Identifier
Created
Classification
Origin
08NIAMEY113
2008-01-25 11:30:00
CONFIDENTIAL
Embassy Niamey
Cable title:  

NIGER: AMBASSADOR JANUARY 24 MEETING WITH GON

Tags:  MARR PGOV PREL EAID NG 
pdf how-to read a cable
VZCZCXRO2529
RR RUEHPA
DE RUEHNM #0113/01 0251130
ZNY CCCCC ZZH
R 251130Z JAN 08 ZDS
FM AMEMBASSY NIAMEY
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC 4075
INFO RUEHZK/ECOWAS COLLECTIVE
RUEHFR/AMEMBASSY PARIS 0648
RUEHLMC/MCC WASHDC
RHMFISS/HQ USEUCOM VAIHINGEN GE
C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 NIAMEY 000113 

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C O R R E C T E D C O P Y - PHUM TAG ADDED

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PLEASE PASS TO USAID

E.O. 12958: DECL: 01/25/2018
TAGS: MARR PGOV PREL EAID NG
SUBJECT: NIGER: AMBASSADOR JANUARY 24 MEETING WITH GON
PRIME MINISTER

REF: A. NIAMEY 25

B. NIAMEY 99

C. 07 NIAMEY 1444

D. NIAMEY 81

NIAMEY 00000113 001.4 OF 002


Classified By: AMBASSADOR BERNADETTE M. ALLEN, REASONS: 1.4 a/b/d

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 NIAMEY 000113

SIPDIS

C O R R E C T E D C O P Y - PHUM TAG ADDED

SIPDIS

PLEASE PASS TO USAID

E.O. 12958: DECL: 01/25/2018
TAGS: MARR PGOV PREL EAID NG
SUBJECT: NIGER: AMBASSADOR JANUARY 24 MEETING WITH GON
PRIME MINISTER

REF: A. NIAMEY 25

B. NIAMEY 99

C. 07 NIAMEY 1444

D. NIAMEY 81

NIAMEY 00000113 001.4 OF 002


Classified By: AMBASSADOR BERNADETTE M. ALLEN, REASONS: 1.4 a/b/d


1. (U) Summary. On January 24, I met with Government of
Niger (GON) Prime Minister (PM) Seini Oumarou to discuss the
status of Niger,s MCA Threshold Program, human rights issues
(including reports of military/police abuse of civilians and
whether the GON or independent organizations were
investigation such reports),security (land mine incidents,
MNJ hostage-taking in Tanout, plans for regional security
conference) and food security. Embassy FSN Political
Assistant and the PM,s Chief of Staff were present in the
meeting.


2. (U) I opened the meeting with a status report on the MCA
Threshold Program for Niger and remarked that MCC
representatives had inquired whether they should proceed with
a visit to Niger, in light of the insecurity and especially
the landmine incident in Niamey (ref A). I added that the
Embassy receives weekly inquiries, including from MCC, about
security and reports of human rights abuses. I stated that
it is troubling to hear about and learn about military and
police abuse of civilians, that even this past weekend an
Embassy employee was stopped in a roadblock by police, pulled
from his car and beaten because the policemen believed the
Embassy employee was Tuareg (ref B). I asked the PM whether
he has concerns that some citizens may misinterpret GON
Minister of Communication Ben Omar,s call for neighborhood
watch groups to enhance security in urban centers and instead
take the law into their own hands. I also asked whether GON
Minister of Interior Albade Adouba is making efforts to
sensitize the military and police on the rule of law, as
opposed to meting out their own brand of justice. I raised
the matter of the prominent businessmen (Sidaghamar and
others ) killed in Agadez (ref C) and inquired whether the
GON was conducting an investigation. I added that if there
is an investigation whether the results of the investigation

would be made public. I also asked whether human rights
organizations are being allowed in the North to investigate
allegations or known cases of abuse.


3. (C) The PM replied that he too has concerns about the
citizens, watch groups and recalled terrible periods of
ethnic violence in Nigerien history (particularly in the
1960s) that he would not wish to see repeated. He said the
GON is working on sensitizing local police and military
officers about rule of law to guard against officers taking
revenge on citizens out of anger and belief that a particular
ethnic group (in this case Tuaregs) are responsible for the
deaths or injury of family members or colleagues. He
acknowledged awareness of isolated cases of abuse or attacks
on Tuaregs or persons suspected of being Tuareg, emphasizing
isolated by repeating that characterization, citing one case
in Zinder involving a civilian attack on another civilian.
He insisted there are no reports of widespread discrimination
or abuse against Tuaregs or any ethnic group. He said the
GON is very vigilant on this matter because no one in the GON
wants ethnic tensions to escalate. On the Sidaghamar case,
he reported that the GON is close to completion of its
investigation and hinted that the report would soon be sent
to the President,s office for review. The PM stated he did
not expect the results of the report to be made public due to
its sensitivity, that to do so might not sit well with some
military officers. He added, however, that those responsible
for the killing will be punished, but said it,s highly
unlikely the GON will release the results of the
investigation to the public. (Comment: This may mean some
low ranking officers will be punished, as opposed to a high
ranking officer who may have given the order to kill the
businessmen. End comment.)


4. (U) I asked the PM about the regional security conference
that had been announced at last week,s ECOWAS meeting (ref
D),whether a decision had been made on the venue, date and
level of participation. The PM responded that there are
actually plans for two conferences. He said the GON will
host one regional conference, possibly in March or April, to
deal with trafficking issues (drugs, cigarettes, arms, mines)
in the Sahel region, that the GON will invite defense and law
enforcement partners from across the Sahel region, and
expects to seek participation from donor partners,
governmental and nongovernmental organizations (NGO) that
work on these issues. He said the second meeting to be

NIAMEY 00000113 002.4 OF 002


organized by ECOWAS will deal with insecurity in the Mali to
Niger corridor and will be hosted by the Government of Mali
in Bamako. He added he wasn,t sure of the exact date of the
meeting in March, that ECOWAS will extend invitations to
potential participants.


5. (C) The PM then asked whether the USG could provide some
immediate assistance to the GON to deal with the insecurity.
When I responded that the USG was still working on the
demining assistance, he asked whether there was more the USG
could do, such as providing intelligence information or other
materials. I responded that I couldn't speak to what
additional assistance the USG could provide, stated that a
Department of Defense (DOD) employee was just here this week
to look at possible assistance to combat drug trafficking,
but that such assistance, if provided, wouldn,t be
immediate. I suggested he may wish to raise the matter with
AF Assistant Secretary (A/S) Frazer at the meeting the PM,s
assistant informed me the PM is scheduled to have with A/S
Frazer on the margins of the African Union Summit in Addis
Ababa next week. (Note: The PM, not President Tandja, will
lead the GON delegation to the AU Summit. FM Mindaoudou also
is a member of the delegation. End note.)


6. (C) I closed the security discussion with a request for
an update on the situation in Tanout and the abduction of the
Prefet and some military officers (Ref D). The PM responded
that the Prefet had been allowed to phone his family early
morning January 24 and confirmed that military officers were
still being held with him. I asked whether the Mouvement des
Nigeriens pour la Justice (MNJ) had made any demands and the
PM responded that the MNJ had not as yet made any demands.


7. (C) Turning to food security, I asked about the status of
the GON,s actions to deposit funds from rice sales into an
interest-bearing account under the control of the Cellule de
Crises Alimentaires (CCA ) Food Crisis Unit). The PM
confirmed that an interest-bearing account has been opened
for CCA and that the proceeds of sale had been deposited. On
the matter of taxes erroneously paid to GON Customs, he said
he signed and sent a letter to the Ministers of Commerce and
Finance together with copies of the relevant conventions and
that the funds have now been reimbursed. When I asked about
the overdue annual report that should have been completed in
November 2007, the PM,s Chief of Staff responded that the
report is just about complete, that it had been held up
pending confirmation that the CCA account had been
established and the customs duties reimbursed.


8. (U) I closed the food security discussion and meeting with
an inquiry about Food For Training (FFT),noting that one NGO
partner had expected to implement a FFT program to replace
the former Food For Work (FFW) program that President Tandja
had rejected. I reported that I had been informed that
Minister of Community Development (MCD) Saade Souleye, who
initially agreed to FTT, earlier this week contacted the NGO
in question to state that FFT was no longer acceptable. I
asked the PM whether he could shed light on the situation.
He inquired which NGO was having the problem and I identified
Catholic Relief Service (CRS). The PM said this was the
first he had heard about this issue and that he would contact
the MCD and look into the matter.

ALLEN