SAMARITAN'S PURSE,S DRIVERS ARRESTED AND VEHICLES

C O N F I D E N T I A L ASMARA 001015

SIPDIS

SIPDIS

LONDON FOR AFRICA WATCHERS
PARIS FOR AFRICA WATCHERS,
USAID/DCHA FOR WGARVELINK, LROGERS
DCHA/OFDA FOR GGOTTLIEB, MMARX, IMACNAIRN, KCHANNEL
DCHA/FFP FOR JDWORKEN, TANDERSON, PMOHAN, PBERTOLIN,
JMAJERNIK
USAID/AFR/AA AND AFR/EA FOR JBORNS, SMCLURE
NAIROBI FOR OFDA JMYER, GPLATT; REDSO/FFP NESTES
KAMPALA FOR USAID DSUTHER

E.O. 12958: DECL: 11/30/2016
TAGS: PHUM PGOV EAID ER SU
SUBJECT: SAMARITAN'S PURSE,S DRIVERS ARRESTED AND VEHICLES
IMPOUNDED

REF: ASMARA 958

Classified By: AMB. Scott H. DeLisi for reasons 1.4 (b) and (d).


1. (U) Summary. On November 20, Samaritan's Purse (SP)
attempted to transfer eight vehicles, including two trucks,
to the Beja Relief Organization (BRO) in Telkuk in Eastern
Sudan. During the transport, the police forced the drivers
to return to Asmara. In Asmara, the drivers and the local
supervisor of the car rental agency were arrested. SP is
trying to work the issue quietly and has requested the
Embassy not provide any assistance at this time. End
Summary.


2. (C) On November 20, nine drivers for Samaritan's Purse,
five employed directly by SP and four hired through a local
car rental agency, left Asmara and arrived in Keren at 1930.
They had planned to overnight in Keren and leave early the
next morning to drive to Telkuk. Around 2300, the acting SP
Country Director was called by one of the drivers who told
him that the police had come to the hotel and told them to
turn over the vehicles. The drivers refused, spent the night
in Keren and after a series of phone calls between the MLHW
and the police in Keren the next morning, the drivers and the
vehicles were provided a police escort to return to Asmara.
In Asmara, the GSE impounded the vehicles and arrested the
nine drivers along with the local supervisor of the car
rental agency. To date, no official charges against the
drivers have been filed. (Comment: The GSE rarely informs
individuals of charges or reasons for detention. End Comment.)


3. (C) Acting SP Country Director told poloff on November 27
that the Ministry of Labor and Human Welfare (MLHW) had given
oral approval to transfer program equipment to BRO. Despite
the oral approval, SP had nothing in writing and had
initiated the transfer without obtaining the GSE travel
permits usually required by NGOs for travel outside of
Asmara. Based on SP's past history with the GSE, the acting
Country Director said he felt they "had the green light" to
go forward with the transfer of vehicles. They had been told
by BRO that everything was in order in Sudan and felt they
had the consent of the MOD. SP, who has operated under what
they have termed a "special relationship with the Ministry of
Defense(MOD)," had followed their previous procedures of
notifying the MOD of their plans to travel and proceeded
without official permits from the GSE. (Note: Over the past
four years, SP has been running cross-border operations to
Eastern Sudan with few problems based largely on oral
agreements coordinated directly with the regional MOD
commander, General Tekle, and outside of the general MLHW
procedures required by the GSE for NGOs. While other NGOs
have encountered difficulties with travel permits, SP had
been permitted to travel through Eritrea to Eastern Sudan
without them. End Note.)


4. (C) Presently, SP is providing support for the families of
the detained individuals and attempting to resolve the
situation on their own. At this time, SP has not asked for
any assistance from the Embassy. In fact, the acting Country
Director specifically said to poloff, "the reason I didn,t
let you know earlier was because we don't want the situation
to become politicized."


5. (C) The acting Country Director mentioned that General
Tekle had told him in a conversation several weeks earlier
that SP should give the equipment directly to him and he
would arrange the transfer, because the Beja were not "smart
enough" to know what to do with the vehicles. Despite these
statements, SP does not believe this incident was an attempt
by the GSE, or more specifically the MOD, to obtain the

vehicles since they could have been seized at any time. SP
suspects that a local Eritrean SP staff may have tipped off
the police or the GSE security personnel about the transport
and the absence of travel permits in an attempt to build
credibility with the GSE. SP's acting Country Director
believes he can resolve the transfer and detention issues on
his own.


6. (C) Comment. The Embassy will remain engaged with
Samaritan's Purse and offer what support it can. As noted
reftel, the Ambassador had raised the issue of SP assets
earlier with the Minister of Labor and Social Welfare who
said her ministry had no problem with the transfer. We
suspect that tension over areas of responsibilities between
General Tekle and the MLHW, or even General Tekle's own
agenda, contributed to this incident and that it was not the
result of the on-going issues between the GSE and NGOs. End
comment.
DELISI