GOVERNMENT DEMANDS ACTION AGAINST UGANDAN REBELS IN CONGO

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 KAMPALA 000577

SIPDIS

SENSITIVE

SIPDIS

DEPARTMENT FOR AF/E AND AF/C; AF FOR SWANN

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: MOPS PREL ASECPHUM PGOV PTER UG
SUBJECT: GOVERNMENT DEMANDS ACTION AGAINST UGANDAN REBELS IN CONGO


1. (SBU) Summary: Following recent infiltrations of Allied
Democratic Front (ADF) rebels into western Uganda from bases
in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC),the Ugandan Government
formally protested to the DRC and the U.N. Mission in Congo (MONUC).
The Ugandan military killed over 46 ADF rebels in several
encounters throughout March. The activities of the ADF, a
U.S.-designated terrorist group, have increased since late
last year. The latest casualties included three commanders
who were named on Uganda's most wanted list that was shared
with other Tripartite Plus partners in mid-March. According
to the military, ADF rebels have regrouped and are increasingly
recruiting children and are being resupplied in eastern DRC.
The GOU is demanding that DRC and MONUC take immediate action
against the ADF, Lord's Resistance Army, and other groups
based in DRC. End Summary.


2. (SBU) On March 29, Minister of State for International
Relations Henry Okello Oryem delivered the GOU's formal protest
letter to the DRC's Charge in Kampala. The GOU expressed
concern over the continued presence and activities of the ADF
operating from bases in eastern DRC. According to Oryem,
he handed over a strongly worded diplomatic note that urged
Kinshasa "to take immediate action to ensure that its territory
ceases to be used by negative forces whose purpose was aimed
at destabilizing Uganda.Q Kinshasa has not reacted to
Uganda's protest and demand.


3. (SBU) On March 31, DCM attended a briefing by Minister
of Security Amama Mbabazi for the representatives of U.N.
Security Council's five Permanent members and the inactive
Kampala Core Group. Mbabazi stated that the Government of
Uganda had information that the activities among four Ugandan
rebel groups: the ADF, the Lord's Resistance Army (LRA),
the Peoples' Redemption Army (PRA),and the National Army
for the Liberation Uganda (NALU) had increased. He stated
that during the recent incursions of some 60-80 ADF, at
least 42 had been killed and six captured. Meanwhile,
the LRA was preparing to fight and "making connections"
with other groups. Mbabazi said that Uganda was frustrated
that DRC and MONUC had taken no actions against these
groups despite DRC's commitment to do so.


4. (SBU) Okello Oryem stated that the GOU's positive
assessment of the negotiations with the LRA at Juba was
intended to show the Government's commitment to the process,
not necessarily confidence in a positive outcome. Mbabazi
asserted that there was no contradiction in increasing military
pressure on the LRA, since it was military pressure that
brought the LRA to the peace talks in the first place.
He said that now that the LRA was safe in Garamba National
Park in Congo, the group was not under pressure to deliver
at Juba. Mbabazi added that he was on his way to brief the
International Criminal Court (ICC) on the status of the LRA
negotiations. He described the ICC as "getting impatient."


5. (SBU) Minister of Defense Crispus Kiyonga used tough
talk during a press conference on March 31. He said that
Uganda reserved the right to self-defense, including the
pursuit of terrorists to their points of origin. He appealed
to the DRC Government and MONUC to deal with the situation
by implementing agreed positions that were discussed at
different levels several times. Kiyonga was referring to a
bilateral meeting between DRC President Joseph Kabila and
Museveni at the Great Lakes Summit in December 2006 in
Nairobi, regular meetings between the DRC, Ugandan, and
MONUC security chiefs, and the U.S.-brokered Tripartite
Plus meetings.

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UGANDAN MILITARY CLASHES WITH ADF
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6. (SBU) The GOU's formal protest comes after several
clashes with ADF rebels in western Uganda over the past
month. Lt. Tabaro Kiconco, a military spokesperson, told
Emboff that the GOU had stepped up its military operations
in western Uganda and that there was a full deployment of
UPDF soldiers along the DRC border areas near Lake Albert.
He also said the army had undertaken a sensitization
campaign to discourage the local population from being
recruited by the rebels. The military urged the public
to be vigilant and to offer their support during military
operations. In addition, the army conducted radio programs
in the region calling on those in the bush to surrender
and apply for amnesty.


7. (SBU) The Ugandan Peoples' Defense Forces (UPDF)
confirmed the following encounters with the rebels during March.

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-- On March 29, the military discovered the bodies of
14 other rebels killed on March 27.

-- On March 28, the army killed four ADF rebels in
Bundibugyo District.

-- On March 27, the UPDF soldiers killed 34 ADF rebels
and captured five others in Bundibugyo District. Kiconco
said the engagement began when the army clashed with 60 ADF
rebels who had entered Uganda from DRC. Among those killed
were three senior commanders on UgandaQs most wanted list
that was shared during the Tripartite Plus meeting in March.
They included Bosco Balau Isiko, Deputy Commanding Officer
and fourth in the ADFQs hierarchy; Dr. Nade Solora Vien,
Chief of Military Intelligence; and Dada Watooto, Operations
Officer. Other ADF commanders killed from the list were
Rashid Lukwago, Tiger Musauri, Butambuzi and Faustin Nzaha.

-- On March 24, UPDF forces killed four rebels along Lamya
River, Bundibugyo District.

-- On March 23, the UPDF killed two ADF rebels when they
attempted to enter Uganda from the DRC through Bundibugyo
District.

-- On March 15, Capt. John Kamanzi, UPDFQs First Division
spokesperson, said that the army killed two suspected ADF
rebels and injured another during operations in Mubende District.


8. (SBU) During military operations against the rebels,
the army captured submachine guns, boxes of submachine gun
ammunition, RPG launchers, grenades and submachine gun
magazines. Military spokespersons also claim that they
captured documentation and found other information during
the raids linking the ADF to the LRA. The GOU has made
allegations of possible ties between the two groups in
the past. When Mbabazi hinted at the same allegations
during his briefing on March 31, members of the diplomatic
corps asked to see the information. Some expressed
concern that precipitous actions against the LRA could
jeopardize the Juba Peace Process.

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Comment
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9. (SBU) Recent clashes with the ADF give some credibility
to the GOU's concerns about rebel infiltrations from DRC.
However, the GOU has made allegations about collaboration
between the ADF, LRA, and PRA in the past, resulting in
some skepticism within the diplomatic community. The GOU
appears to be laying the diplomatic groundwork to conduct
military operations into DRC against the LRA and other groups.
We continue to urge Uganda to work collaboratively with Congo
and MONUC on plans for military operations against the LRA,
but it is not clear how long the Government of Uganda will
wait for action. The Mission has issued a travel advisory
for the affected area in western Uganda.

BROWNING