BOKOVA WINS JOB AS UNESCO DIRECTOR-GENERAL

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 PARIS FR 001301

SIPDIS

SENSITIVE

E.O. 12598: N/A
TAGS: SCUL PREL UNESCO
SUBJECT: BOKOVA WINS JOB AS UNESCO DIRECTOR-GENERAL

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1. (SBU) Summary: Bulgaria's Irina Bokova defeated Egyptian Farouk
Hosni to become UNESCO's first woman Director-General in a 31-27
vote in the final round of voting held on September 22. The defeat
was a major shock to Egypt, given President Mubarak's personal
efforts to ensure a Hosni victory. Bokova's election must be
confirmed at UNESCO's General Conference next month before she takes
over from Japan's Koichiro Matsuura to lead the Organization on
November 15. End Summary.

BOKOVA'S SURPRISE WIN


2. (SBU) With a tie vote 29-29 the day before, tensions were high
and hopes to defeat Hosni were flagging as delegates went into the
fifth and final round of voting. Given the secret ballot, efforts
to determine who was voting for whom were difficult, if not
impossible. Ina Marciulionyte, the Lithuanian candidate who had
dropped out of the D-G race earlier, said that at least eight
delegates had assured her that she had received their votes, yet she
only received four votes when the ballots were counted. Other
countries, attempting to save diplomatic face, played both sides,
literally keeping at arms' length from anti-Hosni forces in public,
promising their votes to Egypt, but secretly assuring the U.S. that
their votes would go to Bokova.

EGYPT TAKEN BY SURPRISE


3. (SBU) Before the vote, Egypt's Ambassador to France, Kamal
Hassan, assured the U.S. Representative that Egypt would be
magnanimous in victory and would seek to include the U.S. in the
administration of UNESCO. The final result must have been a shock,
yet immediately following the vote, the Egyptian ambassador, Shadia
Kenawy, warmly congratulated Bokova, following Bokova's gracious
acknowledgement of Hosni's efforts during what had turned into a
bitter campaign.

HARD BALL TACTICS UNDERMINED EGYPT


4. (SBU) The Egyptians had been campaigning hard for months at the
highest levels, with Egypt's President Mubarak personally contacting
his counterparts, urging them to support Hosni. Over the past year
and half, Hosni had travelled extensively, meeting world leaders and
managing to get the support of the Arab League, the African Union
and the Islamic Conference, despite some questionable tactics.
Several delegates were threatened that Egypt would insist to their
capitals that they be recalled or that others be sent to cast
ballots if they refused to vote for Hosni. It has been noted in the
press that Madagascar, Nigeria, Pakistan and Lebanon all withdrew
their representatives prior to the final vote, possibly under
Egyptian pressure. Egypt also spent freely, hiring French and
Senegalese public relations firms to UNESCO to lobby delegates.

ALLEGATIONS OF BRIBERY


5. (SBU) In this regard, Egypt may have overplayed its hand as
allegations of bribes offered to various delegations surfaced in the
days before the elections. One member of the U.S. delegation
witnessed an unfamiliar man carrying a large amount of cash in an
envelope at UNESCO headquarters. Several Member States complained
to the Director-General and to the Executive Board Chairman about an
atmosphere of intimidation at UNESCO and not feeling comfortable
talking to their colleagues without outside lobbyists immediately
questioning them in the corridors at UNESCO. Elizabeth Longworth
(protect),Matsuura's Chief of Staff, confirmed to the U.S.
Representative that on September 21, the D-G banned an individual
from further entry to UNESCO because of numerous allegations of
unethical conduct by the individual related to the election.

NORTH-SOUTH DIVIDE DIDN'T WORK


6. (SBU) The other key players in the pro-Hosni forces were Brazil
and India, which attempted, unsuccessfully, to paint the race as a
North-South struggle. The Indian ambassador to UNESCO, Bhaswati
Mukherjee, an increasingly divisive figure in the Organization, made
no secret of Hosni's alleged offer to her to become Deputy
Director-General should he win. Mukherjee's aggressive and abrasive
style, which she demonstrated the morning of the final vote against
Jamaica during a debate on climate change, apparently back-fired
when Fiji dropped its support of Hosni in anger out of the lack of
respect shown to a fellow small island developing state.

ROLE OF SMALL ISLAND STATES


7. (SBU) While it would be easy for Egypt to blame the U.S. for its
defeat, some of the key people responsible for turning around the
vote were from small island states, including Jamaica and, in
particular, the delegate from St. Lucia. An expatriate Lebanese
diplomat with more than ten years at UNESCO, Ms. Lacoeuilhe made an
enormous contribution to Bokova's victory, after having been

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enlisted to assist with the campaign of Ivonne Baki. Following
Baki's withdrawal from the race, Ms. Lacoeuilhe worked until the
last minute, and is responsible for having shifted key votes,
including St. Vincent and Jamaica, to Bokova. With the exception of
Cuba, we believe that all Caribbean states voted for Bokova.
Portugal's Deputy Permanent Representative Antonio Cotrim also
played an important role in stopping Hosni from winning the
election.

AFRICA AND LATIN AMERICA DIVIDED, ASIA UNKNOWN


8. (SBU) Within Africa, we believe that South Africa, Ethiopia,
Benin, Togo, Uganda, and Zambia did not vote for Hosni. In Latin
America, despite Brazil's best efforts, only Chile and possibly El
Salvador voted for Hosni. In Asia, several Muslim countries were
clearly in the Hosni camp. However, just before the final vote,
China signaled to the U.S. Representative that, wary of the combined
influence of India in a Hosni administration, it decided to vote for
Bokova. (Note: The Chinese ambassador was jubilant after the result
and said to the U.S. Representative that "this victory represented a
successful partnership between the United States and China in
support of good governance in the international system. In the
first rounds we voted in support of geo-political obligations. In
the final round, we voted in support of the integrity of this
Organization." End note.)


POSSIBLE TROUBLE AHEAD ?


9. (SBU) With Bokova's election by UNESCO's 58-member Executive
Board, her name now goes forward to UNESCO's General Conference,
which begins meeting in early October. The full General Conference,
all 193 Member States, will then confirm the election with an "up or
down" vote. If the General Conference were to reject Bokova, the
Executive Board would have to reconvene and select a new candidate
within 24 hours. Given the Board's definitive rejection of Hosni,
it is highly improbable that he would be nominated again.

BOKOVA BIOGRAPHIC INFORMATION


10. (U) Age 57. Born in Sofia on July 12, 1952, Irina Gueorguieva
Bokova is the Ambassador of Bulgaria to France and Permanent
Delegate to UNESCO since 2005. A career diplomat, she studied at
the Moscow State Institute of International Relations and at the
School of Public Affairs of the University of Maryland (USA). Her
fields of interest include European integration issues and women's
equality. From 1982-84, she worked on political and judicial
affairs at Bulgaria's U.N Mission in New York. She served as Deputy
Foreign Minister of Foreign Affairs (1995-97),and Minister of
Foreign Affairs (1996-97). In 1996, she made an unsuccessful
attempt to become Vice President of Bulgaria. She advocated her
country's membership in NATO and the European Union. Bokova's
father, Georgi Bokov, was part of the inner circle of the former
Soviet bloc nation's Communist Party leadership for several years.
He was also editor-in-chief of the main party newspaper,
Rabotnichesko Delo. Her brother, Filip Bokov, is also a diplomat.
He had been a political advisor to current President Georgi Parvanov
and former Socialist Prime Minister Sergei Stanishev. Last year he
was appointed as Bulgaria's ambassador to Slovenia. Bokova is
fluent in English, Russian, Spanish and French. Her children are
currently studying and living in the U.S.
(sources: UNESCO and press articles).
KILLION