CHANTAL COLLE DEPORTED, CONTE RUMORED TO BE IN A

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 CONAKRY 000023 SIPDIS SIPDIS E.O. 12958: DECL: 03/21/2018 TAGS: PGOV KDEM PHUM ASEC GV SUBJECT: CHANTAL COLLE DEPORTED, CONTE RUMORED TO BE IN A COMA REF: A. CONAKRY 0013 ¶B. CONAKRY 0202 ¶C. CARTER/OKEDIJI 02/21/08 EMAIL Classified By: POL/ECON CHIEF SHANNON CAZEAU FOR REASON 1.4 B AND D ¶1. (SBU) SUMMARY. Following her March 18 arrest, close presidential confidant Mme Chantal Colle left the country late on March 19 under a deportation order signed by the Minister of Interior and Security. Meanwhile, rumors of President Conte,s deteriorating medical condition have been rampant although sources close to the president say that he is well. However, continued silence from the president,s office on the Chantal Colle case raises questions about the president,s physical and mental wellbeing since her deportation is likely to be perceived as a direct challenge to the president, something that he has traditionally not tolerated in the past. END SUMMARY. ¶2. (U) The arrest of Chantal Colle by Guinea,s Judicial Police on March 18 (ref A) is fueling widespread speculation and rumor mongering in the press, both on the internet and in broadcast media. According to multiple sources, Colle left the country via Air France on March 19 after having been ordered deported by the Minister of Interior and Security, Beau Keita. A copy of the ministerial order, signed by Minister Keita, was scanned and posted on Guinee24.com. It does not list any specific reasons for her expulsion, but orders the Director General of the Police to immediately execute the decision. Press sources reported that Colle was also stripped of her Guinean citizenship and forbidden from returning to the country, although there is no mention of these restrictions in the ministerial order. ¶3. (U) Widely unpopular among the population and seen as one of the most corrupt and closet confidants of the president, there has been much discussion of Colle,s arrest and deportation in the press. On one side are pro-Kouyate journalists, such as internet site Guinee24, reporting that Colle essentially got what she deserved for telling lies and slandering the consensus government. Other journalists are more circumspect and while they are not necessarily supporting Colle, they are reporting that the arrest and deportation are illegal in that they violate freedom of expression laws. The new controversial director of the National Communications Commission (CNC),Tibou Kamara, publicly reported that the arrest was illegal, which has only sparked further criticism of his qualifications to lead the CNC, according to other journalists. A local radio interview this morning had two journalists arguing over where Colle,s arrest was fair according to the law. One reported that Colle,s lawyer plans to take her case to the Supreme Court. ¶4. (SBU) A PD LES said that he was meeting with the CNC director on March 18 when Kamara received a phone call from Chantal Colle. According to LES, he could hear Colle,s voice and said that she sounded very upset as she asked Kamara to help her and told him to call his contacts at the presidency because she had been arrested. Colle reportedly told Kamara that she could not get through to the presidency. ¶5. (U) According to Aminata.com, three journalists interviewed Colle at the airport before her forced departure. When asked about the president, she reportedly said that he is very sick and does not know what is happening, mentioning his diabetes and a &touch of malaria.8 ¶6. (U) Press contacts told PD LES on March 20 that Conte may be in a coma and that an airplane is on standby at the airport to take him to Switzerland for medical treatment. Guinea Forum, another internet new site, reported that Conte is in a coma, but unlikely to leave the country for medical treatment in this politically charged environment. The same article reported that when Conte was told about Chantal Colle,s deportation, he said to tell her to have a good trip, and then passed out. ¶7. (C) When Acting DATT called the airport commander to inquire about a possible airplane waiting for Conte, the contact laughed and said that there are too many rumors in Guinea that are not true. (COMMENT. Contact is normally very direct in his speech, but in this case, hesitated and did not directly answer the question, suggesting that he may have been lying. END COMMENT.) The Embassy expediter, who was at the airport this morning, reported that he did not see any medical evacuation airplane on the tarmac. ¶8. (SBU) Charge called Minister of Finance Ousmane Dore this CONAKRY 00000023 002 OF 002 afternoon who said that he saw the president yesterday and that Conte is &looking good.8 According to Dore, Conte had been quite sick, but seemed to be doing much better. Dore told Charge &I can assure you he is okay.8 Dore said that Conte was planning to come to Conakry and supposedly arrived today. Poloff spoke to the president,s official translator who said that she saw the president on Sunday and that he was &fine.8 She added that she is sure Conte is doing fine because all of his staff is here in their offices in Conakry, including Idrissa Thiam and Sam Soumah. She told Poloff that if Conte were unwell, his key advisors would be with him in the village. -------------- COMMENT -------------- ¶9. (C) As is often the case with breaking news in Guinea, it is difficult to sort out the facts hidden among the rumors. We have confirmed from several reliable sources that Colle was deported and left the country late on March 19. We are getting mixed reports as to Conte,s health. Sources in recent weeks have said that Conte,s health has been deteriorating (ref B),although the Minister of Finance and Conte,s personal translator told us otherwise today. The fact that the president,s office has yet to react to Colle,s deportation suggests that Conte either was or still is quite ill as it seems out of character to allow such a direct action against one of his closest associates. We have been hearing rumors for months about possible efforts to fire the Minister of Interior. Colle,s deportation, and the questionable legal grounds upon which it was ordered, seems like the perfect opportunity to make such a move, but the president,s office has been suspiciously quiet. ¶10. (C) According to the prime minister, Conte recently signed a decree appointing Fode Bangorah as Secretary General of the Presidency, but the president,s family and others pressured him into burying the decree (ref C). The PM said that Chantal Colle and Idrissa Thiam were behind the initiative. ¶11. (C) An errand runner from the presidency brought a package of visa applications to the consular section this morning for a group of people reportedly planning to travel with First Lady Henriette Conte to the United States. Mme Conte already has a valid U.S. visa, but submitted her passport with the package. When the consular officer asked the purpose of travel, the runner said that it was a &mission,8 but could not provide any further details. The package also included a visa application for the president,s personal physician, although the physician is reportedly not part of the group planning to travel with the First Lady. President Conte does not currently have a valid U.S. visa. An American citizen claiming to be Prime Minister Kouyate,s son, Fode Aly Kouyate, also came into the consular section today asking what the U.S. Government can do for his father if &something happens.8 END C BROKENSHIRE