VZCZCXRO3818
RR RUEHROV
DE RUEHKH #1036/01 1921347
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
R 101347Z JUL 08
FM AMEMBASSY KHARTOUM
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC 1299
INFO RUCNIAD/IGAD COLLECTIVE

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 KHARTOUM 001036 
 
SENSITIVE 
SIPDIS 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: PGOV PREL KSCA OTRA EAID CDC SU
SUBJECT: CONSTITUTIONAL REVIEW COMMISSION CO-CHAIR OPTIMISTIC ABOUT 
UPCOMING ELECTIONS 
 
REF:  KHARTOUM 1014 
 
¶1.  (SBU) SUMMARY:  Prof. Abdullah Idris, co-chairman of Sudan's 
National Constitutional Review Commission (NCRC), believes the 
newly-passed election law (REFTEL) provides a sound basis for 
elections, and he is optimistic that free and fair elections will 
take place on time in 2009.  However, he cautions that the yet-to-be 
appointed National Election Commission (NEC) will face a daunting 
task in organizing the elections, and will need foreign training and 
assistance.  While relevant legislation, such as the press law, 
needs to be reformed, he noted some important safeguards 
guaranteeing a free electoral climate were built into the election 
law itself.  Foreign partners can best help by continuing to stress 
that the international community will not countenance attempts to 
subvert the process towards elections next year, he said.  END 
SUMMARY 
 
¶2.  (SBU) Speaking to Embassy PolOff July 9 at the NCRC's modern 
offices in Khartoum, Idris said the new election law was 
substantially the same as the version his Commission had originally 
drafted and handed over to the Presidency and then to the National 
Assembly (NA) for consideration.  He credited an elections expert 
provided by the Turkish Embassy as invaluable assistance in drafting 
the law: without him, the law would not exist today, he said. 
 
LAW PROVIDES SOUND BASIS FOR ELECTIONS 
-------------------------------------- 
 
¶3.  (SBU) Addressing complaints by some of Sudan's smaller political 
parties that their concerns were not taken into account in the 
legislation, Idris said the original draft had been the product of 
intense and broad consultations throughout Sudan, and had been 
approved unanimously by Commission staff.  He said he points out to 
smaller parties, "Look, the NCP and the SPLM are in power," so they 
will largely determine legislation.  The law is not perfect, but 
it's impossible to please everyone.  It is vital to the country's 
future that we have elections, and it's best that that be done with 
a national consensus.  Let the national democratic process take 
place.  It is to the smaller parties' advantage to support the 
elections.  Time is now of the essence, and they should climb on 
board, he said. 
 
SPLM, NCP HAVE DECIDED TO PUSH AHEAD ON ELECTIONS 
--------------------------------------------- ---- 
 
¶4.  (SBU) Idris added that he is fairly confident that, barring 
unforeseen circumstances0free a.d fair electinS vill taoe plicu$onQ 
IoQ.  Le oQ$cnvaoceQvHevPf.ti pu*LM0`^fJ@&op-Chairman 
said he has "no doubt" that both Sudanese President Bashir and GoSS 
President Salva Kiir will be re-elected, so they should be able to 
live with independently-elected assemblies. 
 
APPOINTING AN INDEPENDENT NEC 
----------------------------- 
 
¶5.  (SBU) Idris said he hopes the Presidency will nominate, and that 
the NA will approve, the full NEC within one month.  It is 
"absolutely vital" that a truly independent, non-partisan National 
Election Commission be appointed.  This was the reason the NCRC 
wrote into the draft law provisions requiring a 2/3's majority vote 
in the NA for approval of all nominees to the Commission.  The 
process ensures that the names of nominees will be made public, so 
they will face public scrutiny.  "We wanted this to be debated in 
the NA," he said, "and that will necessarily engage the other 
political parties."  If the NEC does not enjoy widespread confidence 
among the Sudanese people, the results "would be disastrous," he 
said.  "People can see what is now happening in Zimbabwe, what 
happened in Kenya.  People can sense if you're not playing fair." 
 
NEC FACES HUGE CHALLENGE 
------------------------ 
 
¶6.  (SBU) Looking ahead, Prof. Idris admitted that the new National 
Election Commission (NEC) faces huge challenges in organizing 
elections for next year.  Naming the Commission's nine members will 
only be the first step; then the members will have to build an 
effective bureaucracy from scratch.  Ideally, the newly appointed 
commissioners will receive crash training, possibly by the 
Stockholm-based International Institute for Democracy and Electoral 
Assistance (or IDEA, www.idea.int), with which the NCRC has already 
been working.  Then, the newly-created NEC has to organize national 
elections in a country sadly lacking in infrastructure, particularly 
the South, he said. 
 
NEW LAW CONTAINS ITS OWN SAFEGUARDS 
----------------------------------- 
 
KHARTOUM 00001036  002 OF 002 
 
 
 
¶7.  (SBU)  Asked about the need for additional legislative reform - 
such as of the security and press laws - before elections can be 
held, Idris acknowledged that all relevant legislation should be 
brought into compliance with the constitution before elections. 
However, he stressed that such far-reaching legislative reform is 
not absolutely necessary for free and fair elections to take place. 
Anticipating that the NA might not prove up to the task, the NCRC 
included within the election law safeguard provisions, such as 
prohibiting state funds from being used for partisan campaigning, 
guaranteeing free access to independent election monitors and 
observers, etc.  Accordingly, "the parties shouldn't threaten to 
boycott the elections if this or that new law is not passed," he 
said. 
 
FOREIGN PARTNERS CAN HELP 
------------------------- 
 
¶8.  (SBU) Without being asked, Idris outlined an important role for 
the international community.  He said a procession of foreign 
ambassadors have visited his offices, all asking how they can help. 
Their most important contribution, he says, would be to keep 
hammering home the message that the international community will not 
put up with attempts to undermine or delay the election. 
 
NCRC LOOKS AHEAD TO REFERENDUM LAW 
---------------------------------- 
 
¶9.  (SBU) With its election law responsibilities now behind it, the 
NCRC is now looking ahead to the challenge of drafting a national 
law to provide for the 2011 referendum for Southern Sudan and Abyei, 
under terms of the CPA.  Idris said his commission badly needs 
foreign assistance from international bodies with experience 
organizing this kind of independence referendum. 
 
¶10.  (SBU) COMMENT: The Yale-educated Idris impresses as being one 
of Sudan's most competent public servants, one whose presents 
himself as being entirely commitment to democracy and elections. 
The professor is probably underestimating the ability of the two 
parties to find ways of delaying nationwide elections.  However, we 
hope his cautious optimism that a sound basis for free and fair 
elections has been created proves justified.  He is not shy about 
requesting foreign assistance, so hopefully the NEC, once 
established, will quickly provide the international community a plan 
for assistance.  We disagree with Idris that additional legislative 
safeguards may not be required, and will continue to press the 
parties (especially the NCP) to revise media and security laws in 
advance of elections. 
 
FERNANDEZ