OPPOSITION PARTIES ISSUE TWO WEEK DEADLINE TO IEC

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 MASERU 000241 SENSITIVE SIPDIS DEPT FOR AF/S AND INR/AF E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: PGOV LT SUBJECT: OPPOSITION PARTIES ISSUE TWO WEEK DEADLINE TO IEC REF: A. MASERU 231 B. MASERU 240 MASERU 00000241 001.2 OF 002 ¶1. (U) Summary: A group of 10 opposition parties held a press conference at the Basotho National Party (BNP) headquarters on July 16. Representatives of the parties read a prepared statement and answered questions from the media and the public, urging the Independent Election Commission (IEC) to file an election petition at the High Court requesting that the proportional representation seats contested in the 2007 parliamentary election be reallocated as a result of the Masire report (ref A). If the IEC does not do so within two weeks, the parties will take further action; while stating that they were committed to a peaceful resolution of this issue, the parties declined to elaborate on what actions they would take if the ultimatum were not met. End Summary. ¶2. (U) The opposition leaders (listed in para 5 below) indicated that they had met July 15 at the invitation of the IEC to discuss various issues, including voter registration using fingerprint technology, a report on constituency delimitation, the 2010 local government elections, and electoral law reform. The meeting did not proceed as planned because opposition political leaders realized that the IEC's agenda items were core issues related to the report of the SADC mediator, former president of Botswana Sir Ketumile Masire, regarding the disputes over the 2007 national elections. They did not want to discuss these issues; rather, they wanted the IEC to pronounce a judgment on Masire's report. ¶3. (U) They further urged the IEC to file an election petition at the High Court within the next two weeks, requesting the reallocation of the proportional representation seats, citing Masire's conclusions. His report included a statement that the Mixed Member Proportional (MMP) electoral model had not been applied properly in 2007, with both the governing Lesotho Congress for Democracy (LCD) and the opposition All Basotho Convention (ABC) violating the intent of the model. The opposition politicians emphasized that they will explore all peaceful means to resolve this dispute. Responding to a question from the press of what their next course of action will be if the IEC does not comply with their demand, Major General Lekhanya, leader of the BNP, said they did not want to ruin the element of surprise so they will not reveal their plans. ¶4. (U) According to the prepared statement, the opposition leaders expressed hope that the report by Masire will reach the AU, the Commonwealth, the UN, and resident diplomatic missions. They concluded by appealing to the Council of State, the Christian Council of Lesotho, the Law Society, the Senate, the National Assembly, and civil society organizations to approach the government and make it deal with this issue in a transparent manner for the sake of peace, development, and the stability of the country as a whole. "Diplomacy is a better option than the use force. We will not rest until things get back to normal, the people have asked us to do so, spread our message across the country," the statement concluded. ¶5. (U) The political parties represented at the press conference were: Major General Metsing Lekhanya - Leader, BNP Dr. Deborah Ralitapole - Leader, Basotho African Congress (BAC) Kelebone Maope - Leader of the Lesotho People's Congress (LPC) Vincent Malebo - Leader of the Marematlou Freedom Party (MFP) Lekhetho Rakuoane - Leader of the Popular Front for Democracy (PFD) Molobeli Soulo - Representing the All Basotho Convention (ABC) Thabo Tema - Representing the Lesotho Workers Party (LWP) Makara Sekautu - Representing the United Party (UP) * Anthony Manyeli - Representing a faction of the National Independent Party (NIP) MASERU 00000241 002.2 OF 002 * Not represented in Parliament ¶6. (SBU) COMMENT: This two week deadline is an unexpected development; post's earlier meeting with the IEC (ref B) gave no indication that this move by the opposition was on the horizon. The opposition party leaders did not address the fact that the ABC was also in violation of the MMP model, according to Masire; the vast majority of the chatter in the media has focused on the transgressions by the LCD, without acknowledging the ABC's similar violation. Today's statements about the opposition's commitment to a peaceful process are encouraging, but given Lesotho's history of political violence, it is not at all certain that these words will be heeded. Post will be meeting with opposition leaders and LCD representatives over the next week and will track developments closely. POWER