STERN WARNING TO NEW PRIME MINISTER AGAINST USE OF

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 CONAKRY 000163 SIPDIS SIPDIS DEPT FOR AF/W, INR ALSO FOR AID/AFR TREASURY FOR OFFICE OF AFRICAN NATIONS E.O. 12958: DECL: 02/09/2017 TAGS: PGOV PINS PREL GV SUBJECT: STERN WARNING TO NEW PRIME MINISTER AGAINST USE OF FORCE AGAINST CIVILIANS REF: CONAKRY SITREP 29: 2/10/07 Classified By: DCM Julie Winn, Reason 1.4(b, d) ¶1. (C) At 1000 hours, February 10, the U.S., French, German, and British ambassadors, the U.N. resident representative, and the EC head of delegation met with newly appointed Prime Minister Eugene Camara to deliver a stern warning against the use of force against civilians. We also urged Camara to contribute to a peaceful, consensual resolution of the current crisis. ¶2. (C) (Note: We had arranged this meeting with Camara as Minister of State for Presidential Affairs, i.e., before his appointment as Prime Minister on the evening of February 9. End note.) ¶3. (C) Prime Minister Camara responded that he had learned of his appointment on the radio last night like everyone else. He claimed to have been surprised. He said he had no personal political ambitions. He stated that his main objectives were to clean up Guinea,s public finances and to stimulate economic development. He stressed that he would be willing to work with all Guineans, irrespective of their political affiliations, who were willing to contribute to these goals. ¶4. (C) Prime Minister Camara said he fully understood our warning against the use of force against civilians. He recalled that he had an established track record as a man of dialogue and inclusiveness. He committed himself to doing everything within his power to avoid further killing. He said he would bring our demarche to the attention of President Conte and the chiefs of the security forces. He added, however, that if further killings occur, these killings would be despite his best efforts to prevent them. (Note: We have reports of some killings, both in the interior and in Conakry, including two persons allegedly shot by Conte's presidential guards when protesters stopped the presidential convoy in the suburbs early morning of February 10.) ¶5. (C) Prime Minister Camara said that the government wants the investigations into the January 22 killings to be as transparent and inclusive as possible. (Note: The labor unions and the bar association have declined to participate in the investigatory process, which they perceive as necessarily biased in favor to the government.) When asked, Camara said that he personally would not oppose international participation in the investigations. ¶6. (C) With regard to the unrest which has erupted since his appointment last night, Prime Minister Camara said that he would meet informally today with the unions, civil society, and the political parties in an effort to restore calm. He repeated that he remains open to working with all/all Guineans who are willing to help clean up public finances and restart the economy. ¶7. (C) Prime Minister Camara said he expected to form a new cabinet of ministers within the next few days. We urged him to aim for a government of broad national consensus. ¶8. (C) When asked, Prime Minister Camara said that preparations continue for the legislative elections set for June 2007, despite the fact that these elections have been overshadowed by the current, strike-related violence. He said that the National Assembly would be called into special session over the days just ahead to adopt the new electoral laws, the drafts of which were the product of negotiations among all concerned parties in late 2006. ¶9. (C) Prime Minister Camara also indicated that he knows the limits of his power vis-a-vis President Conte. He made it clear that the head of state, i.e., President Conte, remains responsible for the military. ¶10. (C) Comment: Eugene Camara accurately described himself as sober and low-key, as a man of dialogue, and as a man open to working with all Guineans willing to contribute to the development of the country. His main defect, however, is that he has served in President Conte,s governments for the past ten years. This experience has contaminated him in the eyes of the general public and has rendered him unacceptable to most Guineans as their prime minister. The appointment of CONAKRY 00000163 002 OF 002 this fairly anodyne, non-controversial man as prime minister has provoked violence in the streets. Indeed, the popular sentiment is for regime change, for President Conte,s ouster, not for a new prime minister, whatever his personal qualities or talents. MCDONALD