VZCZCXRO4074
PP RUEHMA RUEHPA
DE RUEHRY #0153/01 1231140
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
P 021140Z MAY 08
FM AMEMBASSY CONAKRY
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 2463
INFO RUEHZK/ECOWAS COLLECTIVE
RHEFDIA/DIA WASHINGTON DC
RUEAIIA/CIA WASHDC
RHMFISS/HQ USAFRICOM STUTTGART GE
RHMFISS/HQ USEUCOM VAIHINGEN GE

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 CONAKRY 000153 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SIPDIS 
SENSITIVE 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: PGOV ELAB PHUM KDEM GV
SUBJECT: AMBASSADOR VISITS FOREST REGION - LACKLUSTER 
APPROACH TO ELECTIONS 
 
 
¶1. (SBU) SUMMARY: Ambassador Carter visited N,Zerekore 
during the week of April 20-25 to familiarize himself with 
Guinea,s forest region and evaluate local progress towards 
legislative elections later this year. Both local government 
authorities and the Prefectoral Independent Electoral 
Commission (CEPI) had no plan in place for organizing 
elections, nor any mechanism for coordinating election 
activities. While civil society and youth leaders complained 
about weak governance and displayed little hope that the 
country's elections could be transparent, they seemed to be 
almost completely disengaged from the process.  There was a 
general "wait and see" attitude with little to no apparent 
civic action or leadership from those best positioned to push 
for a free and fair process.  END SUMMARY. 
 
¶2.  (U) The Ambassador's week-long trip to the Forest Region 
included a visit to a Chinese owned logging company, the 
UNHCR refugee camp in Kouankan, and an impressive state-owned 
agricultural plantation near Guinea's border with Liberia 
(all to be reported septel).  Local meetings in N'Zerekore 
focused on local government authorities, the prefectoral 
electoral commission, civil society, and youth associations. 
The Ambassador also visited an impressive, modern medical 
clinic operated by American missionaries.  The USAID 
Director, Pol/Econ Chief, Poloff, and DCM OMS also 
participated in the visit. 
 
----------------------------- 
LOCAL GOVERNMENT PERSPECTIVE 
----------------------------- 
 
¶3. (SBU) The Ambassador,s meetings with the local 
authorities, including the Governor, Deputy Governor, 
Prefect, and Mayor, indicated a need for increased 
communication and coordination between the local government 
and the Prefectoral Independent Electoral Commission (CEPI). 
The Ambassador pressed the Governor to frequently and 
publicly assert the government's neutrality with respect to 
upcoming elections in order to generate confidence on the 
part of the population.  The Ambassador also emphasized that 
the Governor needs to take the lead in establishing a 
community mechanism for dialogue and coordination on 
elections, stressing that such a mechanism needs to be 
established immediately rather than waiting until a few weeks 
or months before election day.   The Governor acknowledged 
his role in the upcoming elections and agreed to emphasize 
his neutrality, and to establish a mechanism for coordination. 
 
¶4.  (SBU) In a separate meeting with the prefect of 
N'Zerekore, the Ambassador made the same point about the 
importance of government neutrality.  The prefect, who had 
joined the Ambassador for dinner, said that he was 
broadcasting just such an announcement on local radio that 
evening.  He immediately called for a radio and had the mayor 
tune in to the station until the Ambassador heard the 
broadcast.  The prefect said it was the first public 
announcement he had made, but that he plans to make more.  On 
the subject of elections, he told the Ambassador that the 
local government will work with the CEPI to organize 
elections, but that he is the final authority for his 
prefecture.  "For example, I will make the decision about 
whether to close the roads and who can be on them," he said. 
The Ambassador pointed out that observation teams and CEPI 
members would need to be able to travel.  The prefect quickly 
agreed, but stressed that it was his job to make the official 
determination, in order to ensure security on voting day. 
 
-------------------------- 
CEPI WAITING FOR DIRECTION 
-------------------------- 
 
¶5. (SBU) The Ambassador met with the CEPI executive officers 
to discuss their progress on organizing the upcoming 
elections. The group had been sworn in on March 31, but still 
lacked operating resources, including a local office. 
Acknowledging the lack of funds and a local plan of action, 
the members claimed to be waiting for direction from the 
National Independent Electoral Commission (CENI) in Conakry. 
When asked by the Ambassador if they thought the election 
would be free and fair, the group was not optimistic. They 
expressed serious concern that the people of the region would 
not accept the election results and become violent. When 
pressed by the Ambassador and POLCHIEF to not wait until 
after the election to take action, CEPI promised to begin 
working with civil society and the authorities in order to 
coordinate preparatory activities. 
 
 
CONAKRY 00000153  002 OF 002 
 
 
¶6. (SBU) The CEPI also expressed fears that the Prefect would 
not allow them access in order to count votes, and that they 
could be jailed for trying to monitor the elections. They 
provided an example of an election monitor that was arrested 
and detained for trying to observe the elections in 2002. The 
CEPI requested that the American Embassy help protect them 
during the elections.  The Ambassador noted that unlike 
previous elections, the upcoming legislative elections are to 
be co-managed by the Ministry of Interior and the CENI.  The 
Ambassador said that they (the CEPI) needed to take up their 
role directly rather than sit passively and take instructions 
from the Prefect. 
 
------------------------------- 
PASSIVE CIVIL SOCIETY AND YOUTH 
------------------------------- 
 
¶7. (SBU) When the Ambassador met with local youth leaders, 
participants complained that the region's young people are 
generally ignored by everyone until an elections campaign 
gets underway.  They said that the political parties 
manipulate the youth, promise to represent them, and then 
abandon them when the elections are over.  They also 
complained about the lack of information available about the 
upcoming election.  When the Ambassador and POLCHIEF 
questioned the youth leaders as to what they were doing to 
ensure a transparent electoral process, they had no answer. 
One of the youth leaders even said that &the youth are 
passive and prefer to be observers.8  The Ambassador urged 
them to take action, emphasizing that the voters have a 
critical role to play in ensuring a fair process. 
 
¶8. (SBU) The meeting with civil society leaders demonstrated 
a similar passivity regarding the elections.  They complained 
about the lack of transparency within the political parties, 
pointing out that because of the national list system, when 
people vote for a party, they do not necessarily know who the 
eventual elected representative will be.  Meeting 
participants also said that a lack of private media in the 
region poses challenges for a free and fair process.  They 
emphasized that women need to be actively involved in the 
electoral process, both as candidates and as citizens. 
PolChief told participants that all of the political parties 
have told the Embassy that they will make sure at least 30% 
of their candidates are women, and another 30% youth. 
PolChief urged civil society leaders to hold the parties to 
their commitment. A female participant agreed, but said that 
it would be difficult to find female candidates who are 
literate. 
 
¶9.  (SBU) Civil Society leaders exuded the same passivity as 
the youth leaders and did not offer any suggestions as to how 
they would ensure the elections occurred and were fair.  When 
pressed by Polchief to take action, they looked confused as 
to what their role should be.  One of the civil society 
leaders claimed that the overall passivity of the population 
is a result of a culture of fear, which is a legacy of the 
Sekou Toure regime.  Polchief challenged that assumption, 
pointing out that the country's youth do not carry the same 
legacy.  The Ambassador pressed them to take action, and the 
civil society leaders promised to communicate with other 
groups to ensure coordination. 
 
------- 
COMMENT 
------- 
 
¶10. (SBU) The prefect is a former military officer and has an 
authoritative, domineering manner.  By contrast, the governor 
seemed meek and very deferential to everyone around him, 
including his subordinates.  These personalities, coupled 
with the overwhelming passivity on the part of civil society 
and the local population, suggest that organizing free and 
fair elections in the forest region is going to be a 
challenge.  The key is pressure from civil society, but they 
seemed to lack both the motivation and the initiative 
necessary to advance the process. Everyone expressed a 
somewhat muted hope for the elections and the positive change 
they can bring if effectively organized, but contacts seemed 
to be in a &wait and see8 mode.  With elections only six 
months away, there was very little happening on the local 
front.  END COMMENT. 
 
CARTER 
 
 
CARTER