UGANDAN CONSUL GENERAL DISCUSSES THE LRA

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 KHARTOUM 001612 SIPDIS SIPDIS E.O. 12958: DECL: 07/08/2016 TAGS: PREL PGOV PTER PINS MOPS PINR PHUM UG SU SUBJECT: UGANDAN CONSUL GENERAL DISCUSSES THE LRA KHARTOUM 00001612 001.2 OF 002 Classified By: CGJ R. Whitehead, Reason: Section 1.4 (b) and (d) ¶1. (C) Summary: On June 27, CG met with newly arrived Ugandan Consul General, Ambassador Busho Ndinyenka. The Ugandan CG complained Vice President Riek Machar continued to overplay his hand by allowing LRA fighters to move back onto Sudanese soil and by continuing to inflate the size of the LRA force. He said that the Government of Uganda (GOU) harbors reservations about what good will come of the mediation effort, based on past failures to get Kony to talk in good faith, but a delegation will soon come to Juba. (Note: This message was delayed due to technical difficulties in Juba; we are sending it in for the record. End note.) End summary. -------------- Machar Role Not to GOU Liking -------------- ¶2. (C) Ndinyenka complained that Riek Machar has continues to overplay his hand as self-designated mediator between the GOU and LRA. Ndinyenka said that there is widespread unhappiness in Kampala about Machar,s actions, especially the delivery of large quantities of food and money to Kony, and his repeated recorded assurances to Kony that &the SPLM has no problem with the LRA.8 The Ugandan CG added that Ugandan Popular Defense Force (UPDF) troops stationed near Yei have confirmed that Machar has allowed 300 LRA fighters to move back into Sudan near Yambio, where they are protected by SPLA forces. Ndinyenka said that Machar continues to claim that Kony has 1,000 LRA fighters with him, when the actual number is closer to 400, of which 100 remain in Garamba National Park in the DRC, cultivating gardens. ¶3. (C) The Ugandan CG said that Machar has taken an overly public approach to the mediation, including a pre-arranged press ambush after his Ndinyenka,s initial meeting with Machar. When Machar attempted to bring in a television crew to film the meeting, Ndinyenka refused to begin discussions until they left. He said that he told Machar that the GOU wants to approach the mediation discreetly and avoid a press circus. Machar agreed, but when the two left Machar,s office, twenty journalists were waiting outside, and Machar spoke at length about the latest developments. -------------- The GOU Approach -------------- ¶4. (C) Ndinyenka said that the GOU would name a delegation at the sub-ministerial level that would include the Foreign Ministry, External Security, and the UPDF. He would presumably head this group, which would come to Juba to meet with the LRA delegation. He stressed that they would not meet with any of the five senior LFA officials under ICC indictment, and had so informed Machar. The Ugandans hope to be able to offer a general amnesty to the LRA rank and file and induce them to disarm and return home. He observed that the LRA delegation was in fact not LRA ) most were Europe-based Acholis who had never set foot in an LRA camp. He cautioned that the mediation had to be with the LRA, and not become a GOU-Acholi negotiation. ¶5. (C) Ndinyenka expressed skepticism that the mediation effort would succeed, given past experience in trying to negotiate with Kony. Ndinyenka described his role in the 2001 Carter Center initiative to resolve the LRA problem. Kony met with a woman from the Carter Center and then complained he had been demeaned because his interlocutor was a female. When a second individual came to Juba from Atlanta, a man, Kony flatly stated that he would shoot him if he came near Kony,s camp. Ndinyenka said that Kony had simply walked away from other attempted negotiations; based on Kony,s record, Ndinyenka was dubious. He said that he would meet with Salva Kiir on June 28 to discuss some of the GOU,s concerns and offered to share with CG Kiir,s response. -------------- Others in GoSS Agree -------------- ¶6. (C) Ndinyenka is not alone in his reservations about the LRA mediation effort. Regional Cooperation Under Secretary (and acting minister) Cirino Hiteng told CG that, in his view, the entire affair had been badly handled, especially the videotape of Machar handing Kony a packet of cash. SPLA Chief of Staff Oyai Deng was even more dismissive, stating flatly in one meeting that mediation &would not work8 and that when it failed, military force would be required. KHARTOUM 00001612 002.2 OF 002 -------------- Biodata -------------- ¶7. (C) Ndinyenka said that he is a career diplomat and a former ambassador. He came to Kampala with Museveni in 1986, and has been involved in a number of negotiations, including the Lusaka Peace Process for DRC. He currently stays in a room at the Juba Hotel, but has been told that he must vacate within a month when the Kuwaitis begin razing the dilapidated but stately complex, one of the most historic sites in Juba, to make way for a new hotel. The Ugandans had hoped to share a renovated building with the Kenyans until the building,s owner insisted on doubling the agreed monthly price. The meeting took place on a pair of plastic chairs under a mango tree. HUME