AMNESTY LAW: QUESTION MAY NOT BE SETTLED YET

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 KINSHASA 002001

SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: DECL: 12/09/2015
TAGS: PGOV KDEM CG KPKO
SUBJECT: AMNESTY LAW: QUESTION MAY NOT BE SETTLED YET


Classified By: PolCouns MSanderson, reasons 1.4 b/d.


1. (C) On November 29 the National Assembly passed the
long-awaited amnesty law, but the central issue -- the fate
of those accused of assassinating former president Laurent
Kabila -- remains explosive and far from settled. Passage of
the law itself triggered a spate of bad feelings, as the law
passed on a slim three-vote margin following a walk-out by
the PPRD and the Mai Mai delegates. This break with
consensus -- the foundation of the transition -- in favor of
majority voting could itself carry consequences for remaining
legislation in Parliament, including the electoral law.
Senior Presidential Advisor Augustin Katumba told PolCouns
December 3 that National Assembly president Olivier Kamitatu
had made a "deliberate choice" to force the law through, and
would have to deal with the consequences.


2. (C) This law, a key piece of legislation identified in the
transitional constitution as necessary to complete the
transition, has always been divisive, posing as it does both
a personal and political dilemma for President Kabila. Those
close to the President say that he does not want to risk
offending family members and the hard-liners among his
political followers by appearing willing to forgive his
father's killers. At the same time, he reportedly favored
trying to advance national reconciliation, which was the
intent of the law. When Kamitatu first believed that he had
a workable law, over 18 months ago, he approached Kabila and
in a series of private meetings, said that he had received
Kabila's personal assurance that the bill could be presented
for a vote and that the PPRD would support it. However, when
Kamitatu brought the bill to the floor, the PPRD and Mai Mai
delegates left the Assembly and, without MLC support, there
were not enough votes to pass the law so it foundered.


3. (C) In the ensuing time the PPRD and RCD have sporadically
searched for a compromise. It was the MLC which finally
proposed a way forward, by inserting a new paragraph into the
law defining political crimes, and specifically providing a
conditional (vice complete) amnesty to the alleged assassins
of the former president and giving them the opportunity to
plead their case before the Supreme Court, abiding by the
Court's decision. According to Katumba, the PPRD agreed to
allow the bill to be voted based on the understanding that
this language would be included. Instead, thanks to a few
key changes in the definition of war crimes (changes which
MLC VP Bemba reportedly believes will exempt him from
prosecution for his actions during the war),the MLC withdrew
its proposed compromise language and voted with the RCD and
political opposition, providing the critical mass to pass the
law on majority vote.


4. (C) The problem which remains now is a question of
interpretation. The law no longer provides a specific
definition of a political crime, despite fairly specific
language defining war crimes. Moise Nyarangabu, head of the
RCD/G component in the Assembly and one of his party's
hard-liners, believes the RCD can and should use this
imprecision to exonerate those of its members imprisoned or
under sentence of death for their supposed involvement with
the assassination. The PPRD vehemently insists that, since
political crimes were not defined and killing a president is
not a war crime, the law does not apply to this group.
Furthermore, Katumba and others from the PPRD told PolCouns
that if the RCD tries to have the Minister of Justice rescind
the sentence regarding the assassins, the PPRD will challenge
the law in the Supreme Court. Katumba also said that
President Kabila will not sign the bill into law, despite the
risk that the PPRD could then be accused of trying to block
the transition. However, he added that as long as the RCD
doesn't try to use the law to free those imprisoned, the law
can be finalized "some time" before the end of the
transition.


5. (C) Comment: Passing the bill has not put an end to the
controversy and potential problems posed by the issue of
amnesty. Among fallout from the bill's passage seems to be a
rupture between National Assembly head Kamitatu and the PPRD
(septel),and the threat (by the PPRD) of problems passing
remaining pieces of key legislation, such as the elections
law and the budget. But for President Kabila personally, the
passage of the law -- over the strong and vocal objections of
his party -- has drawn some of the sting from the issue. At
this point he can argue to both his family and his party that
he did his best to oppose it, but that now it is time to move
on. If he does so, resisting the urging of extremists that
he either contest the law or refuse to sign it, it could be
not only an important step in national reconciliation but one
which redounds to his political credit. End comment.
MEECE