MEETING WITH FNL CHIEF RWASA

C O N F I D E N T I A L BUJUMBURA 000445


NAIROBI FOR SLUTZ
PARIS FOR AFRICA WATCHER

E.O. 12958: DECL: 08/28/2019
TAGS: KDEM PGOV PINR PINS BY
SUBJECT: MEETING WITH FNL CHIEF RWASA

Classified By: CHARGE D'AFFAIRES CHARLES H. TWINING FOR
REASON 1.4 (B,D)


1. (C) Introduction and Summary. As part of a series of
calls on political party chiefs, we met August 28 with
Agathon Rwasa, the head of the last rebel group to become
part of the peace process and demobilize, the Forces
Nationales de Liberation, or FNL. Protected by South African
troops, he proved during our ninety minute session together
at his party headquarters to be a fascinating interlocutor.
He described the atmosphere of injustice in which he grew up,
the development of his thinking when he was in the forest,the
problems and harassment his party is facing, his appeal to
Burundians regardless of ethnicity, and the bleak futures of
the demobilized soldiers. President Rwasa is convinced the
ruling CNDD-FNL is seeking to eliminate the FNL. End
Summary.


2. (C) Background. Rwasa, a Hutu from northern Burundi,
described his youth as a time when one had to write down his
ethnic affiliation in primary school, something which
followed him and marked him as he grew older. Tutsis were
admitted into secondary school in far greater numbers than
Hutus, and it did not take long before he discovered that
good government jobs and admission into major university
faculties went primarily to Tutsis. This, along with the
massacres of Hutus that occurred at regular intervals in this
country's independent history and the fact that all of
Burundi's strongmen were Tutsis, developed in him a sense of
injustice that pushed him into a Hutu political movement
(Palipehutu) in the 1980's. It soon became obvious that
political action alone would change nothing, at which point
the military arm, or FNL, was created in 1990.


3. (C) Years in the Wilderness. President Rwasa said his
many years in the forest were learning experiences. He made
good decisions and bad ones, he said. He also had a lot of
time to think. Injustice, inequality, the police state that
Burundi had been almost since independence, politicians who
thought only of themselves, all helped crystallize in his
mind what was needed to turn the country around. He cited
basic agricultural development that helps small farmers
improve their production until they can move forward on their
own steam. He spoke of the need not just to cater to a
selfish political class far removed from the great mass of
Burundians. He mentioned the gap between the rural majority
and the urban few. He referred to the necessity for equal
treatment of all. We suggested he had the makings of a
political platform for the Presidential race, and he agreed.


4. (C) A Political Party. With its signing of an agreement
with the GOB last December 4, he observed that it began the
process of coming in from the cold. The movement dropped the
Palipehutu part of its title and, after Rwasa led the
demobilization effort the following April 18, became a
political party. He did not give any reasons for the change
from a rebel movement to one entering the mainstream. He
said the party has terrific problems: no money, no building
of its own, harassment of its members and efforts to have
meetings. Nevertheless, it intends to continue the political
struggle and present candidates at all levels in the 2010
elections. Needless to say, it is also looking for help. The
President knows his South African guards will soon be
withdrawn and referred to the agreement whereby 390 personnel
from his side and 390 personnel from the Burundian military
would receive training together to constitute a future guard
force for FNL leaders. The GOB has not moved on this issue,
and Rwasa seemed pessimistic that it would.


5. (C) Relations with the Ruling Party. The FNL President
was especially bitter toward the ruling CNDD-FDD. We
mentioned that we thought their relations were sometimes
fairly good during their years together in the forest and
noted speculation that they could join politically even
today. Rwasa denied both. He said the story of cooperation
among rebel groups was one the ruling party put out, but it
was never the case. The CNDD-FNL was determined to eliminate
the FNL when it was in the woods, and it is trying to
eliminate it today. Rwasa said the CNDD-FDD has been using
money and perks to buy over FNL leaders, proof of which is
seen in the move into the intelligence service of former
spokesman Pasteur Habimana and former Deputy Chief of Staff
Juxbert Ibrahim Musavyi. President Rwasa was particularly
bitter toward Habimana. Rwasa discovered while they were
still in the forest that Habimana had been siphoning off
movement funds into his pocket. Rwasa tried to settle the
affair quietly, then later had to take it to a larger meeting
of the leadership. He said it never stopped, and the
CNDD-FNL found Habimana's weakness and was able to bring him
onto its side. The list of incidents caused by either
CNDD-FDD members or local officials that the central
government makes no effort to reign in demonstrates just how
hard authorities are trying to quash the FNL, the President
said.


6. (C) FNL Identity. While the message is good about what to
do about Burundi, we said we did not see how the party would
overcome its identity as a purely Hutu party if it wished to
win elections. Rwasa initially dismissed the accusation,
noting that every party has an ethnic identity to one degree
or another. We persisted in the accusation about the FNL,
and he said that was a thing of the past. The FNL appeals to
all ethnic groups today, President Rwasa insisted, and is
getting Tutsi members, he asserted. He said that when he
goes out into the countryside he speaks about the need for
equality for all citizens, and the reaction is positive.


7. (C) Demobilized Soldiers. The President observed that,
other than those integrated into the armed forces and the
police, as well as the government, the rest have been let go
with the equivalent of $80 in their pockets, a sum that does
not last long. His proposal for government vocational
training programs has not elicited any response. The World
Bank-directed program has been of too limited duration. We
expressed interest in discussing further a possible program
which we might help support.


8. (C) Comment. Agathon Rwasa comes across as someone who is
seeking to be heard, and having trouble doing so. It is true
the government and ruling party are giving his efforts a hard
time. One often hears that the FNL has more popularity in
the countryside than is generally recognized, and a credible
election would confirm or give the lie to such talk. He is
the country's Social Security Commissioner and is clearly
engaged in the process of making it work, willing to discuss
at length the problems Burundi's social security system
faces. His desire to broaden its coverage from ten to one
hundred percent of the population very much fits in with the
social and economic agenda in which he believes personally,
and passionately. At the same time it is important to
remember that there is considerable agreement that this
articulate leader also has lots of blood on his hands, and
the extent to which he can overcome this legacy is uncertain,
at best. It is also likely that during his years in the
forest Rwasa thought so much about the supposed injustices
committed against him and his people that he came to believe
all the stories, whether true or not. Note that on the same
day as our meeting, the FNL announced the dismissal of
Habimana from the party, both for his close relations with
the CNDD-FDD and the fraud he committed while in the FNL.


Twining