CNDP DENIES TARGETING CIVILIANS IN KIWANJA

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 KINSHASA 000998 SENSITIVE SIPDIS E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: PGOV PREL MOPS KPKO CG SUBJECT: CNDP DENIES TARGETING CIVILIANS IN KIWANJA AND ACCUSES FARDC AND ALLIES OF ATROCITIES IN NOVEMBER 10 PRESS STATEMENT ¶1. (U) Post received a scanned copy of the November 10 press statement from CNDP Political Leadership Executive Secretary Deogratias Nzabirinda. In the letter, Nzabirinda categorically denied all allegations of CNDP-authored civilian assassinations at Kiwanja. The CNDP accused FARDC, in collaboration with FDLR and PARECO Mai Mai, of targeted killings of civilians in Kiwanja on November 5 in retaliation for cooperation with CNDP during the latter's occupation of the town on November 2. ¶2. (U) The CNDP denounced what it labels a "defamation" campaign carried out against it by the Governor of North Kivu, Julien Paluku. The statement also accused the FARDC of sowing panic in Kibati IDP camp on November 9 in order to facilitate the looting of the camp and criticized the international community's preoccupation with alleged CNDP actions while refraining from criticizing FARDC activities. ¶3. (U) The following is an unofficial embassy translation of the press statement. Begin unofficial embassy translation: DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC OF CONGO NATIONAL CONGRESS FOR THE DEFENSE OF THE PEOPLE PRESS RELEASE The Political Leadership of the CNDP submits the following statement for public opinion: ¶1. On Wednesday, November 5, 2008, several people from the FARDC-FDLR/PARECO-MAY MAY governmental coalition, most of them dressed in civilian clothes and bearing the traditional so-called bullet-proofing amulets, entered the city of Kiwanja, on the outskirts of Rutshuru - Center. They started to physically eliminate civilians that they accused of complicity with the CNDP in the fall of the city on the previous Sunday. The CNDP political leadership has just sent Mr. Serge Kambasu Kiwanja Ngeve, Deputy Executive Secretary of the movement, to give our support and comfort to the population. The CNDP calls for a Joint Investigation Commission including the inter-community organization "Baraza Wazeer," provincial civil society, MONUC and CNDP to determine responsibilities for the Kiwanja tragedy. ¶2. The CNDP notes that a smear campaign is orchestrated against it which has all the appearances of a conspiracy to tarnish its image. It is meant to make it look like the killings that took place in the city were its deeds. In fact, the provincial governor rushed to announce this on the media before the CNDP was even back in Kiwanja. Because he was still thinking of the grim scenario produced by him and FARDC officers in the city of Goma on Wednesday, October 29, 2008, and he knew that the same scenario would be replayed in Kiwanja: indeed, in their rout, government troops had put the city through blood and fire, had murdered six times more people than in Kiwanja, had raped women, girls and Pallottine religious women, hoping that the CNDP would enter the city and be blamed. This cynical plan failed because the CNDP refrained from entering Goma. But a conspiracy of silence obscured the cries and tears of the people of Goma the next day, because no media, no authority, no chancery spoke of it anymore. "Go FARDC, your sins are forgiven," seems to be the watchword agreed to by the humanitarian-diplomatic world and media swarming in Goma to the point where you get vertigo. ¶3. Again, last Sunday, November 9, 2008, the government army entered the Kibati displaced persons camp, on the outskirts of Goma, and fired in the air for several hours, making it look like fighting with CNDP had resumed. In fact, the FARDC had fired to make the population panic, before completely looting the camp and escaping with the loot. On Monday morning, radio silence prevailed among humanitarians as well as in MONUC, in the media or in the Goma chancery annexes. It was apparently preferable to comment on CNDP action near Ngungu, presented as an attempt by the CNDP to enter South Kivu, when it was merely reclaiming cows stolen from the population in the FDLR/PARECO militia's raid. ¶4. The CNDP thus denies most categorically the biased and defamatory allegations of targeted assassinations recently imputed by an arsonist masquerading as a firefighter. A little more than three months ago, in fact, Mr. Julien Paluku, Governor of the North Kivu Province was questioned, along with (North Kivu Provincial) Deputy Kenda Kenda and (National Deputy from North Kivu) Barihima about the distribution of firearms for self-defense, specifically to the youth of Kiwanja and of the Buramba community. This is where KINSHASA 00000998 002 OF 002 the origin of the Kiwanja tragedy may be found, which was fated with infiltration into the city of hundreds of FARDC-FDLR/PARECO guided by local Mai Mai. For the political leadership of CNDP NZABIRINDA Deogratias Executive Secretary End unofficial embassy translation. BROCK