OPPOSITION FIGURE LEAVES SOUTH AFRICAN EMBASSY

UNCLAS KINSHASA 001270 SIPDIS SENSITIVE SIPDIS E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: PGOV PHUM KDEM CG SUBJECT: OPPOSITION FIGURE LEAVES SOUTH AFRICAN EMBASSY REFUGE TO VOTE REF: A. KINSHASA 381 ¶B. KINSHASA 44 ¶1. (SBU) Pastor Theodore Ngoy, a minor opposition figure who was jailed December 31 for "offending the president" (reftel A) and later "escaped" to the South African Embassy in Kinshasa where he took up residence March 2 (reftel B), finally left the embassy on July 30. Ngoy said the South African authorities had received assurances from the GDRC that he would be allowed to vote, as well as to campaign for provincial office in October's elections. Note: Ngoy voted without incident in the national elections on July 30. End note.) ¶2. (SBU) In a published letter to local newspapers, Ngoy said that, in his opinion as an attorney, the court that had tried him for "offending the president" no longer had jurisdiction after the February 18 promulgation of the new DRC Constitution. (Comment: This leaves open the question of why he sought refuge in the South African Embassy two weeks later, on March 2. End comment.) He claimed the Minister of Justice concurred with his legal opinion and therefore he, Ngoy, felt safe "returning" to the DRC to vote and campaign. ¶3. (SBU) Comment: A politically clumsy arrest in the post-referendum environment, followed by a five-month sojourn with the South Africans, appears to have ended peacefully. Ngoy, a vocal opposition gadfly, will no doubt seek the spotlight again once the campaign for provincial deputies opens. End comment. MEECE