ITURI UPDATE: TALKS STILL UNDERWAY FOR RELEASE OF

S E C R E T KINSHASA 000898

SIPDIS

SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: DECL: 06/06/2016
TAGS: PGOV KPKO CG
SUBJECT: ITURI UPDATE: TALKS STILL UNDERWAY FOR RELEASE OF
MONUC PEACEKEEPERS

REF: A. KAMPALA IIR 6 913 0085 06


B. KINSHASA 853

C. KINSHASA 851

Classified By: PolOff CBrown, reasons 1.4 b/d.


1. (C) According to MONUC and Congolese government officials,
talks are still underway with militia leader Peter Karim and
his Front for National Integration (FNI) regarding the
release of seven Nepalese peacekeepers captured in Tsupu May
28 (ref C). MONUC officials confirm that a Crisis Management
Support Team from the UN Department of Safety and Security
arrived in Kwandruma June 3 to assist with the hostage
release. As of June 6, MONUC officials said no further
progress has been made in securing the release of the seven
Nepalese.


2. (S) Contrary to reporting from Kampala DAO (ref A),MONUC
officials said they know where the peacekeepers are being
held. Kampala DAO source reported a "Major Tabenge" was
holding the peacekeepers and had relocated to Bogoro, south
of Bunia; MONUC military and GDRC officials, however, say
such reports are categorically wrong. First, through
established and authorized intermediaries, MONUC has
confirmed it is Peter Karim who is holding the peacekeepers,
and that he is moving among various locations in Djugu
territory north of Bunia. Second, Karim and the FNI are based
in the Lendu-dominated region north of Bunia and have no base
of support in the Hema-oriented areas to the south. Moreover,
for Karim, his militia and seven captive peacekeepers to make
their way some 50 miles south from their current position --
past Bunia and MONUC headquarters, undetected -- would be a
logistical impossibility. (Note: Ref A was unfortunately not
sent to Kinshasa for comment. End note.)


3. (C) Efforts at negotiating with Karim and the FNI have
nonetheless been complicated in the past week by contacts
between third parties and the militias. Ituri District
Commissioner Petronille Vaweka said the Djugu territory
administrator, a member of the Lendu tribe, conducted an
independent, unauthorized mission to secure the release of
the peacekeepers. Vaweka said the administrator offered Karim
USD 515 for the release of the soldiers, but the militia
leader turned it down. MONUC-Bunia Head of Office Charles
Gomis said the monetary offer was made without the knowledge
or consent of MONUC officials, who say they will not pay any
ransom for the peacekeepers' release. Karim did initially
demand money for release of the Nepalese, reportedly USD
20,000 per person (ref B),but MONUC reports that Karim now
realizes MONUC will not pay.


4. (C) One of MONUC's own intermediaries has also been called
into question. As reported ref B, MONUC was using a former
militia member to convey messages to Karim and his militia,
based on this person's previous reliability and contacts
within the militia. According to Vaweka, this negotiator,
however, betrayed MONUC confidence and did not deliver
messages to the militia or in fact make contact with Karim or
the peacekeepers themselves. MONUC officials confirm the
ex-combatant has lied regarding his contact with the militia.
Consequently, Vaweka has recommended -- and MONUC has
accepted -- the addition of another member to the team of
intermediaries, an alleged business partner of Karim's.
Verified contact with the militia (and the condition of the
peacekeepers) has subsequently been achieved through these
new intermediaries.


5. (C) Comment: MONUC has been engaged with several
intermediaries, authorized by Congolese officials, who are
working for the release of the MONUC peacekeepers. We
speculate that Karim, failing to get money, is looking for
some kind of respectability. While this offers some basis for
discussion by those seeking the Nepalese's release, such
discussions are obviously delicate and difficult to bring to
successful conclusion. The attempts by outside agents -- from
both inside and outside the DRC -- to interfere with this
process will undermine the negotiations currently underway.
Such attempts further risk the lives of those in captivity as
well as the legitimacy of MONUC operations in Ituri and the
DRC. End comment.
MEECE