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RR RUEHBZ RUEHDU RUEHJO RUEHMR RUEHRN
DE RUEHTO #0963/01 2821326
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
R 081326Z OCT 08
FM AMEMBASSY MAPUTO
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC 9435
INFO RUCNSAD/SOUTHERN AFRICAN DEVELOPMENT COMMUNITY

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 MAPUTO 000963 
 
AF/S FOR MSHIELDS 
AF/PD FOR CANYASO AND LALLISON 
 
SIPDIS 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: KPAO KMDR PREL PGOV KDEM MZ
SUBJECT: U.S. ELECTIONS PROGRAMS A BIG DRAW IN MOZAMBIQUE 
 
REF: A. MAPUTO 782 
     ¶B. MAPUTO 637 
 
¶1.  SUMMARY:  Responding to the enthusiastic Mozambican interest in 
the U.S. Presidential race, Public Affairs Maputo continues to 
organize successful elections-related events, with several more 
planned in the final month of campaigning.  These events have been 
excellent opportunities to engage key audiences on democracy and 
U.S. foreign policy, and for Mozambicans to interact directly with 
Americans on issues of interest and concern.  END SUMMARY. 
 
¶2.  The U.S. elections season is in full swing in Mozambique. 
Elections programs provide a special draw as Mozambique is preparing 
for its own (municipal) elections just two weeks later, on November 
19; there have been several political party shake-ups here, tests of 
democracy. Building on the positive responses to our programs in 
July and August (reftels), Public Affairs Maputo recently hosted a 
number of new events in Maputo and a discussion around the IIP 
PowerPoint "Elections 2008" at our American Corner in the northern 
Muslim city of Nampula. 
 
A Variety of Approaches and Venues 
---------------------------------- 
 
¶3.  The first PAS-hosted U.S. Elections roundtable with students 
from Mozambique's Higher Institute of International Relations (ISRI) 
in July (Ref. A) raised many questions about what drives American 
political parties.  Responding to that interest, Public Affairs 
invited the students back on October 1 to talk about American 
political parties.  The ISRI undergraduates had clearly been 
following the campaign closely and asked thoughtful questions on 
party history and support bases, considerations in voter 
decision-making, and how each candidate is likely to approach 
Africa. 
 
¶4.  The 90-minute conversation with three Mission officers came 
between PAS' showing of the first presidential debate on September 
29 and the vice-presidential debate on October 6. Both debates drew 
nearly full-house crowds who were not bashful about giving their 
opinions on the candidates' answers, their debating styles, and even 
who "won." 
 
¶5.  On a lighter note, PAS chose the Hollywood film "Dave" from the 
ECA elections-themed film list to show on October 2.  Despite the 
humorous approach of the movie, it prompted a serious discussion 
about the role of the Vice President, an office which does not exist 
in Mozambique, in comparison to the office of the Prime Minister 
here. 
 
The Debates are Catching On 
--------------------------- 
 
¶6.  With a Public Affairs grant, two local NGOs--The Center for 
Mozambican and International Studies and the Martin Luther King 
Institute--will host a panel discussion on the 2008 U.S. Election 
and foreign policy.  Two Embassy officers will participate in the 
October 8 event, which will be the catalyst for a series of student 
debates throughout Maputo.  The finalists of the college debate 
series, representing the Democratic and Republican parties, will 
square off in a last debate at the Mission's grand election night 
celebration at the National Conference Center on November 4 (cable 
to follow). 
 
Mozambican Journalists Will Bring the Race Home 
--------------------------------------------- -- 
 
¶7.  Coverage in the local media of the U.S. election will be 
thorough in the next several weeks, as two Mozambican journalists 
participate in Foreign Press Center elections reporting programs, 
covering the final presidential debate in New York, and the election 
itself on November 4.  Both writers' reports in two different 
independent weeklies are expected to be widely read as the 
Mozambican perspective on the U.S. democratic process and campaign. 
 
¶8.  Copies of elections-themed e-Journals and translated America.gov 
and IIP publications, such as the candidates' bios and articles on 
African-American voters, are flying off the shelves at all of these 
events and in the IRC and American Corners.  The Mission is equally 
enthusiastic about the elections.  With the variety and number of 
elections programs taking place, Americans from across the Mission 
are participating in our public diplomacy efforts. 
 
COMMENT: Considering the Possibilities 
-------------------------------------- 
 
¶9.  The discussions accompanying the elections 2008 events often 
focus on the current campaign in the context of U.S. history, with 
the comment that Americans are breaking new ground in their 
political experience.  Mozambicans too are considering the 
possibilities.  One civil society leader told PAO that he would like 
 
MAPUTO 00000963  002 OF 002 
 
 
to organize the first-ever debate between the Mozambican 
presidential candidates next year.  The 2008 election has been a 
unique opportunity to engage Mozambicans on issues of American 
policy and democracy, themes upon which PAS Maputo plans to build, 
even after November.  END COMMENT. 
 
AMANI