IN YEMENI POLITICAL CRISIS, LOCAL CONFERENCES A

C O N F I D E N T I A L SANAA 001090

SIPDIS

FOR NEA/ARP

E.O. 12958: DECL: 06/10/2019
TAGS: PGOV YM
SUBJECT: IN YEMENI POLITICAL CRISIS, LOCAL CONFERENCES A
BAND-AID FOR A BULLET WOUND

Classified By: Ambassador Stephen Seche for reasons 1.4(b) and (d).


1. (C) SUMMARY. A series of local conferences held across
the governorates that kicked off in early June has not
produced any demonstrable results. Despite the high-profile
ROYG officials dispatched as chairmen, observers believe the
effort is yet another initiative that fails to deal with the
current political crisis. A real attempt to solve the crisis
must focus on genuine reform that addresses the citizenry's
legitimate grievances. END SUMMARY.


2. (C) In his televised May 21 Unity Day speech, President
Saleh announced that the ROYG would host a series of
conferences in each of Yemen's governorates for citizens to
air their grievances and attempt to find a way out of the
current political crisis. The ROYG has sent its highest
officials to host conferences in key governorates )
including President Saleh in Ta'iz, Deputy Prime Minister for
Defense and Security Rashad al-Alimi in Saada and Vice
President Abdurabu Mansour al-Hadi in Aden and Hadramout.
Dr. Mohamed al-Qubati, head of the ruling General People's
Congress (GPC) Foreign Relations Committee, told Pol/E Chief
on June 9 that the conferences are an important step. "There
should be a change. A turn in the road is not the end of the
road," Qubati said.


3. (C) Members of the opposition and civil society view the
conferences as yet another ROYG initiative that does not
address the real political crisis. Dr. Faris al-Saqqaf,
Director of the Center for Future Studies and an advisor to
presidential son Ahmed Ali Saleh, told PolOff on June 7,
"There are many, many initiatives, but none that is serious."
Attendees at the Amran conference, for example, suggested
establishing a cultural center and using zakat (an Islamic
religious tax) to fund development projects. In Abyan, one
of Yemen's most unstable governorates, conference attendees
approved all government-furnished documents affirming
national unity. Journalist Mohammed al-Qadhi told PolOff on
June 7 that the conferences are another attempt by the ROYG
to circumvent the legitimate political opposition. Pointing
out that the opposition was not included in planning the
initiative, opposition Rabita Party Secretary General Abd
al-Rahman al-Jiffri said, "One side can,t solve the
(political) crisis." (Note: The opposition Joint Meeting
Parties have publicly announced boycotts of several of the
meetings. End Note.) Mohammed al-Sadi, assistant secretary
general of the Islah opposition party, said he did not
believe that the conferences were even "local" in nature.
"What's local about them? Everything from the agenda to the
slogans comes from Sana'a," Sadi told PolOff on June 9.


4. (C) The ROYG has imposed a virtual black-out on
independent and opposition media coverage of the events; even
al-Jazeera's request for access was denied. The government,
meanwhile, has attempted to use the conferences as a public
relations tool. On June 9, ROYG spokesman and Minister of
Information Hassan al-Lawzi called the conferences "an
important experiment that will change Yemen's history." In
nightly television broadcasts on Yemen TV, officials use the
local conferences to laud the litany of developments in Yemen
since unification in 1990.

COMMENT
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5. (C) The decentralization of power and decision-making
from the capital to the local level would be a positive trend
for Yemen. However, the current series of local conferences
are less a legitimate effort to empower the governorates and
more an attempt by the ROYG to smooth over local grievances
without enacting real reform. The best chance for solving
Yemen's political crisis is a legitimate national dialogue
that produces actionable reforms. END COMMENT.
SECHE