Identifier
Created
Classification
Origin
07KHARTOUM1639
2007-10-22 15:32:00
UNCLASSIFIED//FOR OFFICIAL USE ONLY
Embassy Khartoum
Cable title:  

AFTER CONVINCING CFC REPS, AGWAI PRESENTS MSA PLAN TO

Tags:  PGOV PREL KPKO AU UN SU 
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VZCZCXRO6108
OO RUEHGI RUEHMA RUEHROV
DE RUEHKH #1639/01 2951532
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
O 221532Z OCT 07
FM AMEMBASSY KHARTOUM
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC IMMEDIATE 8898
INFO RUCNFUR/DARFUR COLLECTIVE IMMEDIATE
RHMFISS/CJTF HOA
UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 KHARTOUM 001639 

SIPDIS

SENSITIVE, SIPDIS

DEPT FOR AF/SPG AND S/CRS

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: PGOV PREL KPKO AU UN SU

SUBJECT: AFTER CONVINCING CFC REPS, AGWAI PRESENTS MSA PLAN TO
DONORS

REFTEL: KHARTOUM 1610

-------
SUMMARY
-------

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 KHARTOUM 001639

SIPDIS

SENSITIVE, SIPDIS

DEPT FOR AF/SPG AND S/CRS

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: PGOV PREL KPKO AU UN SU

SUBJECT: AFTER CONVINCING CFC REPS, AGWAI PRESENTS MSA PLAN TO
DONORS

REFTEL: KHARTOUM 1610

--------------
SUMMARY
--------------


1. (SBU) AMIS Force Commander Martin Luther Agwai and Joint Special
Representative Rudolphe Adada have requested donor assistance to pay
CFC representatives four months of arrears of the monthly
subsistence allowance (MSA) and then suspend the CFC. While the CFC
representatives expressed no opposition to this plan, according to
Agwai, AMIS needs approximately 4.6 million dollars in donor support
to pay the arrears. Adada and Agwai presume that the
UN/AU-sponsored negotiations scheduled to begin in Libya on October
27 will result in agreement on new security arrangements between the
Sudanese Government and Darfur's rebel movements. The UK asked that
an audit of previous donor funding to the AU be completed by the end
of 2007. CDA Powers questioned whether Agwai's plan would alleviate
the threat to AMIS and UNAMID in the long term given the movement's
lack of resources and noted that presumably CFC restructuring would
require the approval of the signatories to the Darfur Peace
Agreement (DPA). End summary.

--------------
AGWAI's PLAN
--------------


2. (SBU) Meeting with representatives of the Tripoli Format
governments in Khartoum on October 18, AU Mission in Sudan (AMIS)
Force Commander Agwai and Joint Special Representative Adada have
requested donor assistance to pay four months of arrears in the
monthly subsistence allowance (MSA) to Cease-fire Commission (CFC)
representatives at the original rate and then suspend the CFC.
Agwai and Adada made the original proposal during an October 12
meeting of the Tripoli Format, where Agwai asserted that the MSA
issue posed a threat to AMIS forces and that the UN-AU Mission in
Darfur (UNAMID) should be free of "baggage" from AMIS as it deploys
(reftel).


3. (SBU) Agwai proposed payment of half of the arrears in the near
term and the remainder after the movements' representatives return
vehicles stolen from the AU; provide leads on attacks against AMIS
assets; and turn in their AU berets, armbands, and insignia. The
party representatives would also have to sign a statement

acknowledging payment of the MSA in full through September 30,
accept the cessation of the MSA payment beginning October 1, and
agree to vacate occupancy of facilities within AMIS camps. The
movements would no longer be expected to participate in the CFC
after October 1 and only a limited number of "liaison"
representatives (likely 10),located in El Fasher, would be
accredited to AMIS.


4. (SBU) Agwai explained that he does not want UNAMID to have any
responsibility for the support of the party representatives nor for
them to be considered UN employees. (Note: As the UNAMID Chief of
Plan acknowledged during a recent meeting, the AU's May 28, 2004
agreement with the parties on the modalities of the CFC can be
interpreted as indicating that party representatives are CFC
employees funded by AMIS. End note.) Based on reports of "inside"
assistance to the perpetrators of the early October attack on an
AMIS camp near Haskanita and other threat information, Agwai also
wants to limit representatives' access to AMIS sites.


5. (SBU) According to Agwai, the CFC representatives expressed no
opposition to his plan during an October 16 meeting in El Fasher,
including a suspension of their participation in the CFC. Agwai
committed the AU to pay one month of MSA arrears during the week of
October 22. Agwai believes he has established credibility with the
representatives and that they will comply with this proposal. He
also noted that, without the representatives, the CFC is able to
conduct more rapid and efficient investigations of potential
cease-fire violations.

--------------
CONCERNS ABOUT THE PROPOSAL
--------------


6. (SBU) Representatives of the UK and the Netherlands, which have
funded MSA payments in the past, expressed concern over the lack of
sufficient accountability for previous funds allotted. The UK
Defense Attache said there was no accounting document for payments
made between January and March, 2007 nor an explanation as to why
there were as many as 87 SLM representatives to the CFC in El
Fasher. Regardless of Agwai's new plan, he requested that an "audit
trail" be completed before January 1, 2008 when AMIS would cease to
exist. The Dutch Ambassador concurred. They also asked if other
donors would be willing to meet the additional funding request.
Given the lack of preparedness for making a commitment, no offers

KHARTOUM 00001639 002 OF 002


were forthcoming, although there was consensus that the briefing
statement would be shared with capitals.


7. (SBU) CDA Powers questioned whether Agwai's plan would alleviate
the threat to AMIS posed by disaffected and under-resourced rebels
in the long term. It is worth noting that while the CFC is
dysfunctional, it is founded in the DPA and the Ndjamena
Humanitarian Cease-fire Agreement. Presumably, CFC restructuring
would require the approval of the agreements' signatories.


8. (SBU) Responding to a question from the UK Defense Attache, Agwai
said that the AU has the resources and "strength" to investigate
potential ceasefire violations independently until a new security
monitoring mechanism can be established through the UN/AU peace
process. Adada acknowledged that the UK and France had presented
the UN/AU with a model for such a mechanism for the interim period,
which is being reviewed in New York and Addis Ababa.

POWERS