NGO RESOLVE IN WAKE OF KILLINGS BUT VIOLENT

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 03 KABUL 002357 SIPDIS DEPT FOR SCA/FO DAS CAMP, SCA/A STATE PASS TO USAID FOR AID/ANE, AID/DCHA/DG NSC FOR JWOOD OSD FOR SHIVERS CENTCOM FOR CG CSTC-A, CG CJTF-101 POLAD E.O. 12958: DECL: 08/28/2018 TAGS: KIRF PGOV PHUM PREF PREL PTER AF SUBJECT: NGO RESOLVE IN WAKE OF KILLINGS BUT VIOLENT INCIDENTS CONTINUE REF: KABUL 2146 Classified By: Acting DCM James Van Laningham for reasons 1.4 (B) and ( D) ¶1. (C) Non-governmental organizations (NGOs) are showing resolve in the face of the recent killings of aid workers, but the violence is continuing. Even at the memorial service for the three female expatriate International Rescue Committee (IRC) staffers and their Afghan driver, the IRC Country Director stated that IRC would not be deterred from the humanitarian work for which these staffers perished. But four more deaths, including yesterday's killing of a Japanese aid worker, and growing threats in and around Kabul and the areas where NGOs operate continue to test all the NGOs' determination. A number of NGOs wonder whether their continued implementation of government projects is making them a target. -------------- More NGO Killings -------------- ¶2. (C) On August 19, an Afghan-French staff member of French NGO ACTED was found dead in the Imam Sahib District of Kunduz. He had been kidnapped two days prior. His driver escaped unharmed and is now being held for questioning. The Afghanistan NGO Safety Organization (ANSO) believes that the murder was related to a personal feud but ACTED Country Director Ziggy Garewal (strictly protect) suspects local Afghan authorities are pushing this theory to preserve the North's reputation as a "safe" area. ACTED later learned of a direct threat against a "French NGO in the Shar-e-Now section of Kabul City;" ACTED is the only NGO with that description. Staff were moved to a safe house elsewhere in the city. ¶3. (C) Two staffers (one Afghan and the other a Tajik national) of Ibn Sina, a large Afghan health NGO, were killed on August 21 by an improvised explosive device (IED) in Parwan Province while driving in an unarmored but marked car. So far in 2008, 23 aid workers have been killed in Afghanistan, compared to 17 in all of 2007. ¶4. (C) On August 27, Japanese aid worker Kazuya Ito was found dead after being kidnapped by suspected Taliban militants in Nangarhar Province the day before. Ito worked for Japanese NGO Peshawar-Kai, which provides medical services in Pakistan and Afghanistan. Peshawar-Kai staff told Japanese press that they "must not waste Ito's efforts... we should continue our activities." Local villagers were reportedly outraged at the killing, and over 1,000 people participated in the search for Ito over extremely rugged terrain. -------------- -------------- Is the National Solidarity Program Becoming A Target? -------------- -------------- ¶5. (C) ACTED as well as other NGOs believe their work with the Afghan government's National Solidarity Program (NSP) is making them a target. ACTED Country Director Garewal alerted NSP leadership of this concern two weeks ago when 27 of the 30 NSP implementing partners reported attacks or direct threats of some nature from February through June. According to Ms. Garewal, a number of NGOs are concluding that entirely safe areas where they can work no longer exist in Afghanistan, especially for those implementing government programs such as NSP. While many killings in Afghanistan are related to the most common provocations -- land, women, and water -- she believes the recent increase in violence and intimidation directed towards NGOs is more than personal. ¶6. (C) Night letters threatening anyone working with NSP have begun appearing in the last two months in a number of places around the country. Prior to this, such letters gave more generic warnings about collaboration with the government or international organizations. A Community Development Council (CDC) member was killed recently, again in the relatively safe Imam Sahib district of Kunduz. Some speculate that he KABUL 00002357 002 OF 003 was a member of the "Afghan" Taliban, which have been vying for dominance in the north with the "Pakistani" Taliban. The notorious warlord Gulbuddin Hekmatyar was born in this district and ACTED also sees possible Hezb-e-Islami Gulbuddin (HiG) involvement. -------------- NGOs Are "On The Menu" -------------- ¶7. (C) Most NGOs say they will continue their work here, but many are inviting their headquarters-based security advisors to come evaluate the situation in Afghanistan prior to developing new operational strategies. Nathan Ronaldon (strictly protect),Operations Coordinator for the Afghanistan NGO Safety Organization (ANSO),said NGOs are now "on the menu." After the recent killings of the IRC staff, it appears even unarmed female aid workers are considered fair game (Ref A). ANSO does not establish a tripwire for when NGOs should leave or cease operations, but it does differentiate three levels of security posture: acceptance, protection, and deterrence. -- Acceptance: Most NGOs in Afghanistan operate on acceptance, seeking assurances from the local community that they will be safe. This was IRC's approach prior to the murder of its staff; local communities had assured IRC leadership they would be protected but were either unable or unwilling to prevent the attack. -- Protection: Once an NGO moves to protection, such as using armored vehicles, ANSO suggests it reevaluate its program delivery methods. -- Deterrence: If an NGO moves to deterrence, i.e., armed guards, Ronaldon believes the NGO could then be considered a party to the conflict. -------------- To Arm or Not To Arm -------------- ¶8. (C) NGOs are currently contemplating how best to counter these growing threats. Some, like Save The Children (STC) ((Country Director Leslie Wilson (strictly protect))), believe that NGOs lose their mandate when they begin to employ armed security, although STC does use armed guards in Iraq. Others like ACTED believe that they can no longer continue to move about unarmed, in marked unarmored cars. A third view is that no human life is worth the risk; French medical NGO Medecins Sans Frontieres (MSF) pulled out of Afghanistan in 2004 after five MSF staffers were murdered in Badghis Province. ¶9. (C) While no NGOs have stopped work entirely, many are restricting road travel in favor of moving personnel and supplies by air. Project costs are rising concomitantly, but NGOs see no alternative. Few NGOs operate in unstable areas like Kunar, Kandahar, Helmand, and Qalat, and international staff are very restricted, with some not leaving their compounds at all. NGOs in booming Nangarhar province are reportedly "spooked8; local staff are growing their beards out longer and "sanitizing" themselves before visiting outlying areas, i.e., carrying no papers or cell phones linking them to the NGO. Even NGOs in relatively safe Bamiyan have begun to see instability seeping into the central highlands. A recent IED attack on an unmarked NGO vehicle on the Bamiyan-Kabul road in neighboring Parwan Province resulted in all roads to Kabul being declared off-limits by major NGOs. ANSO advises most NGOs that continue to move by road to travel "low-profile," i.e., in unmarked local vehicles such as Toyota Corollas or minivans, and to avoid easy-to-spot armored cars. Some NGOs are also hiring more national staff in the event expatriates have to evacuate. ¶10. (C) One interesting by-product of the violence may be increased NGO willingness to coordinate with PRTs. NGOs have complained in recent months that PRT humanitarian assistance KABUL 00002357 003 OF 003 activities are blurring the line between military and humanitarian actors. But some NGOs in turbulent areas like Zabul province are now moving only with PRT or Afghan military escorts. ISAF's CJ9 is considering ways to arrange discreet means of contact for NGOs who may now wish to coordinate quietly with military actors. ¶11. (C) Post is taking a number of actions. Post maintains an active warden message system that sends updates to registered Americans and major NGOs, even non-American ones. Post is also closely tracking violence against NGOs, and the Regional Security Office is reaching out to ANSO and U.S.-based NGOs to share information and best practices. RSO has provided a security evaluation of the premises of Shelter for Life, a U.S. NGO whose Amcit Country Director faced targeted threats. A safe and stable NGO presence is critical to our humanitarian and development agenda in Afghanistan, and we will continue to monitor events and support our NGO colleagues where we can. WOOD