SITUATION REPORT FOR DRC - NOVEMBER 3, 2008,

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 KINSHASA 000959 SENSITIVE SIPDIS E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: PGOV PREL MOPS PHUM PREF KPKO CG SUBJECT: SITUATION REPORT FOR DRC - NOVEMBER 3, 2008, AS OF 12:30 PM CENTRAL AFRICAN TIME (GMT +1) ¶1. (U) All times Kinshasa (GMT + 1) unless otherwise indicated. Security Situation in Goma -------------- ¶2. (SBU) On the evening of November 1, Charge consulted with EAC members, as well as RSO Kigali and the Department's Operations Center, regarding the status of USG personnel recently evacuated to Gisenyi. The EAC decided to recommend that personnel return to Goma during daylight hours, with a deadline of 5:00 PM local time to return to Gisenyi until further notice. A warden message to this effect was disseminated immediately following the decision. ¶3. (SBU) Poloff spoke with USG personnel in Goma at 10:00 AM on November 3. It was reported that the security situation in town appears normal, with stores open and many people on the street. The Governor of North Kivu announced a curfew for Goma between 11:00 PM and 5:00 AM. Political Developments -------------- ¶4. (SBU) Assistant Secretary Frazer, her Senior Adviser Tim Shortley, NSC Senior Director for Africa Bobby Pittman, Special Assistant Dana Banks, and DoD officers traveling with Ambassador Frazer departed Goma for Kigali at approximately 3:00 PM local time on October 31. Charge remained in Goma for several additional hours for discussions with MONUC and humanitarian affairs officials, before returning to Kinshasa at approximately 6:30 PM. Senior Adviser Shortley will return to Goma on November 4; MONUC has agreed to transport him to Goma from Entebbe shortly after arrival in Uganda. He will travel to Kinshasa later in the week. ¶5. (SBU) On November 1, UK Foreign Secretary David Miliband and French Foreign Minister Bernard Kouchner arrived in Kinshasa to meet with President Kabila before continuing on to Goma, accompanied by the British and French Ambassadors to the DRC. In Goma, the delegation visited the Kibati refugee camp. Miliband and Kouchner then traveled on to Kigali. ¶6. (SBU) On the evening of November 2, SRSG Alan Doss requested the British, French, and Belgian ambassadors and Charge to attend a meeting with Alain Le Roy, Under-Secretary General for UN Peacekeeping Operations. Le Roy provided a readout of his meetings with Prime Minister Muzito and Foreign Minister Mwamba. He emphasized that Muzito unhesitatingly acknowledges "there is no FARDC." The GDRC, therefore, asks Le Roy to convey to Secretary General Ban Ki-moon and the Security Council its wish that MONUC's mandate be changed to allow it to fight armed groups without the FARDC. Le Roy told the DRC officials that he would look into this, but expressed skepticism as to whether the mandate can be changed. ¶7. (SBU) Le Roy also reported that General Babacar Gaye has agreed to return to the position of MONUC Force Commander on a temporary basis and will arrive in the DRC shortly. An intense effort is underway to identify a permanent replacement. Le Roy, however, expressed chagrin at what appears to be a lack of available French-speaking generals for the position. ¶8. (SBU) Le Roy said that it appears likely that Secretary General Ban Ki-moon will appoint a high-level special envoy to spearhead diplomatic efforts to defuse tensions between the DRC and Rwanda. Being given serious consideration is former Nigerian President Obasanjo. (Note: Le Roy noted that Kabila told him that he talks with Kagame several times a day. End note.) ¶9. (SBU) Le Roy, Doss, and Muzito will travel to Goma today, November 3. In addition, EU Special Representative Roeland van de Geer, who arrived in Kinshasa the evening of November 2, will also travel to Goma today with Doss and Le Roy. He will remain in the region for the Joint Monitoring Group's Special Envoys and the upcoming Tripartite Plus meetings in Kigali. Humanitarian Developments -------------- ¶10. (U) USAID OFDA Senior Program Officer Jay Nash arrived in Kinshasa the evening of November 2, interrupting home leave in the United States to lead USAID's Disaster Assistance Response Team (DART) scheduled to deploy to North Kivu. ¶11. (SBU) Nash briefed Charge, political counselor and RSO November 3 on DART. The team will consist of six members and be fully KINSHASA 00000959 002 OF 002 deployed to Goma no later than November 10. Nash noted that the European Commission's Humanitarian Aid Office (ECHO) has announced Euros 4 million in humanitarian assistance for the region. The Belgian ambassador told Charge that his government has sent two C-120 planes laden with humanitarian supplies to Kinshasa for forward deployment to Goma as soon as possible. ¶12. (U) A humanitarian aid convoy will be sent today to Rutshuru. Gloria Fernandez, head of OCHA in the DRC, announced that the convoy would leave Goma with UN humanitarian agencies as well as NGO's to set up the first emergency assistance activities in the area. She said they had engaged in discussions with the CNDP, MONUC, and the FARDC to open a corridor that will allow the reestablishment of certain humanitarian activities. BROCK