CODEL BERMAN CALLS ON OFFICIALS AND VISITS PEPFAR

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 04 PRETORIA 001810 SENSITIVE BUT UNCLASSIFIED SIPDIS DEPT FOR AF/S (MARBURG),AF/RSA, H (AMACDERMOTT) DEPT PLEASE PASS TO HILL STAFFERS RKING, P-AMARSH, DBERAKA E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: PGOV PREL PHUM ETRD OVIP SF ZI SUBJECT: CODEL BERMAN CALLS ON OFFICIALS AND VISITS PEPFAR AND AGOA SITES IN SOUTH AFRICA PRETORIA 00001810 001.2 OF 004 This is the first of three cables reporting on CODEL Berman's July 1-6, 2008 visit to South Africa. The second cable reports on the CODEL's meeting with Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Aziz Pahad. The third cable reports on the CODEL's meeting with Zimbabwean opposition leaders. The cable is sensitive but unclassified. Not for Internet distribution. ¶1. (SBU) Summary. CODEL Berman completed an extensive visit to South Africa, July 1-6, 2008. In Cape Town, the delegation visited the Port of Cape Town to learn about trade and port security issues and met with a major supermarket chain CEO to hear about his pioneering efforts to promote black ownership in the retail sector. In Pretoria, the CODEL participated in a Country Team briefing with Ambassador Bost, attended the Embassy's annual Fourth of July event, met with Deputy Foreign Minister Aziz Pahad to discuss Zimbabwe and South African domestic issues and interacted with a group of Zimbabwean opposition leaders. In Johannesburg, the delegation visited the PEPFAR-supported Themba Lethu Clinic to review treatment for HIV/AIDS patients, toured the AGOA-benefited Issy Petite designs Factory to understand how South African manufactured exports enter the U.S. market, and laid a wreath at the Hector Pieterson Museum in honor of those who fell during the anti-apartheid struggle. In White River, the CODEL visited the ACTS Community Clinic to review treatment for HIV/AIDS patients in a rural setting and conducted an interview with Talk Radio 702, South Africa's most influential radio station. CODEL Berman was able to meet with a wide variety of South African public and private sector officials during this visit. The U.S. Embassy thanks CODEL Berman for creating the opportunity and working with the press to get this positive message to the South African public. End Summary. ¶2. (U) CODEL Berman completed an extensive, one-week visit to South Africa, visiting the cities of Cape Town, Pretoria, Johannesburg and White River, July 1-6, 2008. The delegation was headed by House Foreign Affairs Committee Chairman Howard Berman (D-CA) and included House Education and Labor Committee Chairman George Miller (D-CA),Foreign Affairs Committee Ranking Member Ed Royce (R-CA),House Government Reform and Oversight Committee Ranking Member Thomas Davis (R-VA),Congressman Jim Costa (D-CA),Congressman Donald M. Payne (D-NJ),and Congresswoman Linda Sanchez (D-CA). -------------- Cape Town, July 1-2 -------------- ¶3. (SBU) Port of Cape Town Visit. CODEL Berman called on state transportation company Transnet headquarters in the port of Cape Town on July 2. Transnet Port of Cape Town Port Captain/Harbor Master Ravi Naicker, Assistant Port Captain/Assistant Harbor Manster Carl Otto, Marketing Manager Selma Schwartz and Infrastructure Manager Magentran Rughenavelu provided a comprehensive presentation on the port and its infrastructure. The CODEL members raised questions about the types of trade handled by the port, port security Qabout the types of trade handled by the port, port security measures, and security screening of inbound vessels. The Transnet officials explained how the harbor works, which international protocols they follow, and how they interact with other agencies, particularly the intelligence agencies, in identifying and investigating suspicious activities. Each ship requesting any harbor services must do so in writing several days in advance. Transnet then shares the requests with various government entities which have the opportunity to alert the harbor officials if there is any reason to believe that the ship might be carrying contraband. Only a small number of containers in Cape Town get checked. The Port of Durban has the technical ability to x-ray containers, but the Port of Cape Town does not. The Transnet officials also expressed a desire to expand operations in the Port of Cape Town, but can do so only by reclaiming more land from the sea. This potential reclamation is restrained by legal uncertainty about the ownership of any land that would be reclaimed. ¶4. (SBU) CODEL Berman then traveled to Stellenbosch to have PRETORIA 00001810 002.2 OF 004 dinner with Shop-Rite CEO Whitey Basson. Shop-Rite is one of South Africa's four major supermarket chains and Basson has been a pioneer in promoting black ownership in the retail sector. The CODEL members asked Basson about his pioneering efforts and Basson described some of his major accomplishments and obstacles. ¶5. (SBU) Chairman Berman also had a separate meeting with South African Jewish Board of Deputies Chairman Michael Bagraim and other board members and Jewish leaders at the offices of the Jewish Board of Deputies on July 2. Chairman Berman said he and his delegation were interested in gauging the impact of the U.S. President's Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR) and their attitudes towards Israel. Chairman Berman said he had begun working on anti-apartheid issues in Congress in 1983 and noted that many South African Jews had been prominent in the struggle against apartheid. Bagraim described the South African Jewish community and Chairman Berman fielded questions from the assembled group about Iraq, Iran, HIV/AIDS, Zimbabwe and the U.S. presidential election. Chairman Berman also toured the Cape Town Holocaust Centre. -------------- Pretoria, July 3 -------------- ¶6. (SBU) Country Team Briefing. Ambassador Bost, then Deputy Chief of Mission Teitelbaum and the full Embassy Country Team briefed the CODEL on the morning of July 3 on a variety of political, economic, agricultural, and health issues. Members of the Health Task Force (OIH, USAID, CDC, Peace Corps and DAO) had the opportunity to discuss the Embassy's expanding USD 592 million PEPFAR program. The Health Attache noted that as of July there were now 500,000 South Africans on ARV treatment, up from half that number just two years ago. The Political Counselor responded to questions about the political and economic crisis in Zimbabwe, what the Zimbabwean opposition wants from the U.S., and the impact of millions of undocumented Zimbabweans living in South Africa. The Agricultural Counselor responded to questions about the regional food shortage and the potential export of South Africa's corn surplus to Zimbabwe. He noted that the main issue is not food production, but cost of food for the average citizen. The Economic and Commercial Counselors discussed South Africa's power crisis and the Embassy's efforts to support U.S. company Westinghouse in its USD 70 billion bid to build up to 12 AP1000 nuclear reactors in South Africa by 2025. ¶7. (U) Fourth of July Event. The CODEL attended Embassy Pretoria's Fourth of July event at the Community Center at mid-day on July 3. The event was attended by 500 public and private sector guests, including Foreign Affairs Deputy Minister Sue van der Merwe. Deputy Minister van der Merwe and Ambassador Bost both spoke about the strength of the bilateral relationship. Chairman Berman was invited to address the assembled guests. He introduced the members of the delegation, mentioned their prior visits to South Africa, and noted how hard they had worked on PEPFAR. Chairman Qand noted how hard they had worked on PEPFAR. Chairman Berman met with South African Institute of International Affairs (SAIIA) Deputy Chairman Moeletsi Mbeki (the brother of South African President Thabo Mbeki). ¶8. (SBU) Foreign Affairs Deputy Minister. The CODEL called on Foreign Affairs Deputy Minister Aziz Pahad on the afternoon on July 3. Deputy Minister Pahad thanked the CODEL for visiting South Africa and expressed appreciation for congressional support for funding to combat HIV/AIDS and for legislation to remove anti-apartheid activists from the U.S. terrorist list. Pahad strongly defended South Africa's policy toward Zimbabwe and urged the CODEL to support the African Union's call for a government of national unity, which Pahad claimed was "the only way out of the Zimbabwe crisis." He explained that South Africa is focused on facilitating dialogue between the ruling ZANU-PF and the opposition MDC and believes calls for new mediators and expansion of smart sanctions are not helpful. Turning to domestic issues, Pahad said the recent shift in ANC leadership was "healthy," but admitted that in his view the PRETORIA 00001810 003.2 OF 004 sweeping changes in the party had come "too soon". Pahad concluded that the South African government was doing its best to confront the country's many challenges, many of which had been inherited from the previous regime. A brief television interview with the delegation after the meeting was covered by local television stations. (See septel for additional details.) ¶9. (SBU) Zimbabwe Opposition Leaders. Senior officials of the Zimbabwean opposition party Movement for Democratic Change hosted the CODEL on the evening of July 3. The officials told the delegation that the Zimbabwean June 27 run-off election was a farce, Mugabe's presidential claim was illegitimate, and a Transitional Authority - not a Government of National Unity - was needed to prepare the way out of the Zimbabwean political crisis via new elections in the next 18 months. They decried the recent trend in Africa which allows a loser who is prone to the use of violence to negotiate a power sharing agreement. They also expressed a complete lack of faith in South Africa's mediation effort and the ability of the AU and the Southern African Development Community to solve the crisis. They expressed hope that the UNSC could do more and asked for pressure from the U.S. and the international community to insist that the outcome of new elections in Zimbabwe "reflects the will of the people." (See septel for additional background.) -------------- Johannesburg, July 4 -------------- ¶10. (U) Helen Joseph Hospital. The CODEL visited the PEPFAR-supported Themba Lethu ARV Clinic and Right to Care treatment facility at the government-funded Helen Joseph Hospital in Johannesburg. The clinic is one of the first ARV clinics in the country and it is a center for excellence in the health area. It has more patients on Antiretroviral Therapy (ART) than any clinic in the country. Right to Care Country Director Ian Sanne provided a briefing on Right to Care's six country-wide models for ARV distribution. He also highlighted the integration of different agency/NGO efforts (USAID/NIH/Right to Care) at the same site, the integration of different treatments (VCT, ARV distribution and TB testing),and the importance of South African Government funding for the clinic's efforts (79 percent of total funding). An indigenous choir warmly welcomed the CODEL, and two HIV/AIDS patients who are now employed as health workers by Right to Care told their life stories and thanked the delegation for U.S. funding and technical support. CNBC Africa covered the visit and broadcast the segment across sub-Saharan Africa. ¶11. (U) Issy Petite Designs Factory. The delegation toured the Issy Petite Designs Factory in Industria, a formerly "colored" township north of Soweto. Issy is a rapidly growing, previously disadvantaged people-owned business that designs and manufactures high-end furniture for domestic and international customers. Issy has a second factory in Nigeria, is in the process of establishing a second factory in Angola and plans to open a show-room in Dubai. Issy also Qin Angola and plans to open a show-room in Dubai. Issy also benefits from duty-free exports to the U.S. market as a result of the African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA). Issy Managing Director Issy Penniken explained to the CODEL how USAID's South Africa Business Linkage (SAIBL) Program has helped the company make strategic business and marketing improvements, attend international exhibitions, achieve high-quality accreditation and benefit from AGOA. He thanked the CODEL for U.S. technical support and access to the market and said, "If it had not been for U.S. technical support, I would not be where I am today." ¶12. (U) Hector Pieterson Museum. The CODEL visited the Hector Pieterson Museum and laid a wreath at the memorial site for those who fell during the struggle against apartheid. Antoinette Sithole, the sister of slain Hector Pieterson, told the delegation how he died and gave her eye-witness account of his death. The Sowetan, a influential, Afro-centric newspaper with a circulation of more than 150,000, interviewed Chairman Berman after the PRETORIA 00001810 004.2 OF 004 wreath-laying. The article, which appeared on July 7, quoted the Chairman's comments about the struggle and mentioned his work sponsoring the new bill that removed Nelson Mandela and other ANC members from the list of terrorists. -------------- White River, July 4 -------------- ¶13. (U) ACTS Community Clinic. The delegation visited the AIDS Care, Training and Support (ACTS) Community Clinic near White River, in Mpumalanga Province. The first NGO treatment site, supported by Right to Care, the ACTS Community Center is focused on the effective delivery of ART in a rural community where there is no government hospital present. Right to Care Country Director Dr. Ian Sanne provided a tour of the facility which included a CDC Togatainer site. The CDC Togatainer site represents CDC's efforts to locate modular molecular and general pathology laboratories in converted shipping containers for on-the-spot testing at existing clinics in rural areas. Dr. Sanne again highlighted the integration of different agency/NGO efforts (USAID/CDC/Right to Care) at the same site, the integration of different treatments. Chairman Berman also dedicated a newly completed pharmacy. A local youth choir welcomed the CODEL and the delegation members were given the opportunity to interact with ARV patients. ¶14. (U) Talk Radio 702. Chairman Berman and Congressman Payne then conducted a live telephone interview with Stephen Grootes, a reporter for Talk Radio 702, South Africa's most influential radio station which targets an estimated 300,000 urban commuters during the rush hour on their way to and from work. Grootes spoke to Chairman Berman about the recent passage of legislation which will remove anti-apartheid activists from the U.S. terrorist list. He then talked with Congressman Payne about the U.S. Congress' plans to renew and expand funding for PEPFAR. The interview received broad coverage that afternoon. ¶15. (U) State-owned SABC television reported on July 4 that President Bush signed the law removing Nelson Mandela from the list of terrorists. The article quoted liberally from Chairman Berman's press release about the bill that he sponsored. -------------- Comment -------------- ¶16. (U) CODEL Berman was able to meet with a wide variety of South African public and private sector officials during this extended visit. The delegation was also able to engage on a range of regional and bilateral issues, including the political and economic crisis in Zimbabwe. A series of TV, radio and newspaper interviews on July 3-4 helped publicize what the U.S. is doing in and for South Africa, from PEPFAR and AGOA to the recently passed legislation removing anti-apartheid activists from the U.S. terrorist list. The U.S. Embassy thanks CODEL Berman for creating the opportunity and working with the press to get this positive message to the South African public. BOST