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TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC IMMEDIATE 9578
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RUEHBR/AMEMBASSY BRASILIA PRIORITY 2206
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C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 03 PORT AU PRINCE 000157 
 
SIPDIS 
 
DEPT FOR WHA/EX, WHA/CAR, S/CRS, AND INR/IAA 
WHA/EX PLEASE PASS TO USOAS 
SOUTHCOM ALSO FOR POLAD 
 
E.O. 12958: DECL: 02/10/2019 
TAGS: PGOV PREL PHUM HA
SUBJECT: HAITI: PRESSURE MOUNTS ON ELECTORAL COUNCIL TO RECONSIDER LAVALAS EXCLUSION
 
REF: PORTAUPRINCE 122 
 
Classified By: Amb. Janet A. Sanderson for reasons 1.4 (b) and (d) 
 
¶1. (C) Summary:  The U.S., Canadians, French, the European 
Commission and the OAS have issued statements in the last few 
days regarding the exclusion of Fanmi Lavalas from the 
upcoming Senate elections (reftel), stating that credible 
elections must be inclusive.  A milder statement by MINUSTAH 
underscored the need for inclusion.  A growing number of 
Haitian political actors have criticized the disqualification 
of all Fanmi Lavalas candidates.  The Provisional Electoral 
Council (CEP) has begun to backtrack, opening a ''Grievance 
Office'' to explain disqualifications and receive complaints, 
but with no expressed authority to put disqualified 
candidates back on the ballot.  The Canadians and we will 
meet with the CEP later in the week to urge again that they 
keep the doors open to revising an excessively exclusionary 
approach to approving candidates.  In doing so, we will 
continue to emphasize our firm support for Haiti's election 
process, including our commitment to provide funding.  End 
summary. 
 
INTERNATIONAL COMMUNITY PRESSES FOR INCLUSIVE ELECTIONS 
--------------------------------------------- ---------- 
 
¶2. (SBU)  The U.S. and Canada issued statements February 6 
expressing concern that the Provisional Electoral Council 
(CEP) had excluded all members of a particular party from the 
April 19 Senate elections, declaring that the credibility of 
the elections would hinge on bringing in all major parties, 
and asking the CEP to leave the door open to dialogue and 
discussion.  MINUSTAH issued a statement February 8 defending 
the principle of inclusion but not mentioning the CEP action 
that produced this problem.  The local OAS representatives 
circulated a statement by OAS Secretary General Insulza on 
February 7 highlighting the disqualification of a major 
party, and requesting that the CEP offer to extend the 
registration period so that ''irregularities'' within certain 
parties could be ironed out.  The European Commission and 
France have gone public in this same vein as well.  Although 
no statement named the excluded political party, all in Haiti 
understand it to be Fanmi Lavalas, the party of former 
President Jean-Bertrand Aristide. 
 
¶3. (SBU) The cascade of statements from the international 
communities appears to have had an effect.  The CEP on 
February 8 stated it had opened a ''Grievance Office'' that 
would inform candidates of the reasons their applications 
were rejected and to hear their complaints.  However, CEP 
spokesman Frantz Bernadin told the press February 9 that the 
CEP's list of candidates was final.  Recent public statements 
by CEP President Verret have focused exclusively on 
reiterating the CEP's independence and Haiti's sovereignty. 
 
CENTRIST PARTIES LARGELY OPPOSE EXCLUSION OF LAVALAS 
--------------------------------------------- ------- 
 
¶4. (C) A number of Haitian political parties have expressed 
reservations about the CEP's exclusion of Lavalas.  While 
they have little sympathy for the party of former President 
Jean-Bertrand Aristide, they see the exclusion of Lavalas as 
a tactical mistake with possible security implications. 
Edgard Leblanc Fils, general coordinator of the Organization 
of Struggling People (OPL), told Poloff February 10 that the 
CEP is wrong to put all Lavalas candidates ''in the same 
basket'' -- some, he said, had questionable pasts while 
others were legitimate competitors for the Senate seats they 
are contesting.  Fusion's Micha Gaillard made the same point 
to Poloff February 9, adding that the CEP's questionable 
handling of the Lavalas matter further illustrated the 
party's reservations about the CEP's competence and 
independence.  Anes Lubin, a member of the Lespwa coalition's 
Executive Board, told Poloff February 9 that Haiti ''should 
not have elections without Lavalas,'' and that the CEP should 
find a way to integrate the party's candidates into the 
elections. 
 
¶5. (SBU) Some Haitian political actors have taken swipes at 
the United States for ''interfering'' in Haiti's election. 
Senators Youri Latortue (Artibonite in Action, Artibonite) 
and Cemephise Gilles (Lespwa, North) as well as Deputy 
Stephen Benoit (Lespwa, West) criticized the U.S. Embassy 
February 9 for pressuring the ''independent'' CEP.  Latortue 
accused the Embassy of violating the Vienna Convention on 
Diplomatic Relations.  All three, however, stated that 
Haiti's elections should allow all major parties to 
participate.  Senate President Kely Bastien (Lespwa, North), 
Senator Anacasis Jean Hector (West, Lespwa) and Chamber 
President Levaillant Louis-Jeune (Fusion/CPP, Artibonite) 
took a different position, stating publicly in the last few 
days that the U.S. did have the right to express its opinion 
on Haiti election matters.  They also strongly supported the 
principle of inclusiveness. 
 
LAVALAS PROTESTS EXCLUSION FROM APRIL BALLOTING 
--------------------------------------------- -- 
 
¶6. (C) Both moderate and hard-line Lavalas officials have 
called upon the CEP to reverse its decision to exclude 
Lavalas from the Senate elections.  Sen. Rudy Heriveaux has 
repeatedly called for calm, but insisted that ''there will be 
no elections without Lavalas.''  The FL Executive Committee's 
Maryse Narcisse denounced Lavalas's exclusion as a 
''provocation,'' and Rene Civil, the Lavalas militant and 
Narcisse ally, led a demonstration of a few hundred people 
outside the Aristide Foundation in Tabarre February 7.  A 
rally reportedly planned near the National Palace on the same 
day did not materialize. 
 
LAVALAS HARDLINERS CLAIM ARISTIDE MANDATE 
----------------------------------------- 
 
¶7. (SBU) Maryse Narcisse, Coordinator of the FL Executive 
Committee and former private secretary to Jean-Bertrand 
Aristide, submitted to the CEP on February 9 a mandate 
purportedly signed by Aristide authorizing her to designate 
FL candidates for elections, as well as to assume other 
authorities of the party leader.  The document, dated April 
27, 2004 in Jamaica and typed in French, is Narcisse's 
response to CEP officials who excluded Lavalas on the grounds 
that FL candidates did not have the written authorization of 
Aristide as the party's leader to participate in the 
elections. 
 
¶8. (C) FL moderates, one of whom provided Poloff a copy of 
the supposed attestation, argue that the document is not 
authentic.  They claim that it was created by superimposing 
the text on a photocopy of Aristide's signature.  The 
moderates also argue that the timing of the attestation's 
release is suspect -- if authentic, the document would have 
resolved a leadership dispute that has been simmering within 
the party since Aristide's departure in 2004.  They allege 
that she only created the document once it became clear that 
the implied support of Aristide would not be enough to 
persuade the CEP to accept Lavalas candidates.  In public, 
however, Cristalin and his allies have been more circumspect, 
saying they will leave it to the CEP to determine the 
authenticity of the document, and urging all factions of the 
party to join discussions on the unification of the party. 
Even Senator Heriveaux, who sides with the Narcisse faction, 
told the press February 9 that he was surprised by the 
existence of this document. 
 
MODERATES SEEK DIALOGUE WITH HARDLINERS 
--------------------------------------- 
 
¶9. (C) The moderate faction of Fanmi Lavalas, lead by Yves 
Cristalin with the tacit support of former PM Yvon Neptune, 
has sought a dialogue with the FL Executive Committee with 
little success.  FL moderates privately say their goal is to 
establish a unified list of FL candidates, including 
candidates from both the Narcisse/Heriveaux and 
Neptune/Cristalin camps, to counter the CEP argument that it 
could not countenance competing candidate lists.  Deputy 
Jonas Coffy told Poloff February 8 that he and Cristalin have 
tried to open lines of communication to Narcisse, but 
Narcisse has continued to rebuff their overtures, most 
recently on February 7.  Sen. Rudy Heriveaux, who has enjoyed 
an uneasy alliance with Narcisse since November 2008, has 
privately signaled his willingness to talk with Cristalin. 
 
CEP TO RECEIVE PROTESTS FROM EXCLUDED CANDIDATES 
--------------------------------------------- --- 
 
¶10. (C) A number of candidates and party leaders have sought 
information informally from the CEP, and have received 
unsatisfactory or no answers.  Fusion spokesman Micha 
Gaillard told Poloff February 9 that his party's leadership 
had been unable to determine with the CEP the deficiencies in 
the files of Fusion's two rejected candidates.  On the other 
hand, the president of OPL, Edgard Leblanc Fils, said that 
the one OPL candidate who was disqualified -- for not 
demonstrating that he ''exercised a profession'' in his 
chosen department, even though his receipt from the electoral 
authorities confirmed that he submitted such a document -- 
was given a chance to submit additional documents and expects 
a decision shortly.  Alyans leader Evans Paul, whose party is 
boycotting the elections to demonstrate lack of confidence in 
the CEP, said that many candidates were excluded for 
illogical reasons, citing one candidate who was denied a 
place on the ballot for not submitting an authorization from 
his political party, even though he wished to run as an 
independent. 
 
COMMENT 
------- 
 
¶11. (C) The growing chorus of domestic and international 
voices calling for the CEP to revisit a number of candidate 
disqualifications has made the election authority bend -- but 
only a little thus far.  The Canadians and we will meet with 
the CEP later in the week to urge again that they keep the 
doors open to revising an excessively exclusionary approach 
to approving candidates.  In doing so, we will continue to 
emphasize our firm support for Haiti's election process, 
including our commitment to provide funding. 
SANDERSON