Identifier
Created
Classification
Origin
09DURBAN33
2009-03-31 14:38:00
UNCLASSIFIED//FOR OFFICIAL USE ONLY
Consulate Durban
Cable title:  

VIGOROUS CAMPAIGNING AND CONTINUED INTIMIDATION: KWAZULU

Tags:  PGOV SF 
pdf how-to read a cable
VZCZCXRO5179
RR RUEHBZ RUEHJO RUEHMR RUEHRN
DE RUEHDU #0033/01 0901438
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
R 311438Z MAR 09
FM AMCONSUL DURBAN
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC 1421
INFO RUCNSAD/SADC COLLECTIVE
RHEHAAA/NSC WASHINGTON DC
RUEAIIA/CIA WASHDC
RHEFDIA/DIA WASHINGTON DC
RUEHDU/AMCONSUL DURBAN 0794
UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 DURBAN 000033 

SENSITIVE
SIPDIS

FOR AF/S, INR

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: PGOV SF
SUBJECT: VIGOROUS CAMPAIGNING AND CONTINUED INTIMIDATION: KWAZULU
NATAL PRE-ELECTION ROUND-UP

DURBAN 00000033 001.2 OF 002


UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 DURBAN 000033

SENSITIVE
SIPDIS

FOR AF/S, INR

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: PGOV SF
SUBJECT: VIGOROUS CAMPAIGNING AND CONTINUED INTIMIDATION: KWAZULU
NATAL PRE-ELECTION ROUND-UP

DURBAN 00000033 001.2 OF 002



1. (SBU) Summary. The African National Congress (ANC) campaign
machine is in high gear, and the ANC is taking advantage of
every opportunity to deliver its message. Despite official
pronouncements against violence, members of the ANC are still
reportedly intimidating Congress of the People (COPE) and
provoking Inkatha Freedom Party (IFP). Other parties continue to
point out ANC failures in service delivery whenever they have
the opportunity. Electoral violence, too, has seen an uptick as
the election polling day approaches April 22. The provincial
Independent Electoral Commission announced that it is ready for
voters. End Summary.

ANC Lauds its Accomplishments


2. (U) KwaZulu Natal's Local Economic Development Conference
took place on March 17, 2009 and Pol/Econ Officer and Pol/Econ
Assistant attended. While most presenters focused on the effects
of the global economic downturn, government officials took the
opportunity to rally for ANC support. Premier Ndebele cited
major infrastructural projects and the implementation of Black
Economic Empowerment (BEE) policy in KZN as proof that the ANC
government is on the right economic track. Citing a report from
July 2008 that praised KZN's economic policies, Ndebele
predicted continued growth in the province through 2014. Other
ANC officials touted the increased access to basic amenities in
KZN over the past five years.


3. (SBU) The Human Rights Day Celebration in Durban was marked
by a heavy dose of ANC rhetoric, a dash of socialism, and a
surprising sprinkling of spa treatments. P/E Officer and his
family entered Durban's ABSA stadium through the main gate for
the ANC-controlled Provincial Government's Human Rights Day
program, not knowing there was a VVIP entrance. As they wandered
through the bowels of the stadium looking for their entrance,
they came upon a makeshift spa where, they were told, all
pensioners over 50 could get manicures, pedicures, and body
massages. They finally found their way to their seats where they
could see clearly the half-full stadium. They were treated to
several musical selections and standard ANC stump speeches. An
irony-laden highlight was when designer-suit clad ANC leaders
led the crowd in singing My Mother Was a Kitchen Girl, My Father
Was a Garden Boy, That's why I'm a Socialist.

Opposition Parties Allege ANC Intimidation, Provocation



4. (SBU) Isolezwe, a daily Zulu newspaper, reported that on
March 15, 2009 a group of about 50 people clad in Zuma t-shirts
forcefully entered a community hall in Cato Manor just outside
Durban and disrupted a United Democratic Movement (UDM) election
meeting. The ANC members apparently thought it was a Congress
of the People (COPE) meeting; but after discovering it was a UDM
meeting, the ANC crowd dispersed and allowed the UDM meeting to
continue. COPE Provincial Secretary Phillip Mhlongo told the P/E
Assistant that COPE members in Cato Manor witnessed the incident
and reported it to him.


5. (SBU) COPE Presidential Candidate Bishop Dr. Mvume Dandala's
visit to the Durban University of Technology on March 20 was
canceled at the last minute because the university management
feared acts of political intolerance by members of the South
African Students Congress (SASCO),an ANC-aligned student group.
Zuma t-shirt-clad SASCO members were seen gathering on campus
in anticipation of Dr. Dandala's arrival. COPE Youth Movement
National Secretary Malusi Booi said that their student members
remained calm and dispersed peacefully after hearing that
Dandala's visit had been canceled. P/E Assistant attended the
rescheduled press conference during which Dandala outlined
COPE's vision for KwaZulu Natal and accused the ANC of political
violence and intolerance. COPE spokesperson Siyanda Mhlongo
told reporters that SASCO is `deliberately creating chaos at
universities' so that the ANC can intervene and use the platform
to highlight the ANC's commitment to a peaceful election
process. Meanwhile, Inkatha Freedom Party (IFP) students
protested the ANC Youth League's President's address at
University of KwaZulu Natal in Durban.


6. (SBU) Tension between ANC and IFP supporters is growing, and
the ANC-led government has contingency plans in place to call in
the military to prevent outbreaks of political violence and
intimidation at known hotspots. In Greytown, an ANC supporter
was hospitalized after an IFP/ANC clash; and at a high school
near Ladysmith, IFP supporters threatened and forced students to
leave their school, according to local media. IFP national
organizer, Albert Mncwango, told reporters that the ANC was
responsible for the recent violence as it was deliberately
provoking and attacking IFP supporters.

DURBAN 00000033 002.2 OF 002



Animated Multiparty Debates Continue


7. (U) On March 14, 2009, Ingabadi, a black-owned investment and
operations group, hosted an election debate in Durban. Xolani
Gwala, one of South African Broadcasting Cooperation's top news
anchors, moderated a heated debate between ANC, COPE, Democratic
Alliance (DA),Inkatha Freedom Party (IFP),Women Forward (WF),
African Christian Democratic Party (ACDP),UDM and South African
Democratic Congress (SADC). The debate focused on what the ANC
has achieved in the past five years, but COPE and IFP accused
the ANC of tolerating corruption in government. The ANC defended
its record but acknowledged that there is room for improvement.
P/E Assistant attended the event and noted that the debate was
well attended by top KZN politicians and party supporters. The
debate went smoothly without any incident of political
intolerance, with the exception of the standard heckling between
ANC and IFP.


8. (U) On March 19, 2009 the Diakonia Council of Churches
invited major political parties to share their manifestos in a
public forum. P/E Assistant attended the event. Representatives
from the UDM, DA, Independent Democrats (ID),and COPE
participated in the briefing. The ANC and other parties took
part in the first session of the debate on March 12, 2009. The
issue of lack of public transport in Durban dominated the
debate, and participating parties attacked the ANC for
inadequate housing and deteriorating health service throughout
KZN. COPE raised the issues of crime, corruption and moral decay
as the biggest ANC failures.

IEC in KZN Ready for Voters


9. (SBU) On March 27, the KZN Independent Electoral Commission
Office gave a briefing to accredited domestic election
observers. P/E Officer and P/E Assistant attended the event
along with representatives from several non-governmental
organizations including the African Center for the Constructive
Resolution of Disputes, KZN Democracy and Elections Forum, and
Umkhanyakude Religious Leaders. Mawethu Mosery of the IEC said
that KZN is fully prepared for the election but will need the
help of election observers to ensure that all parties `remain
noble'. Preserving the secrecy of the ballot is paramount in
rural KZN as many traditional leaders still yield great power
and practice political intimidation, according to guest speaker
and crime/political violence expert Mary De Haas. De Haas
predicts continued violence and intimidation in the run up to
the election but nothing on the scale of the 1994 elections when
thousands died.


10. (SBU) Ntomb'futhi Masinga, IEC Election Manager, advised
observers to be on the lookout for party officials who may
wrongly directly voters to party registration tables. While
parties may set up tents to offer refreshments, voters are not
required to check in at these tents, where they may be
influenced. Also, if observers plan to visit the Greytown area,
they should observe if polling stations are able to cope with an
expected 20,000 out-of-area voters who will be attending a men's
conference. As an aside, Masinga noted that the Greytown surge
will be nothing compared to the expected 40,000 South Africans
who have registered to vote at the London embassy. When asked
how the London embassy would accommodate so many voters, Mosery
replied, `We will rent out a large hall and send reinforcements.
Don't worry, if we can accommodate 23 million voters in South
Africa, we can do the job in London.
DERDERIAN