PALESTINIAN AMBASSADOR DISCUSSES GHANA

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 ACCRA 002315

SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: DECL: 11/09/2015
TAGS: PGOV PREL GH IS
SUBJECT: PALESTINIAN AMBASSADOR DISCUSSES GHANA



1. (C) Summary: During a November 2 courtesy call, outgoing
Palestinian Ambassador and Dean of the Diplomatic Corps
Ibrahim Omar told the Ambassador that U.S. government efforts
to gain allies among West African Muslims and stabilize the
region will only succeed if the Israeli-Palestinian conflict
is settled. He also offered a critical evaluation of former
President Rawlings and discussed regional conflicts. End
Summary.

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STATE OF GHANA'S MUSLIM COMMUNITY
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2. (U) Omar told the Ambassador that Muslims are
increasingly integrated into political life in Ghana, noting
that several Muslims have been elected Members of Parliament
and that President John Kufuor selected Aliu Mahama, a
northern Muslim, as vice president to promote national unity.
Omar warned, however, that too few northern Muslims are
finding employment upon their arrival in the coastal cities.
Omar said the "zongos" (poor Muslim ghettos) where these
migrants settle could become breeding grounds for radicalism.



3. (U) On two occasions, Omar praised Yasir Arafat as a man
of peace who could have ignited worldwide conflict but chose
not to. Omar said Arafat could have called on Muslims to
defend their holy sites in Jerusalem, and that even
Christians may have heeded such a call if Arafat had turned
his back completely on the possibility of a peaceful
resolution. He argued passionately that Muslim communities
in West Africa will remain vulnerable to radicalism as long
as the Israeli-Palestinian conflict endures because Muslims
regard defending Islam as a moral responsibility.


4. (U) Omar applauded the U.S. Embassy's Muslim outreach
efforts, which he said helps him to persuade Muslims that the
U.S. is fighting terrorism rather than Islam and to counter
the radicalism spread by Iran, Libya and other sources of
funding for development projects in the Muslim community. He
advocated that the U.S. government dedicate outreach and
development projects to Muslim communities in northern Ghana
where the needs are greatest.

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DESTRUCTIVE ROLE OF RAWLINGS
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5. (C) Omar said that despite his close friendship with
Rawlings during the ex-president's two decades in power, he
sees him as a destructive influence on Ghana's emerging
democracy and on the opposition New Democratic Congress (NDC)
party. Omar portrayed both Rawlings and his wife Nana as
out-of-touch and having an insatiable appetite for power.
Omar said Rawlings cannot endure psychologically having lost
the reins of power and should have sought a post-presidential
identity earlier. "He feels defeated," Omar said, adding
that if it were not for Rawlings' advisor, Captain Kojo
Tsikata, Rawlings never would have stepped down.

SIPDIS


6. (C) Omar said nearly every remark by Rawlings becomes an
embarrassment to his party because he relies on virtually no
advisor except his wife whose own power hunger has cost
Rawlings support among the NDC. According to Omar, Rawlings
remains dangerous to Ghana's democracy not only because of
his ill-considered threats of staging a coup d'etat but also
because the Israelis provided Rawlings with stockpiles of
arms throughout the country. He said these stockpiles are not
limited to the heavily ethnic Ewe Volta Region as rumored
(Rawlings is half-Ewe, half-Scottish.)


7. (C) In spite of these threats to Ghana's young democracy,
Omar predicted that if the country could survive two more
national elections, a full generation of Ghanaians would have
only known democratic rule and would not tolerate another
coup d'etat.

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REGIONAL ISSUES
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8. (U) Omar said he considered both Cote d'Ivoire and
Liberia potentially explosive and destabilizing for the West
African sub-region. He said he knew President Laurent Gbagbo
personally and appreciated the difficulty of his
circumstances but emphasized that the present situation is
"very dangerous" and "must be settled."


9. (U) Omar acknowledged the difficulty of restoring
democratic rule to Liberia. He commented that the U.S. could
not afford to abandon a region with 26 percent of the world's
oil supply to British and French companies. In turn, the
Ambassador pointed out the large proportion of Americans with
historical ties to West Africa and said U.S. interests were
not limited to the region's oil.


10. (U) Omar said former Togolese leader Gnassingbe Eyadema
was a friend and that he had been to Lome to meet his son,
Faure Gnassingbe. However, he did not offer any substantive
commentary on the present government.


11. (C) Comment: Omar, who has had responsibilities in Ghana
since 1986, was open with both personal and political
commentary and eagerly shared his insights on regional issues
and domestic politics. He claimed that he was being
especially frank and less diplomatic with his remarks because
of his imminent departure. He suggested multiple times that
his remarks were drawn directly from his diplomatic
reporting. Post has no information to corroborate his
allegation about Rawlings' stockpiling of Israeli arms, and
we find it difficult to believe.


12. (SBU) Bio note: Omar is a gracious host who enjoys
introducing his guests to Palestian herbal tea and sweets.
Having spent nearly half his adult life in Ghana, he was in a
reflective mood. He said all his friends and his entire
social life revolved around Ghanaians. He said that years
ago he suffered burns on his forehead and scalp when he
rescued his young son during an accidental fire at his
diplomatic residence. He mentioned that he had been offered
a position with sub-regional responsibilities based in Lagos,
but he hoped to secure an assignment in the U.S. He said the
Israelis would have to approve him for such a post. He
pointed out that he had persuaded his daughter and
son-in-law, a prominent optometrist who had studied in the
U.K. for six years, to relocate to Accra. Omar said that his
son also had previously taught at the Ghana Institute of
Management and Public Administration (GIMPA). According to
Omar, these family ties are sure to bring him back to Ghana,
especially if he is posted to Lagos.

BRIDGEWATER