MAURITANIA: POLITICAL ROUNDUP FOR THE WEEK OF MAY

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 NOUAKCHOTT 000344

SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: DECL: 05/20/2019
TAGS: PGOV KDEM MR PHUM KPAO
SUBJECT: MAURITANIA: POLITICAL ROUNDUP FOR THE WEEK OF MAY
17-21

REF: A. NOUAKCHOTT 336

B. NOUAKCHOTT 342

C. NOUAKCHOTT 253

Classified By: Ambassador Mark M. Boulware for reasons 1.4 (b) and (d).


1. (C) Summary: Senegalese mediation efforts dominated the
political scene for the week of May 17-21. The anti-US media
campaign continued, while the FNDD and RFD held a large march
to protest General Aziz's election plans. Despite rumors of
the imminent release of the "FNDD four" (arrested for
corruption charges relating to Air Mauritanie),the four men,
including Prime Minister Waghef, were still in prison as of
May 21. End summary.


2. (SBU) Senegalese mediation: The Senegalese mediation
effort begun on May 14 with President Wade's whirlwind
meetings with the major political actors (including President
Abdallahi) continued throughout the week, mainly under the
guidance of Senegalese Foreign Minister Cheikh Tidiane Gadio,
though the AU, UN, and Libyans were also represented.
Despite rumors of imminent failure of the talks (Ref A),and
then rumors of an agreement (Ref B),as of May 21 there were
no tangible results to be seen from the mediation. The
presidential campaign is still on track to commence at
midnight on May 21. In his first press conference since
resigning from the head of the High State Council, Aziz
offered a token "concession" on May 20, saying he would delay
his campaign for 24 hours to let the talks progress.
However, the other three candidates are beginning their
campaigns as originally planned. Aziz further stated that
there would be "no delay" in the June 6 elections.


3. (C) Anti-US media campaign continues: A tract stating
the US gave 720 million ouguiyas (approximately $2.66 million
US) to anti-coup parties was distributed on the streets of
Nouakchott and other main cities in Mauritania the weekend of
May 15-16. The tract, written in Arabic, claimed that
prominent FNDD figures (e.g., President Abdallahi, National
Assembly President Messaoud Ould Boulkheir, UFP President
Mohamed Ould Maouloud, Tawassoul President Jemil Ould
Mansour, etc.) had received significant sums of money from
NDI. The tract specifically listed the Mauritanian director
of NDI by name, including her phone number as well (which she
has since changed after receiving threatening phone calls).
DCM Dennis Hankins was also specifically named as the
intermediary between the FNDD and the "Zionist entity"
(Israel) that supposedly was the source of the money. The
second page of the tract displayed a star of David, with
prominent FNDD leaders placed at each point of the star.
Comment: One local media outlet claimed the tract was the
work of Mohamed Mahmoud Ould Brahim Khalil and Allal Ould
Hajj. Hajj is the younger brother of Mohcen El Hajj, Vice
President of the Senate and staunch Aziz supporter (they are
cousins). End comment.


4. (U) The French support the election: On May 14, a French
Foreign Ministry spokesman said France "thinks it is
important that these elections take place and that they be
inclusive. France and the overwhelming majority of the
international community believe that holding these elections
is crucial for Mauritania."


5. (C) Meeting with Spanish DCM: PolOff met with DCM Clara
Girbaud of the Spanish embassy on May 17 to discuss
Spanish-Mauritanian bilateral cooperation to curtail
trafficking in persons. Girbaud was more welcoming than in
previous meetings, and expressed dissatisfaction with the
regime's handling of the political situation. "They always
say they will fix it, but they never do," she said. With
respect to illegal immigration, identified as the primary
concern for the Spanish in Mauritania, Girbaud said that the
Mauritanian authorities continued to cooperate, but lacked
the capacity to effectively combat the problem. Consequently
the Spanish were assisting them in identifying immigration

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networks and leaders.


6. (C) Electoral lists online: State-run media on May 17
announced that the electoral lists were now available online
at the Ministry of Interior's web site
(http://www.interieur.gov.mr). Supposedly, 1,183,455 voters
and 27,000 Mauritanians living abroad registered to vote.
However, the link to the electoral lists web page does not
work. Comment: EmbOffs' discussions with election officials
in the south of the country uncovered delays in the posting
of election lists (Septel); this may indicate difficulties in
finalizing the election lists. End comment.


7. (C) FNDD and RFD march: The FNDD and RFD obtained a
permit from the authorities and held a joint march on May 18.
RSO staff estimated the crowd as numbering at the very least
5,000 people. Anti-coup web sites placed the figure between
15,000 and 55,000 -- figures that seem quite high. In any
event, this was likely the largest anti-coup march seen thus
far (the anti-coup camp claims that this was the largest
march "ever" in Mauritania -- a claim hard to verify).
Although there was a large police presence, there were no
confrontations, and the march ended without incident.


8. (SBU) Air Mauritanie prisoners almost released: On May
18 the Supreme Court finally agreed to hear the appeal of
Prime Minister Yahya Ould Ahmed El Waghef and the other three
men detained in the "Air Mauritanie" case. Note: All four
men are former directors of the company, and all four
participated in anti-coup activities before they were
arrested (Ref C). End note. The bail amounts for all four
were drastically reduced, and there were rumors of their
imminent release. However, they still remain in prison as of
May 21. Comment: Local press has speculated that their
release was delayed by the junta to prevent them from
participating in the FNDD/RFD march planned the same day.
End comment.
BOULWARE