RESPONSE TO KIIR: PRESS ATTACKS AND MORE COMMITTEES

C O N F I D E N T I A L KHARTOUM 000270 SIPDIS SIPDIS E.O. 12958: DECL: 02/06/2016 TAGS: PGOV PREL PINR SU SUBJECT: RESPONSE TO KIIR: PRESS ATTACKS AND MORE COMMITTEES REF: KHARTOUM 00229 Classified By: POL Michael Honigstein, Reasons: Section 1.4 (b) and (d) ¶1. (U) Summary: In the week following Salva Kiir,s provocative interview (reftel),the Arabic press and government-controlled newspapers have attacked Kiir for making unfounded accusations and for not working within the CPA. The government has denied Kiir,s claims that the South has not received its share of the oil money, announced the second meeting of the National Petroleum Commission (NPC), and vowed to form committees to assess the relationship between the SPLM and the NCP. In the meantime, Kiir, Government of National Unity (GNU) First Vice President and President of the Government of Southern Sudan (GoSS),has gone back to his normal approach in public meetings and statements. End Summary. -------------- Press on the Offensive -------------- ¶2. (U) Ever since Salva Kiir,s January 28 interview, when he delivered an out-of-character public attack of the NCP (reftel),the Arabic-language and pro-government newspapers have been criticizing Kiir. There have been daily editorials condemning Kiir for unwarranted attacks and calling on him to work within the established mechanisms of the CPA. ¶3. (U) These newspapers contend that the CPA has shown a great deal of progress in its implementation, citing the establishment of the GNU and the GoSS, and the forming of almost every commission. A few have even said that Kiir is the problem: he still considers the NCP an enemy and not a partner, and he wants the CPA to fail so the south can separate. The papers do not directly address Kiir,s accusations that the commissions have been delayed and ineffective, or that the SPLM has been marginalized in the GNU. They also make no mention of the sensitive Abyei boundary issues. -------------- -------------- Government Responds Quietly, Kiir Returns to Calm -------------- -------------- ¶4. (U) Meanwhile, the GNU has responded to some of Kiir,s criticisms. Government officials have only made one direct response, saying that they have provided the GoSS with its full share of the oil revenues: $702 million dollars for ¶2005. The GoSS claims that it has not received that amount, and believes that it is entitled to $1.5 billion. However, without directly addressing Kiir,s statements, the GNU has called the second meeting of the petroleum commission for February 6, and GNU Minister of Cabinet Affairs Deng Alor (SPLM) has announced that the cabinet will form committees to look into various aspects of SPLM and NCP relations. Second Vice President Ali Osman Taha, recently returned to Khartoum from the Hajj, told the press that he has received several reports on the progress of CPA implementation. ¶5. (U) Kiir, for his part, has gone back to business as usual. In a meeting with a visiting IMF delegation, also attended by the Minister of Finance and National Economy (NCP),press reports that Kiir followed the official government line. In a statement on Darfur, he promised to send additional experienced negotiators to Abuja, but did not directly attack the current government position. -------------- Comment -------------- ¶6. (C) While Kiir has returned to being less aggressive, the SPLM appears newly emboldened. To continue to establish itself as a national party, the SPLM held a political rally in Omdurman led by Yassir Arman, Chairman of the SPLM National Assembly Caucus and lead SPLM negotiator in Abuja. Other speakers participating were all from the SPLM,s northern ranks. Deng Alor has also used his position to take a higher profile, but it is unclear how his committees, and the reports Taha received, will relate to the Assessment and Evaluation Commission (AEC). Alor, however, did meet with the chairman of the AEC this week. All of these actions may have been timed to coincide with Rebecca Garang,s high-profile trip to Washington, although the visit has received little coverage in the pro-government press. HUME