VZCZCXRO7327
PP RUEHGR
DE RUEHKG #0398/01 1281203
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
P 071203Z MAY 08
FM AMEMBASSY KINGSTON
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 6294
INFO RUCNCOM/EC CARICOM COLLECTIVE PRIORITY
RUMIAAA/CDR USSOUTHCOM MIAMI FL PRIORITY

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 03 KINGSTON 000398 
 
SENSITIVE 
SIPDIS 
 
WHA/CAR FOR JTILGHMAN 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: PGOV PREL SOCI CVIS CPAS JM XL
SUBJECT: JAMAICA: MORE BACKLASH AGAINST U.S. PASSPORT 
HOLDERS IN GOJ 
 
REF: A. KINGSTON 364 
     ¶B. 07 KINGSTON 1348 
     ¶C. KINGSTON 280 
 
Summary 
--------- 
 
¶1. (SBU) On May 5, Director of Elections Danville Walker 
announced his immediate resignation.  Walker's resignation 
marks the latest casualty in the dual citizenship imbroglio 
that already has forced at least three Members of Parliament 
to formally renounce their U.S. citizenship (Ref A).  Under 
Jamaican law, the post of Director of Elections may not have 
sworn allegiance to a foreign power.   In his official 
statement, he stated that he was unwilling to renounce his 
U.S. citizenship.  His resignation comes at an inauspicious 
time, as the possibility of a rash of by-elections or a snap 
general election looms large on the horizon.  End Summary. 
 
Respected No-Nonsense Leader 
----------------------------- 
 
¶2. (U) Danville Walker was appointed as Director of Elections 
(DOE) over ten years ago by former Prime Minister P.J. 
Patterson of the People's National Party (PNP).  Over his 
years of service, Walker has developed a reputation as a 
no-nonsense leader who is politically neutral.    The 49-year 
old certified public accountant took over an organization 
that was failing in its basic mission to provide up-to-date 
voters lists and to allow free and fair elections at all 
polling stations.  However he has been at the center of much 
of the recent controversy of dual national elected as Members 
of Parliament (MPs) in contravention of the constitution. 
Walker's official proclamations, that all candidates for 
Parliament had been properly nominated, were cited in the 
Supreme Court hearings of MP Daryl Vaz of the Jamaica Labour 
Party (JLP) in the election petition filed against him by PNP 
candidate Abe Dabdoub (Ref A).  Walker later came under fire 
personally when his U.S. citizenship came to light in the 
media, since the Electoral Commission (Interim) Act prohibits 
"allegiance, obedience or adherence to a foreign power or 
state." 
 
¶3. (SBU) During his last year on the job Walker supervised 
national and local elections, both declared free-and-fair by 
impartial observers.  In fact, Jamaica has developed a 
reputation as a leader in election operations in the Western 
Hemisphere.  After observing the September 2007 general 
elections, some members of the Organization of American 
States (OAS) mission declared a desire to make 
recommendations to their home countries to follow the 
Jamaican model (Ref B).  Walker has been lauded in the past 
by senior members of both the JLP and PNP, and some are now 
calling for a review of the Electoral Commissions Act. 
 
Critical Juncture for Election Commission 
------------------------------------------ 
 
¶4. (SBU) Danville Walker's resignation comes at a critical 
time in Jamaican politics.  Since the initial ruling for a 
by-election to be held to settle the Vaz-Dabdoub dispute for 
the West Portland constituency, and with other election 
petition suits pending, a series of by-elections or even a 
snap general election loom.  Prime Minister (PM) Bruce 
Golding has stated that he will not let anyone serve in 
Parliament through a legal technicality who had not been duly 
elected by the voters (Ref A).  Therefore, a general election 
before the end of 2007 may become unavoidable.  The Election 
Commission is completing a new voter registration list which 
should be published before the end of May.  However, there is 
no clear successor for Mr. Walker for the critical post of 
DOE.  The government must work fast to identify a solidly 
qualified and impartial replacement in advance of what could 
prove the most closely-scrutinized election in the history of 
Jamaica. 
 
Election Petitions and Dual Nationals in Parliament 
--------------------------------------------- ------- 
 
¶5. (SBU) Abe Dabdoub recently announced his intent to proceed 
with an appeal of Supreme Court Justice Zaila McCalla's 
decision that the West Portland seat should be settled in a 
by-election (Ref A).  Dabdoub maintains that he alerted the 
voters that Vaz was not eligible to serve in Parliament, and 
therefore any votes for Vaz were 'null and void.'  Meanwhile, 
Vaz is using the publicity generated from the suit to 
increase his own visibility, and appears more popular than 
ever among the constituents.   (Note: Vaz has renounced his 
U.S. Citizenship, and Embassy Kingston delivered the 
Certificate of Loss of Nationality (CLN) to Vaz on May 6. 
After collecting his CLN documents, Vaz stated to Conoff that 
when PM Golding returns to Jamaica from his state visit to 
Cuba, he will deliver an ultimatum to two other JLP MPs to 
renounce or resign.  Vaz plans to run again for the seat in 
any upcoming by-election or general election.  End Note.) 
 
¶6. (SBU) There is still a chance that the dual-nationality 
issue can be solved via a mutual agreement between the PNP 
and the JLP to not contest any by-elections ordered by the 
courts.  This would allow the current government to move on 
and concentrate on other pressing issues such as high crime, 
soaring prices, and inflation.  According to Embassy sources 
within the PNP, many within the opposition party do not 
support Dabdoub's attempt to gain a seat in Parliament at all 
costs.  Some now speculate that Opposition Leader Portia 
Simpson-Miller was not properly briefed on the possible 
repercussions of a litigious approach to contesting the 
elections. 
 
¶7. (SBU) In a previous Dabdoub bid for Parliament in 1997, 
the seat winner was resolved through the courts when a 
recount led to several votes being disallowed and saw the 
then member of the JLP usurp the seat of PNP sitting MP 
Phylis Mitchell.  Dabdoub was unhappy with senior leadership 
in the JLP after Golding's return to the JLP in 2002, so he 
crossed over to the PNP; and now, once again, is seeking to 
gain power through the courts, instead of at the polls.   He 
is viewed by some as a 'turncoat' who will do whatever it 
takes for personal gain, since he has developed a reputation 
for being litigious and for switching party allegiance. 
Ironically, his last election petition adversary, Phylis 
Mitchell, is herself challenging for a seat in Parliament 
through an election petition filed against the JLP's Gregory 
Mair.  Mitchell alleges that Mair possesses Venezuelan 
citizenship and therefore was constitutionally ineligible to 
be nominated as a candidate for Parliament.  However, the 
initial ruling by the courts stated that the subpoena had 
been improperly served, so the case may be thrown out. 
Mitchell has appealed the initial ruling, but no further 
hearings have taken place. 
 
No Effect on Demand for U.S. Visas 
----------------------------------- 
 
¶8. (SBU) Despite all the controversies over high ranking 
government officials holding U.S. Citizenship contrary to the 
law, there has been little effect on the general population. 
The Consular Section remains as busy as ever, and has seen 
huge demand for their attempts to offer special interview 
procedures for previous U.S. visa holders to renew their 
visas.  Despite very little fanfare in the media, over 350 
visa holders came on the first day of the new program.  On 
the second day of the program the re-issuance line was shut 
down after less than one hour, because of security concerns 
which arose when the numerous applicants began pushing and 
shoving, refusing to form an orderly line.  The remaining 
applicants were sent away and a press release spelling out 
the issue was submitted to local media outlets.  Consular 
plans to continue the popular program after examining ways to 
ensure it can proceed in a safe and orderly manner. 
 
¶9.  (SBU) The American Citizen Services (ACS) Section reports 
that demand for U.S. passports continues at all-time high 
levels.  So far for Fiscal Year 2008 (FY08), applications for 
passports are approximately ten percent higher than the 
record levels of Fiscal Year 2007 (FY07).  While the huge 
FY07 increases can be explained by the new travel 
requirements of the Western Hemisphere Travel Initiative 
(WHTI), demand for passports in other countries has declined 
from peak FY07 levels.  Thus, despite the controversy 
surrounding dual nationals serving in high government 
offices, there appears to be no decline in demand for U.S. 
travel documents and citizenship determinations among the 
general population. 
 
Conclusions 
------------ 
 
¶10. (SBU) The resignation of the senior government official 
in charge of elections in Jamaica, comes at a most 
inauspicious time.  The Election Commission is currently 
finalizing a fresh voter list and the possibility of a rash 
of by-elections or a snap general election looms large on the 
horizon.  Unless a compromise between the JLP and the PNP can 
be reached before the culmination of the Dabdoub-Vaz Election 
Petition dispute, PM Bruce Golding may feel forced to call a 
fresh general election.  Since Golding already faces 
challenges from the narrowest majority in the history of the 
Jamaican Parliament (Ref C), he may utilize the PNP 
litigation to justify the need to call a new election, thus 
ensuring that all serving MPs are serving at the mandate of 
the people and not the courts.  While as many as four seats 
involving alleged dual nationals may be visited by the 
courts, the total number of dual nationals serving in 
Parliament is unknown.  Some in the media have speculated 
that as many as ten current members of Parliament may have 
sworn allegiance to foreign powers and thus serve in 
contravention to Jamaican law. 
HEG