IJAW YOUTH LEADER: GON TAKING POSITIVE STEPS; IOCS

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 LAGOS 000652 SIPDIS SIPDIS STATE FOR AF/W, INR/AA, DS/IP/AF, DS/ICI/PII, DS/DSS/OSAC OSLO FOR HELENA SCHRADER DOE FOR GPERSON, CAROLYN GAY TREASURY FOR ASEVERENS, SRENENDER, DFIELDS COMMERCE FOR KBURRESS STATE PASS USTR FOR ASST USTR FLISER STATE PASS TRANSPORTATION FOR MARAD STATE PASS OPIC FOR ZHAN AND MSTUCKART STATE PASS TDA FOR NCABOT STATE PASS EXIM FOR JRICHTER STATE PASS USAID FOR GWEYNAND AND SLAWAETZ E.O. 12958: DECL: 09/25/2017 TAGS: PGOV PREL ASEC NI SUBJECT: IJAW YOUTH LEADER: GON TAKING POSITIVE STEPS; IOCS & STATE GOVERNMENTS NEED TO REFOCUS Classified By: Acting Consul General Donald McConnell for reasons 1.4 ( B) and (D) ¶1. (C) Summary: According to Chris Ekiyor, recently-elected President of the Ijaw Youth Council (IYC),the Ijaw youth delegation meeting with the Federal Government went well as Yar'Adua's administration has expressed much interest in including Niger Delta indigenes in talks to lower regional unrest. However, Ekiyor confessed to Poloff on September 20 that despite these efforts, tribal differences and ethnic distrust will make it difficult for Niger Delta inhabitants either to speak with one voice or to agree on a solution. Ijaws still harbor distrust towards government officials and international oil companies (IOCs) but Ekiyor recognized that Ijaw groups such as the IYC and Ijaw National Congress (INC) have a responsibility to work to ameliorate hostilities. End Summary. -------------- -------------- Ijaw Youth Leader: GON-Ijaw Discussions Going Well -------------- -------------- ¶2. (C) On September 20, Ijaw Youth Council (IYC) President Chris Ekiyor told Poloff that as President of the IYC he headed the Ijaw youth delegation which met recently with the GON. The focus of the discussions was how to disarm the creeks, he said. His group was joined by Ijaw elders such as Edwin K. Clark and by members of the Ijaw National Congress (INC) who outranked the youths but shared similar views. The difference, Ekiyor said, was one of tactics; while the youths and elders share the same goals, the youths tend to push for more "action" and what he called "revolutionary efforts." Ekiyor praised Yar'Adua for being much more open to discussions with Ijaws and with youths in general than was President Obasanjo. ¶3. (C) Ekiyor was confident his delegation assisted the GON in understanding the gravity of environmental, economic, and social degradation in the Niger Delta. The IYC will give the government until October to make an official pronouncement to improve public holdings such as hospitals and roads. Ekiyor said the IYC will provide security for government development efforts and they would partner with police and other security to show there was a "consolidated effort." ¶4. (C) Ekiyor claimed credit for securing since June the release of a number of foreign hostages, including eight Russians kidnapped in Akwa Ibom. Ekiyor held a motley group of individuals from Rivers, Akwa Ibom, and Cross River, some of whom were Ijaw, responsible for kidnapping the Russians. It was through the Ijaw kidnappers Ekiyor said he was able to secure the hostages' release without paying ransom. States ranging from Ondo to Cross River were politically part of the Niger Delta, Ekiyor claimed, not just the core states of Delta, Bayelsa, and Rivers. However, because the core states house the majority of Ijaws and Niger Delta agitators they must be at the forefront of the dialogue process. -------------- -------------- Tribal Dichotomy and Ethnic Distrust Also Problems -------------- -------------- ¶5. (C) Ekiyor said "tribal dichotomy and ethnic distrust" would complicate dialogue on and development in the Niger Delta. He averred that since late June it has been impossible to convince all Ijaw tribes to "sing the same song with one voice." However, the IYC and INC successfully captured the majority's support, Ekiyor said, and only a few outlying renegade militants have chosen a different path. Because these individuals were the minority, Ekiyor was LAGOS 00000652 002 OF 002 confident they would not spoil the majority's efforts out of fear of retribution. Because it has proven so difficult to solidify an Ijaw position, the group has not sought to harmonize their position with that of other ethnic groups. Ekiyor was aware of the need to identify common concerns and to champion them with one Niger Delta voice, but at this time, he said, he was most focused on Ijaw efforts to stop the armed struggle in the region. -------------- Ijaws Distrust State Government & IOCs... -------------- ¶6. (C) Ekiyor chastised Bayelsa Governor Timipre Sylva for celebrating (Isaac Adaka) Boro Day 2007, a tribute to a 1960s revolutionary Ijaw who demanded greater resource control, in the United Kingdom rather than with his people in Bayelsa. Ekiyor said Ijaw communities were aware of state government's misuse of funds and government officials' tendency to work closely with international oil companies (IOCs) in making agreements without seeking community approval. ¶7. (C) Ekiyor said the IOCs' global memoranda of understanding (GMOUs) are not unwelcome, but they come attached with the stigma of previously unfulfilled MOUs. Therefore, Ekiyor suggested the IYC and Ijaw National Congress (INC) should work with communities and oil companies so GMOUs benefit both parties. Ekiyor was confident IOCs could hire more well trained Niger Deltans; he estimated over 1,000 Ijaw youths had already received training necessary for employment with oil companies. Employing Ijaw youths would help IOCs meet local content requirements and improve host community relations. (Note: Ekiyor did not discuss what type of training locals received, although our interlocutors have previously mentioned IOC-sponsored trainings to augment the number of local hires from the region (Reftel). End Note.) -------------- Comment -------------- ¶8. (C) Ekiyor's comment regarding tribal dichotomy and ethnic distrust were timely and recently recognized by the GON. Vice President Jonathan announced he would delay the Niger Delta summit until the new year to allow government a chance to meet with all Niger Delta ethnicities and to address their concerns. If the government tries to incorporate all groups' interests into a comprehensive approach to the region, the chances of success, or at least commitment to change, may improve. End Comment. MCCONNELL