Identifier
Created
Classification
Origin
09TIRANA247
2009-04-17 14:46:00
UNCLASSIFIED
Embassy Tirana
Cable title:  

ID CARD PROCESS IN A RACE AGAINST TIME

Tags:  KDEM PGOV PREL PHUM AL 
pdf how-to read a cable
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RUEHLN RUEHLZ RUEHNP RUEHPOD RUEHROV RUEHSK RUEHSR RUEHVK RUEHYG
DE RUEHTI #0247/01 1071446
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
P 171446Z APR 09
FM AMEMBASSY TIRANA
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 8053
INFO RUEHZL/EUROPEAN POLITICAL COLLECTIVE PRIORITY
RUEHNO/USMISSION USNATO PRIORITY 3555
RUEAIIA/CIA WASHDC PRIORITY
RUEHVEN/USMISSION USOSCE PRIORITY 2479
RHEFDIA/DIA WASHINGTON DC PRIORITY
RUCNDT/USMISSION USUN NEW YORK PRIORITY 0805
RHEHAAA/NATIONAL SECURITY COUNCIL WASHINGTON DC PRIORITY
RUEKJCS/SECDEF WASHINGTON DC PRIORITY
UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 03 TIRANA 000247 

SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: KDEM PGOV PREL PHUM AL
SUBJECT: ID CARD PROCESS IN A RACE AGAINST TIME

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 03 TIRANA 000247

SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: KDEM PGOV PREL PHUM AL
SUBJECT: ID CARD PROCESS IN A RACE AGAINST TIME


1. (SBU) SUMMARY: On April 15 the GOA announced its latest
plan to reduce fees for ID cards for needy Albanians,
establishing a fee schedule that eliminates entirely or
significantly reduces the ID card fees for practically all
Albanian citizens currently receiving public assistance. In
contrast with previous schemes, this one requires ID card
applicants to pay little or nothing up front - instead, the
government itself will foot the bill for the cards. Almost
immediately, the opposition Socialist Party (SP) declared the
latest GOA move unworkable and insufficient and declared a
boycott of further parliamentary plenary sessions until the
GOA agrees to issue the ID cards for free. SP leader Edi
Rama on April 17 said that the SP is ready to work with the
GOA to find a solution, but said that if no solution is found
the SP is also ready to "rise up to prevent a manipulated
election." On April 15 the GOA provided the Embassy with the
latest figures on ID card production. As of mid April, some
537,000 non-passport holders had yet to apply for an ID card,
although according to Sagem there is still more than enough
capacity to register and print cards for all 537,000. The
problem remains, however, that far too few non-passport
holders people are applying for cards. Unless current
application rates increase, many voters will be left without
either a passport or ID card come election day. END SUMMARY.

ID Card Fees Reduced
--------------


2. (SBU) On April 15 the Council of Ministers approved a new
fee schedule for ID cards, establishing a five-tiered
schedule laying out fees ranging from zero to 1000 lek per
card for certain groups (the full price for an ID card is
1200 lek, or about 12 dollars). The GOA decision also
established a procedure for reimbursement of travel expenses
incurred by ID card applicants required to travel to another
town to apply for an ID card. The new plan eliminated
entirely the ID card fee for Roma, the paralyzed, the blind,
and for family members of the disabled who have no other
income. People in jail or prison can also receive their
cards for free. The GOA plan also lays out the following
prices for other groups:

-- 200 lek card fee: Pensioners; public university students;
first time voters; people under 18 who are members of

households receiving public assistance.

-- 500 lek card fee: Certain categories of disabled who are
on public assistance; people receiving unemployment benefits.

-- 800 lek card fee: any pensioner not covered under the
other provision for pensioners.

-- 1000 lek card fee: State employees (and their family
members) where the state employee earns less than 35,000 lek
(appx. 350 dollars) per month.


But the Devil is in the Details
--------------


3. (SBU) The GOA plan requires local governments buy full
priced ID card vouchers, then re-sell the vouchers to
eligible people at the discounted price. The central
government will then reimburse the local governments at a
later date, but the Minister of Interior said on April 17
that the GOA will front the money for municipalities that
cannot afford to buy the cards. The opposition immediately
claimed that local governments lack the money to buy the ID
cards, and complained that the new GOA proposal is cumbersome
and confusing. SP Parliamentary Group Leader Valentina
Leskaj told PolOff that the plan will only further confuse
voters, claiming that this is the third discount plan the
government has announced in as many months. Leskaj also said
that numerous mayors and other local officials had told her
that they have no money to buy ID vouchers (a complaint
seemingly diffused by the MoI's claim that the GOA will pay
up front). Leskaj also stated (a claim seemingly backed by
data provided to the Embassy by the GOA) that some 91 towns
still lacked any registration center whatsoever. However,
during an April 17 briefing for the diplomatic corps,
Minister of Interior Nishani said that by the end of April
all registration centers will be open and functioning.

ID Card Production Moving Along, But Will it Be Enough?
-------------- --------------

TIRANA 00000247 002 OF 003




4. (SBU) On April 15, Deputy Interior Minister in charge of
ID cards Ferdinand Poni provided DCM with a lengthy briefing
on the registration and printing process for ID cards. Poni
told the DCM that the GOA is entirely focused on getting IDs
to the 537,000 people who lack passports and will not be
allowed to vote if they do not receive an ID card by the June
28 election day. Poni said that of the 729,710 non-passport
holders identified by the GOA, 191,821 had already applied
for an ID card, with 537,889 left to go. (NOTE: Poni said
the 729,710 figure - arrived at by comparing the entire civil
registry to the lisds of passport holders - is the maximum
number of Albanians who do not have passports. PoniQeqtimateS th!t some 200,000 of the 729,710 ha6e pro"ably ledt
Albania with no record of tHeIp dEpQrtureQ meafIfg the number
of passport-lesc AlbafialS CmulQ "eaQch less than 729,000.
The /ppeQataofover
one illion applicants between now and the elections, but
admitted that the current number of daily applicants is only
about half of available capacity. @oni said that of a
planned 470 registration centQrs nationwide, 410 had opened
and are working seven days a week.


5. (SBU) However, the GOA figures clearly show that in two
northern districts - Diber and Kukes - Sagem's capacity to
register ID card applicants barely exceeds the number of
outstanding applicants, meaning that within a short time
there will be more applicants than capacity to register them
between now and the elections. In other words, time in these
districts is quickly running out.

Poni Blames Edi Rama for Sagging Registration Numbers
-------------- --------------


6. (SBU) Poni said that SP calls for free IDs had
discouraged people from applying for cards in hopes that the
cards would soon be offered for free. Poni gave the DCM a
memo he had received from Sagem claiming a significant
decrease in the number of applicants during the first two
weeks of April. The memo said that nationwide, registration
of applicants is running at only half-capacity.

SP: The GOA Has No Real Plan
--------------


7. (SBU) SP strategist Kastriot Islami told PolOff on April
15 that the SP does not dispute the GOA figures in terms of
ID cards registered for and printed, although the SP believes
the number of people without passports is much higher than
the GOA's 729,710 figure. Islami hotly (and only partially
convincingly) disputed the notion that SP calls for free IDs
had discouraged applicants, claiming that people are not
applying because they can't afford the cards. Islami also
criticized the latest GOA discount plan as "confusing and
cumbersome," and said the fact that the GOA seems to come up
with a new proposal every few weeks only adds to impression
that the GOA has no plan to get IDs into the hands of those
who need them and is only solving the problem in a piecemeal
fashion. Islami said the GOA's ultimate goal is to depress
voter turnout, which Islami said would hurt the SP and
especially other, smaller parties. According to Sagem
numbers, average daily registrations peaked in late March at
13,000 applicants per day, compared to an average of 9000 per
day for the first two weeks of April.

Doing the Math
--------------


8. (SBU) There are 57 working days left until June 12, which
is the cutoff date for registering for an ID card in order to
get it in time for the election. According to Ministry of
Interior figures, there are approximately 9000 people
applying for ID cards per day nationwide. Unfortunately, and
also according to MoI data, only 55 percent (roughly 5000) of
these 9000 applicants lack passports. At this current rate,
it will take well over 120 days to register all of the
roughly 537,000 applicants who remain without passports. So
although the capacity clearly exists to register and print
cards for all who need them, applicants are not coming in
sufficient numbers for all passport-less voters to get cards
by election day.

TIRANA 00000247 003 OF 003




9. (SBU) COMMENT: Sagem and the GOA have done much to
increase the printing and registration capacity of the ID
card system, but have had less success in luring applicants.
The fact remains that unless more applicants are convinced or
cajoled into applying for cards, a large number of
passport-less voters will not have ID cards in time for the
election. The GOA certainly hopes that its latest reduction
in the ID card fees will help bring in more applications, but
the new system will only go into effect on May 1.


CRISTINA