguishes confirmed from unconfirmed voters, but would require the latter to present proof of nationality. The opposition adamantly opposes this approach which it believes undermines the foundation of the Ouagadougou Political Accord (OPA). PM Soro is trying to broker a solution with the support of Facilitator Blaise Compaore and, according to SRSG Choi, has asked the electoral commission to do additional record checks. Choi believes it will be at least another month before the preliminary list is published. If that is the case elections cannot be held before March 2010. End Summary ¶2. (SBU) As noted in ref A, 2.7 million of the 6.3 million individuals who registered during the identification/ enrollment process were not found when the names were checked against a set of historical records. Secondary checks reduced that number to 1.9 million. The political parties agree that some percentage of the 1.9 million are Ivorian and should be able to vote; they also agree that some are people who registered using fraudulent documents and are not Ivorian. They have fundamentally different views, however, about how to resolve the problem. FPI CONCERN: FOREIGNERS WILL BECOME IVORIAN -------------- ¶3. (SBU) President Gbagbo's FPI has long feared that foreigners (26% of Cote d'Ivoire's population is from neighboring countries) who have no right to vote would infiltrate the electoral process. First Lady Simone Gbagbo and other leading FPI officials have publicly expressed skepticism about the 1.9 million and the FPI appears to genuinely believe that most are probably not legitimate voters. The FPI is therefore insistent that names not found in a historical record be separated out and these individuals required to present proof of nationality during the four week period set aside for resolving disputed cases. The FPI also maintains that historical record checks were always envisioned and that the opposition agreed to these checks even before the OPA was signed. FPI leaders, such as Sokouri Bohui, one of the party's founding members, are insisting in press interviews that historical record checks were always intended to confirm the nationality of everyone on the list. The FPI believes the opposition is being duplicitous. RDR/PDCI CONCERN: IVORIANS WILL BE LABELED FOREIGNERS -------------- -------------- ¶4. (SBU) The opposition, particularly Alassane Ouattara's RDR party, has been equally adamant that the FPI approach is unacceptable. Amadou Gon Coulibaly, campaign manager and spokesperson for RDR president Alassane Ouattara, explained the RDR perspective to Ambassador on October 26. Coulibaly stressed that the FPI tried the same approach in 2006 and failed because there are too many incomplete and/or inaccurate records in Cote d'Ivoire. Coulibaly said the OPA was a major breakthrough because it allowed Ivorians to register to vote using only a birth certificate or jugement suppletif (the document issued through the audience foraines or mobile courts process.) For the RDR, this was an implicit recognition of the fact that many Ivorians have no other documentation and it wants that understanding to be honored. The RDR believes that most of the 1.9 million are legitimate voters and that all should be considered Ivorian unless proof to the contrary is located. They see the FPI position as a maneuver to exclude new voters and are insisting on a clean electoral list that does not categorize Ivorians. ¶5. (C) Coulibaly explained the difference between the FPI and the RDR over the purpose of "historical record checks". The RDR's view, Coulibaly said, has always been that historical record checks could be conducted to identify foreigners, thereby addressing the FPI's stated concern. Relevant records would include refugee lists, the list of foreigners who were issued resident cards, etc. Coulibaly shared with Ambassador a letter the RDR sent to the CEI (Independent Electoral Commission) in July 2009, proposing that three specific sets of records be consulted. Coulibaly said the RDR never received a response, and never agreed to the twelve historical records that were ultimately selected. The RDR maintains that were it possible to confirm everyone's ABIDJAN 00000640 002 OF 002 nationality through a historical record, the audiences foraines process would not have been needed. LIST NEEDS TO NUMBER AT LEAST 5 MILLION -------------- ¶6. (SBU) SRSG Choi briefed the diplomatic community October 29 on efforts to resolve this dispute. According to Choi, PM Soro has asked CEI president Mambe to conduct another round of record checks to reduce the 1.9 million by as many names as possible. Choi pointed out that the 2000 voter list contained a little over 5 million names; it would be politically untenable for the CEI to produce a list in 2009 with fewer names (only 4.4 million were confirmed after the first check.) Soro believes the CEI must try to positively confirm at least 5 million. However, this will delay even further the publication of a preliminary list. Choi thought it would be at least another month before a new list was compiled and ready for posting. He acknowledged that he would not be able to certify the electoral list if any of the major parties/candidates deemed it unacceptable. Choi stressed, however, that he sees no sign that any of the parties have a hidden political agenda and that the available data indicate that no party has a particular advantage with regard to the 1.9 million, who are spread throughout the country. Choi would not speculate about a new election date. He thought it important for the electoral list dispute to be resolved and a final list agreed upon by the end of the year. EU representatives reaffirmed their calculation that a minimum of three months are needed between publication of the final list and election day. They estimate March 2010 to be the earliest realistic timeframe. ¶7. (C) Comment: Contacts at the French Embassy tell us that the CEI is still under pressure from President Gbagbo to publish the list as soon as possible (Gbagbo told the press October 29 that the list would be available on November 3) but the CEI is evidently following instructions from PM Soro to continue whittling down the 1.9 million. Soro appears to have the support of Blaise Compaore in this approach, underscoring the critical role the Facilitator still plays. This episode demonstrates that CEI is not, and perhaps cannot be, truly independent given the political sensitivities that surround its work. ¶8. (C) Comment Cont'd: The controversy over the preliminary electoral list also highlights the deep divisions that remain over the national identity issue. SRSG Choi has been criticized for advocating a political solution, but we believe his approach is the right one. Nationality in Cote d'Ivoire is not a technical calculation but a very sensitive political issue that could once again spark violent clashes. Exchanges between the political parties are becoming increasingly heated and we anticipate they will become even more rancorous as the process drags on. Embassy will encourage the GOCI to continue moving forward and will support Choi's efforts to impress upon Ivorians the fact that too much progress has been made to allow the process to now unravel. NESBITT