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 -------------- ¶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