VZCZCXRO6600
PP RUEHMA RUEHPA
DE RUEHAB #0290/01 1271701
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
P 061701Z MAY 08
FM AMEMBASSY ABIDJAN
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 4208
INFO RUEHZK/ECOWAS COLLECTIVE
RHEHNSC/NSC WASHDC

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 ABIDJAN 000290 
 
SENSITIVE 
SIPDIS 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: PGOV PREL KDEM IV
SUBJECT: ELECTORAL COMMISSION LAYS OUT TIMELINE FROM NOW TO 
ELECTION DAY 
 
REF: ABIDJAN 120 
 
¶1. (SBU) Summary: Independent Electoral Commission President 
Mambe briefed Ambassador May 2 on the Commission,s timeline 
for meeting the November 30 election date.  Voter 
registration will take place for a 45 day period in 
July-August; the time before and after will be devoted to 
ensuring that the necessary modalities are in place to 
register voters and to validate the electoral list after the 
registration period closes.  Mambe used the occasion to also 
thank Ambassador for USG funding to NDI, which played a 
central role in developing the Code of Good Conduct signed by 
the political parties during UNSYG Ban ki Moon,s recent 
visit to Abidjan.  End Summary. 
 
INS-SAGEM-CEI STILL NEED TO ESTABLISH WORKING CONDITIONS 
--------------------------------------------- ------------ 
 
¶2.  (SBU) Ambassador and PolCouns called on Independent 
Electoral Commission (CEI) President Robert Beugre Mambe on 
May 2 to discuss how the Commission planned to carry out its 
mandate to coordinate the work of Sagem, the French company 
that is to issue ID and voter registration cards, and the INS 
(Institut National de Statistique) which has registered 
voters in the past.  According to a decree signed by 
President Gbagbo on April 14,(ref A) the CEI will resolve any 
disputes between the INS and Sagem.  Mambe told Ambassador 
that he was not yet certain of how the three organizations 
(CEI, INS and Sagem) will work together.  The three were to 
meet on May 6 in a session that Mambe will chair to hammer 
out the details. The CEI president did not, however, seem 
overly concerned about the issue. He implied that the 
obstacles had always been political rather than technical. 
 
HOW THE ELECTORAL LIST WILL BE COMPILED 
---------------------------------------- 
 
¶3. (SBU) Turning to the central question of who will be able 
to vote, Mambe discussed at length how the electoral list 
will be compiled. The 2000 electoral list will be the 
starting point for the 2008 electoral list.  Ambassador asked 
if all the political parties had agreed to this proposition 
and Mambe assured her that they had, noting that all parties 
had been given an opportunity to challenge the list and that 
each and every issue raised was addressed by the CEI and the 
INS. However, no names were added to or removed from the 2000 
list.  Mambe explained that every voter on the 2000 list will 
still need to register and be documented to vote in the 2008 
election.  The only advantage is that individuals on the 2000 
list will be presumed to be Ivorian citizens.  The 2008 list 
will also include persons who were over 18 in 2000 but who, 
for whatever reason, were not on the 2000 list and persons 
who had reached the age of 18 by March 31, 2008.  Individuals 
can register by presenting a birth certificate or replacement 
birth document (jugement suppletif) issued by the mobile 
courts (audiences foraines) or a copy of a birth certificate 
if the relevant registry was destroyed and had to be 
reconstituted. According to Mambe, reconstitution of civil 
registries will begin soon. 
 
¶4. (SBU) Mambe said that any individual who presents 
him/herself to register and has a birth certificate or 
jugement suppletif will be registered. Dubious cases will be 
checked against national files already in existence.  He 
noted that the Working Group on Identification will determine 
which such files will be utilized. Mambe told Ambassador that 
the CEI plans to publish the electoral list three months 
prior to the election, regardless of the fact that the law 
only requires the list to be published one month in advance. 
The list will also be posted on the internet to give 
political parties and the general public an opportunity to 
review it before the final list is presented to the 
government.  Mambe confirmed that the revised electoral code 
provides that any individual can contest the inclusion of any 
person on the list, as well as the failure to include any 
person.  The CEI examines and resolves every challenge. If 
the challenger is dissatisfied with the CEI's findings, he 
can appeal to a court, which has 8 days in which to render a 
decision. Mambe said all challenges must be resolved before 
the CEI gives the final list to the government. 
 
ANTI-FRAUD MEASURES 
------------------- 
 
¶5. (SBU) To reassure the political parties and the general 
public that the identification/registration process will be 
fair, personnel from CEI, INS, the National Office of 
Identification (ONI), the National Supervisory Commission on 
Identification (CNSI), and Sagem will be present at all 
registration sites. Mambe conceded that guidelines covering 
 
ABIDJAN 00000290  002 OF 002 
 
 
how this profusion of agencies will work together still need 
to be established, but was confident that the presence of so 
many entities would be a significant deterrent to fraud, as 
well as to any effort at discrimination. Individuals may 
register to vote at any site in the country, but they must 
select and stipulate at what location they will cast their 
votes.  The CEI, ONI, and CNSI representatives will receive 
registration forms and supporting documents.  INS and Sagem 
will take applicants' biographic and biometric information. 
Mambe explained that each registration site will daily print 
out a list of persons registered that will be cross-checked 
against applications submitted.  The list will be forwarded 
on CD-ROMs to coordination centers which will transmit them 
to three sites in Abidjan: an ONI, a CEI one, and a central 
site.  Mambe said that the coordination centers and the 3 
Abidjan centers will also all have personnel from CEI, ONI, 
CNSI, INS, and Sagem. 
 
Determining Citizenship - the Biggest Potential Pitfall 
--------------------------------------------- ---------- 
 
¶6. (SBU) All persons enrolled on the 2000 list are presumed 
to be Ivorian citizens. Mambe underscored that the 
Ouagadougou Political Agreement (OPA) provides that only a 
birth certificate or replacement birth certificate is 
needed to register to vote. These documents do not state the 
holder's citizenship, but do include his/her parents' 
citizenship.  Should a question arise about a registrant's 
citizenship, Mambe said that one way people who are not on 
the 2000 list could prove citizenship would be to show that 
one of their parents is on the 2000 list.  The CEI will 
verify or determine citizenship in other cases based on 
national files already in existence as noted in para 4 above. 
Mambe noted that persons who have certificates of nationality 
or other documents indicating citizenship, such as an expired 
national ID card, can show them when registering to vote to 
avoid having their registration challenged. Mambe admitted, 
however, that determining citizenship will be the most 
difficult challenge for the CEI. He was keenly aware of the 
need to demonstrate that cheating does not take place while 
simultaneously ensuring that legitimate voters are not 
disenfranchised. 
 
Timeline to Election 
-------------------- 
 
¶7. (SBU) Mambe said the personnel and machines needed for 
voter registration will be in place by the end of June.  He 
expects voter registration to be conducted for 45 days 
between early July and mid-August. The CEI will strive to 
publish the draft electoral list 3 months before the 
election, but can shorten that time period if it encounters 
problems.  According to Mambe, voter cards will be issued 15 
days before the election. 
 
¶8. (SBU) Comment.  The timeline outlined by the CEI seems 
doable, if all the necessary equipment is in place by the end 
of June. The CEI appears to be playing it safe by allotting 
more time than required to resolve any challenges to the 
electoral list. Mambe,s concern about accurately determining 
citizenship is well-placed given that "Ivoirian identity" 
lies at the heart of the country's political crisis.  Having 
all of the government institutions with 
responsibility for identification present at all sites 
involved in the voter registration process may prove to be a 
bit unwieldy but hopefully will accomplish the goal of making 
it more difficult for any party to manipulate the 
registration process or production of the electoral list. 
Having all parties accept the validity of the electoral list 
is a pre-requisite for having an election whose outcome is 
accepted by all. Post will be following this issue closely. 
End Comment. 
NESBITT