US embassy cable - 05SANAA1376

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 SANAA 001376 
 
SIPDIS 
 
E.O. 12958: DECL: 05/25/2015 
TAGS: PREL, YM, DOMESTIC POLITICS 
SUBJECT: SALEH CELEBRATES UNIFICATION DAY ALA KIM JUNG IL 
 
 
Classified By: Ambassador Thomas C. Krajeski for reasons 1.4 b and d. 
 
1. (C) Summary. Ambassador along with twenty-five other 
foreign Ambassadors and thousands of other invited guests 
attended the 15th commemoration of Yemen's unification on May 
22.  In what turned out to be a remarkable and contentious 
decision, President Saleh held this year's festivities in the 
southern port city of Mukalla.  Although a number of world 
leaders were invited, the highest-ranking officials in 
attendance were Arab League Secretary General Amr Musa and 
the Prime Minister of Djibouti.  The ceremony, which involved 
speeches, songs, and thousands of colorfully dressed 
synchronized dancers, all praising Yemen's President and 
leader, caused many of our diplomatic colleagues and many 
local observers to comment on Saleh's increasing tendency to 
portray himself as the indispensable, wise leader in the run 
up to the 2006 presidential election.  End Summary. 
 
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Coverage of President Bush's Letter 
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2. (U) President Bush's letter congratulating President Saleh 
on Unity Day was widely covered in the press and received top 
billing in official al-Thawra, above that of French President 
Chirac.  In the receiving line prior to the ceremony, 
President Saleh expressed his personal thanks to Ambassador 
for President Bush's letter.  Ambassador's op-ed piece on the 
importance of unification day also received wide, positive 
coverage. 
 
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Cult of Personality 
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3. (SBU) Since the beginning of May, sole broadcast outlet 
government-run Yemen TV has aired special reports with 
dogmatic rhetoric and extensive archival and current footage 
of President Saleh, highlighting his achievements as unifier 
and sole leader of the State.  Saleh addressed the nation on 
Yemen TV the evening of May 21, followed by live coverage of 
the President driving his car and walking in downtown Mukalla 
being rushed by a 'spontaneous' crowd chanting "long life to 
Saleh." 
 
4. (C) During the seaside celebration on May 22, 6000 young 
boys and girls danced and sang a song called "the great 
transformation" hailing Saleh as their wise leader. 
Observers were immediately reminded of North Korean parades 
as thousands of dancers dressed in color-synchronized 
costumes performed in honor of Saleh.  Chinese and Syrian 
advisors reportedly choreographed the performance.  In the 
grand finale a massive Yemeni flag with a giant superimposed 
image of Saleh was raised above the throng of multi-colored 
marchers as a huge yellow dirigible festooned with ribbons 
and another gigantic picture of Ali Abdullah waving to his 
people drifted behind the gathered masses.  One observer 
remarked, wryly, "L'etat c'est Ali." 
 
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Opposition Parties Criticize Celebration 
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5. (U) In the style typical of the regional press, government 
and opposition papers alike carried pages of congratulatory 
messages to President Saleh and page sized picture of the 
President in patriotic poses, in addition to extensive 
coverage of the celebration.  All political parties expressed 
good wishes to the Yemeni people.  Two major opposition 
parties, however, used the occasion to criticize the ROYG as 
well.  Islah commented that the party rejects using Unity Day 
to promote a one-party system, and the Yemeni Socialist Party 
(YSP) commented that the extravagant nature of the 
celebration was inappropriate given Yemen's dire economic 
conditions. 
 
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The Mukalla Controversy 
----------------------- 
 
6. (C) In the run up to the May 22 festivities, ROYG and 
opposition figures close to the Embassy discussed the 
controversial choice of the Mukalla venue.  In a reportedly 
spur of the moment decision, Saleh declared Mukalla as the 
site, over many ROYG officials objection due to the high 
costs of moving the entire government south due to 
infrastructure, security, and other logistical requirements. 
Several high level officials complained to Ambassador and 
other EmbOffs of a 300 Million USD price tag for moving the 
venue from the capital.  (Comment: Although the cost was no 
doubt high, this number is exaggerated and likely includes 
multiple infrastructure development projects that were 
underway in Mukalla long before the decision to hold the 
ceremonies there.  Nevertheless, the projected cost of the 
festivities became a rallying point for those critical of 
ROYG waste and corruption.  End Comment). 
Krajeski