JUSTICE MINISTER SEEKS USG ASSISTANCE FOR

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 DJIBOUTI 000669

SIPDIS

STATE FOR AF, AF/E AND DRL
LONDON, PARIS FOR AFRICA WATCHER
STATE ALSO PASS USAID REDSO

E.O. 12958: DECL: 07/12/2015
TAGS: PREL PGOV PHUM KDEM DJ
SUBJECT: JUSTICE MINISTER SEEKS USG ASSISTANCE FOR
INFRASTRUCTURE REHABILITATION


Classified By: Ambassador Marguerita D. Ragsdale.
Reasons 1.4 (B) and (D).


1. (C) Ambassador and Pol/Econ met 5 July with Minister of
Justice, Mohamed Barkat Abdillahi, and Secretary General at
the Ministry of Justice, Abdi Ismail Hersi, at their request,
to be briefed on changes being implemented at the Ministry
since Abdillahi assumed charge in May. Abdillahi said the
Ministry has plans for much needed renovation and development
of judicial buildings and infrastructure. At the top of the
list was complete overhaul of the Palais de la Justice and
the Ministry's office building, and the construction of a new
prison. In addition, Abdillahi said, all judicial affairs
are currently carried out in Djibouti City. None of the
districts had suitable structures in which to hold court
hearings or detain prisoners, creating an untenable situation
whereby all decisions were obliged to be made in Djibouti
city. He commented that the Ministry is considering
establishing a "mobile court," which would allow magistrates
and lawyers to travel to the districts and hear cases at
District Commissioners' offices.


2. (C) Abdillahi noted the urgent need of Djibouti to bring
justice to the doorsteps of its citizens. He said the
Ministry has been "knocking on doors" to seek funding from
bilateral partners. He asked whether the U.S. might be able
to help in this regard.


3. (C) Ambassador acknowledged that Djibouti's physical
infrastructure supporting the judicial system was in need of
improvement. She added, however, that it is also important
to focus on developing judicial personnel, laws and systemic
infrastructure. She offered the view that in Djibouti, for
example, judges lack access to legal libraries and may not be
aware of decisions that have been rendered in similar cases
with similar facts. Often, justice on paper is not
necessarily the justice witnessed by ordinary Djiboutians.
Abdillahi opined that the absence of libraries and the lack
of legal documentation of prior cases can be deemed "excuses"
by judges for their own failures to apply law strictly. A
good judge, he continued, would have these resources. While
not offering how that might be possible, Abdillahi conceded
that when the Palais de la Justice is finally renovated,
perhaps a legal library could be built with access for all
judges and magistrates. He reiterated that it was the
responsibility of judges to apply laws strictly, but there
also must be an institution to enforce it.


4. (C) Still, Abdillahi preferred to blame these problems on
physical infrastructure, which, he said, should be his
Ministry's main priority. He used the example of the current
prison's inadequate infirmary to illustrate the problems the
Ministry faces. The prison's infirmary cannot adequately
serve prisoners currently incarcerated because it lacks
capacity to provide qualified doctors, medicines or
facilities. Ambassador suggested that this be brought to the
attention of the Ministry of Health to see if that need could
be worked into current assistance programs for improvement of
Djibouti's health delivery system.


5. (C) Abdillahi stated that his Ministry had benefited in
several years past from assistance from the U.S. Embassy.
Specifically, in 2002 and 2004, Embassy Djibouti's Democracy
and Human Rights Fund served projects on human rights
improvement. He said the Ministry would like very much to
receive this kind of assistance again, but admitted that it
erred in not submitting proposals for the current fiscal
year. Pol/Econ offered to send to the Minister guidelines
and information on proposal submission for DHRF. Ambassador
encouraged Abdillahi to submit a proposal to the embassy in
the realm of judicial reform. She asked if the Minister was
aware of good governance reform efforts underway via a
presidential committee and if the committee were linked in
any way to the Justice ministry. Abdillahi indicated vague
awareness, but said there was no link in this activity to his
ministry.


6. (C) Comment: Djibouti needs to move its judicial reform
efforts along three tracks simultaneously: physical
rehabilitation of its appalling judicial buildings, courts
and prison; reform of judicial laws to deliver transparent
justice to all; and professional development of personnel who
service the judicial system. There may be resources at our
disposal to help Djibouti tackle all of these in some
measure, along with other donor partners. We will need to
determine priorities and will work closely with USAID to
discuss possibilities under existing or anticipated
assistance programs. End comment.
RAGSDALE