Identifier
Created
Classification
Origin
07PARIS1785
2007-05-04 14:37:00
CONFIDENTIAL
Embassy Paris
Cable title:  

DJIBOUTI AND RWANDA: RECENT DEVELOPMENTS ON

Tags:  PREL PGOV ICJ RW DJ FR 
pdf how-to read a cable
VZCZCXRO5854
PP RUEHRN RUEHROV
DE RUEHFR #1785/01 1241437
ZNY CCCCC ZZH
P 041437Z MAY 07
FM AMEMBASSY PARIS
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 6949
INFO RUCNIAD/IGAD COLLECTIVE
RUEHXR/RWANDA COLLECTIVE
RUEHBJ/AMEMBASSY BEIJING 1483
RUEHBS/AMEMBASSY BRUSSELS 6231
RUEHTC/AMEMBASSY THE HAGUE 2760
RUCNDT/USMISSION USUN NEW YORK 1224
C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 PARIS 001785 

SIPDIS

SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: DECL: 05/04/2017
TAGS: PREL PGOV ICJ RW DJ FR
SUBJECT: DJIBOUTI AND RWANDA: RECENT DEVELOPMENTS ON
FRANCE,S JUDICIAL ENGAGEMENTS

REF: KIGALI 391

Classified By: Political Minister-Counselor Josiah Rosenblatt, 1.4 (b/d
).

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 PARIS 001785

SIPDIS

SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: DECL: 05/04/2017
TAGS: PREL PGOV ICJ RW DJ FR
SUBJECT: DJIBOUTI AND RWANDA: RECENT DEVELOPMENTS ON
FRANCE,S JUDICIAL ENGAGEMENTS

REF: KIGALI 391

Classified By: Political Minister-Counselor Josiah Rosenblatt, 1.4 (b/d
).


1. SUMMARY: (C) MFA DAS-equivalent Helene Le Gal on April
30 said that recent developments in the Borrel case,
involving judicial searches of the MFA and Justice Ministry,
largely involved internal French legal issues. The Borrel
case continued to affect France-Djibouti relations, although
both sides tried to carry on "business as usual" in other
areas. Le Gal reported with regret that France-Rwanda
relations were at a standstill, with no official contact
between the two sides, and with neither maintaining an
official presence in the other. Le Gal noted litigation at
the International Court of Justice with both Djibouti
(seeking release of the Borrel files) and Rwanda (seeking to
quash France-generated warrants against Rwandan officials),
with both cases expected to last many months, if not years,
before their resolution. The Borrel case has also created
friction among a number of GOF agencies, leading to more
media attention than the case itself might otherwise warrant.
END SUMMARY.

DJIBOUTI


2. (C) MFA DAS-equivalent for East and Central Africa
Helene Le Gal discussed Djibouti and Rwanda on April 30. She
said that recent developments in the Borrel case (involving
the mysterious 1995 death of French magistrate in Djibouti
and his widow's continuing efforts to overturn the finding of
suicide) now centered on the lawsuit brought by his widow
after then-MFA spokesperson Herve Ladsous (currently French
Ambassador in Beijing) publicly stated in January 2005 that
the GOF would provide its case files to Djibouti in a spirit
of cooperation. Mrs. Borrel sued the MFA, claiming that
Ladsous's "promise" was an improper attempt to pressure
investigative judge Sophie Clement into releasing the files.
Le Gal said that Ladsous based his original statement on
advice received from the Justice Ministry. (See Paris Points
for April 17.) However, after he made his statement, Clement
said that she would not release the files and the Justice

Ministry, in deference to Clement, rescinded its previous
advice, thus leaving Ladsous, Le Gal suggested, out to dry.


3. (C) Le Gal confirmed that investigative judges involved
in Mrs. Borrel's suit against the MFA searched the MFA (April
19) and Justice Ministry (April 20),seizing a fair number of
documents and records. Le Gal reminded that none of this had
anything to do with determining how Borrel died but rather
concerned only Ladsous's "promise" to release the files and
why that "promise" was made.


4. (U) NOTE: The press reported that Gendarmerie personnel
who would normally have participated in the April 19 and 20
searches of the MFA and Justice Ministry refused to do so
because of their "political" nature on the eve of France's
presidential elections. The investigative judges instead
received assistance from the judicial police of Paris suburb
Nanterre to carry out their searches. The investigative
judges on May 2 attempted to conduct a similar search of the
offices of the French Presidency, specifically, its Africa
cell. The judges were rebuffed by the Presidency's security
unit, which said that such a search would be illegal under
French law protecting the Presidency from such searches
because of separation-of-powers concerns. (See Paris Points
for May 3.) END NOTE.


5. (C) At the same time Mrs. Borrel was suing the MFA in
order to prevent Djibouti from receiving the files (Mrs.
Borrel and her supporters have alleged that the Government of
Djibouti may have been complicit in her husband's death),Le
Gal noted, not without irony, that Djibouti was suing France
at the International Court of Justice (ICJ) to have the files
released. Le Gal said that the ICJ case would take months,
if not years, to resolve, noting that Djibouti had six months
to file its initial pleadings, after which France would have
six months to respond. Other steps would follow after
similarly well-spaced intervals. Le Gal noted investigative
Judge Clement's subpoenas to have senior Djiboutians,
including President Guelleh, testify in her ongoing
investigation into Borrel's death, but Le Gal said that
immunity of one kind or another would likely protect them
from being compelled to do so.


6. (C) Le Gal said that despite these several complicated

PARIS 00001785 002 OF 002


and distracting legal matters, both sides were trying to
conduct "normal" relations. Although the Djiboutians
remained quite concerned about the Borrel case (especially
the possibility that certain individuals might have to
testify in French courts),Le Gal indicated that they
understood better the independent role of the French
judiciary and were becoming more inclined to let the Borrel
case play itself out separately and to minimize its effect on
overall relations. Still, the Djiboutians were continuing
with their ICJ suit.

RWANDA


7. (C) Le Gal was far less optimistic about Rwanda. She
said glumly that official contact between the two sides had
ceased to exist. All official French activities in Rwanda
had stopped and all official GOF personnel had departed. The
same was true of the Rwandan Embassy and its personnel in
Paris. The only French in Rwanda were long-term expatriates,
missionaries, and French who worked for NGOs, with Belgium
overseeing French interests. Le Gal regretted this state of
affairs and expressed a degree of bitterness towards
anti-terrorism Judge Bruguiere's November 2006 report
accusing President Kagame and some of his associates of
involvement in the killing of then-President Habyarimana and
others, which precipitated the 1994 genocide. The report led
to international arrest warrants against nine senior Rwandans
and a recommendation that Kagame face charges for involvement
in Habyarimana's death. The report caused Rwanda to sever
relations with France.


8. (C) Le Gal said that neither side was taking any steps
to improve or restore relations, which she seemed to regret.
Rwanda was attempting at the ICJ to quash the warrants
generated by Bruguiere's report (ref A). Le Gal said that
France had recently agreed that the ICJ had jurisdiction over
the Rwandans' complaint. She predicted, as in the Borrel
case, a long and time-consuming litigation, with many months
or even years before its resolution. As a practical matter,
she indicated that the warrants would not likely impede
legitimate government travel by those against whom the
warrants were issued.


9. (C) COMMENT: Le Gal was clearly disappointed that the
Borrel case was proving to be such a distraction. However,
she made clear that, in terms of bilateral relations, it was
an irritant, albeit not a trivial one. Within the GOF, the
case has generated interagency rancor and bureaucratic
disruption, involving the MFA, Justice Ministry, Judge
Clement, the magistrature (which has strongly supported
Clement's independence as an investigative judge),the
Gendarmerie, and now the Presidency. This in turn has
increased the media's interest, more so than might otherwise
be warranted. Given Mrs. Borrel's repeated success in
drawing attention to the case on a periodic basis (this time
at the peak of France's presidential election season),we
expect that it will return as a prominent issue from time to
time. Regarding Rwanda, Le Gal's outlook was notably bleak,
and she was less able than she had been in the past to
conceal her frustration over everything that has happened
since the issuance of Bruguiere's report. END COMMENT.


Please visit Paris' Classified Website at:
http://www.state.sgov.gov/p/eur/paris/index.c fm

STAPLETON