CHAD: ZOE'S ARK AND THE ALLEGED CHILD SMUGGLING

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 NDJAMENA 000870

SIPDIS

SENSITIVE
SIPDIS

LONDON AND PARIS FOR AFRICA WATCHERS; G/TIP FOR VERONICA
ZEITLIN AND MARK TAYLOR; CA/OCS/CI FOR RUTH LINCOLN

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: CD PHUM KTIP
SUBJECT: CHAD: ZOE'S ARK AND THE ALLEGED CHILD SMUGGLING
CASE


1. (SBU) Nine Europeans and four Chadians remain in
Government of Chad (GOC) custody in the widely-publicized and
bizarre case in which a French NGO, Zoe's Ark, attempted to
ferry 103 Chadian/Sudanese children to Europe in a chartered
Spanish plane. Personal diplomacy by French President
Sarkozy secured the release of three accompanying French
journalists and the Spanish flight crew. Whether President
Sarkozy will be able to fulfill his promise to extract the
remaining Europeans remains to be seen; most Chadians feel
that Chadian justice should be served to the accused
kidnappers. President Deby has stated that the event will
not affect the eventual deployment of the UN/EU force
(MINURCAT),but the event bolstered his contention that
Chad's hospitality towards Darfur refugees is not adequately
appreciated (and in this case was abused.) The event has also
hampered the ability of UN and other humanitarian workers to
travel to the East. End Summary.


2. (SBU) On October 25, 16 Europeans and four Chadians were
detained at Abeche's airport when they attempted to board 103
children onto a France-bound private aircraft. President
Deby reacted swiftly to assert Chadian control of the
situation and Abeche authorities placed the NGO members,
accompanying journalists and airline crew under arrest. The
French Ambassador -- dealing simultaneously with a public
relations and consular crisis -- was quoted by Agences
France Presse on October 30 as saying that "the members of
the organization who took part in this whole illegal
manipulation will answer for their actions in Chad."


3. (SBU) On Sunday, October 28, the GOC chartered a plane to
Abeche and requested that the diplomatic corps, Chadian
officials, and senior UN and NGO representatives attend a
show-and-tell at which the Minister of Interior emphasized
that Chad would punish those involved in the attempted
kidnapping. The diplomatic corps was shown the private
charter plane - still sitting on the runway - that was to be
used by Zoe's Ark. They were taken to the orphanage where
aid workers and UN staff were caring for the children. The
children appeared to be in good health. Statements that day
by the Minister of the Interior calling into question the
future of the UN/EU force were quickly contradicted by
President Deby's announcement (apparently after speaking with
the French Ambassador and President Sarkozy) that the
incident would not impact MINURCAT deployment.


4. (U) On November 4, in a lightning visit to N'djamena,
French President Sarkozy secured the release of the four
Spanish flight attendants and three French journalists. The
six members of Zoe's Ark (all French nationals) still in
detention were brought to N'djamena's court and arraigned on
November 5. They face charges of fraud, kidnapping and being
an accessory to kidnapping. (According to media sources, the
three members of the flight crew could soon be freed from
custody.)


5. (U) Meanwhile, Chadian press coverage has highlighted
general public opinion that all those associated with Zoe's
Ark should face trial in Chad. The French-language daily
N'djamena Bi-Hebdo screamed of "Childgate" and Le Progres
quoted a civil servant as saying "I believe that even though
Chad is a sovereign country, it continues to suffer from
pressure coming from its former colonizer." On November 5,
President Sarkozy stated that he would return for the
remaining French citizens, saying that "France looks after
its own, even when they have done bad things." In a radio
interview shortly thereafter, President Deby responded that
"for the time being", Chadian justice should be followed.


6. (SBU) For the humanitarian community, the affair's fallout
has had two negative impacts. The first comes from the
Chadian Government's decision to require renewal of all
travel authorizations emanating from the office that
authorized the Zoe's Ark visit. This has created an enormous
backlog of hundreds of applications, forcing newly arriving
UN/NGO staff - as well as those returning from leave - to sit
for weeks in the capitol's expensive hotels before traveling
east. The second impact has been the loss of faith of many
Chadians and some Sudanese refugees vis-a-vis the
humanitarians, particularly in Abeche, where the large UN/NGO
presence offers plenty of targets for any potential acts of
resentment. In addition, the free use by Government
authorities (at the outset of the incident) of charges of
trafficking and organ sale has inflamed popular opinion.
While anti-French demonstrations took place in Abeche on
October 30, fortunately, up to now, such acts have not
escalated beyond rock throwings and verbal confrontations.


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7. (SBU) Comment: This bizarre episode has received non-stop
media coverage for the last two weeks. The organization's
audacity and/or naivit is the talk of the town and of the
humanitarian community. The event also highlighted the
extremely close relationship between Chad and France (even in
the post-Chirac era),while providing Deby a new conundrum:
should he allow the extradition of the members of Zoe's Ark
to France or bow to Chadian public opinion that they should
(at least) be tried in Chad? While President Deby has stated
that the event will not affect the eventual deployment of the
UN/EU force, it bolstered his contention that Chad's
hospitality towards Darfur refugees is not adequately
appreciated (and in this case was abused). End comment.
TAMLYN