OIL WORKER HOSTAGE UPDATE SITREP #20

C O N F I D E N T I A L LAGOS 000125 SIPDIS STATE PASS DOE FOR DAS JBRODMAN AND CGAY TREASURY FOR ASEVERENS AND SRENENDER COMMERCE FOR KBURRESS STATE PASS TRANSPORTATION FOR MARAD STATE PASS USAID FOR GWEYNAND AND SLAWAETZ STATE FOR DS/IP/AF, AF/EX, DS/IP/OPO, DS/ICI/PII, DS/DSS/ITA E.O. 12958: DECL: 01/28/2016 TAGS: EPET PGOV ASEC PTER KHLS PINR ETRD CASC NI SUBJECT: OIL WORKER HOSTAGE UPDATE SITREP #20 REF: LAGOS 124 AND PREVIOUS Classified By: Consul General Brian L. Browne for Reasons 1.4 (D & E) ¶1. (C) The hoped-for release of the four oil service company employees did not take place last night. Commenting on this latest in a series of miscues, Bayelsa Secretary of the State Government (SSG) Dr. Igali said the release was postponed because the kidnappers disagreed over to whom to release the hostages. Apparently, there was disagreement among the captors whether to release to Bayelsa State or Federal government officials, or to forego government entirely and release the hostages to well-known civil society figures. SSG said the terms of the release, which thus far have only been verbally agreed, include amnesty for the kidnappers, amnesty for FNDIC leader Government Ekpemukpolo, and a very vague promise of greater political accommodation for the Ijaws. Conoff elicited a promise from the SSG to request the kidnappers provide a more current proof of life as the last evidence is now more than one week old. (Comment: The request for amnesty for Government Ekpemukpolo dovetails with our impression that FNDIC or key FNDIC members have been intimately involved with the kidnapping. End comment.) ¶2. (C) Although the Bayelsa State hostage negotiating team seems to have established solid contact with the kidnappers, numerous release deadlines have come and gone, all based on some fairly thin excuses. While these considerations could be genuine concerns of confused kidnappers, this temporizing might have a more willful, purposeful quality. While ultimately intending to release their captives, the kidnappers may think their purposes, which may include international attention to their political aims, keeping the GON passive and off-balance, and embarrassing the GON, are best served by expressing a willingness to immediately release the hostages yet retaining custody of the quartet a bit longer. For planning purposes, we have to assume this situation will not end today. Consequently, we met with counterparts from the British Deputy High Commission to begin formulating a plan of action for the next one to two weeks. Ambassador Campbell plans to come to Lagos to lead further discussions and to finalize the action plan early next week. BROWNE