JULY POLITICAL ROUND-UP - FREETOWN

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 03 FREETOWN 000317 SIPDIS DEPARTMENT FOR AF/W (JHUNTER) E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: PGOV PREL PHUM SL SUBJECT: JULY POLITICAL ROUND-UP - FREETOWN REF: FREETOWN 304 ¶1. Summary: President Koroma's need for a disciplined, effective civil service was reinforced in July through the launch of the Public Sector Reform Unit and a campaign against lateness and absenteeism. The National Registration Secretariat will soon be empowered to issue national ID cards and ECOWAS passports, which could raise needed revenue for the government. The Human Rights Commission published its annual report, showing that violence against women, lack of access to justice, and the need for increased government responsiveness to human rights issues and structural change continue to be critical problems. Activists reiterated the need for gender equality by lobbying Parliament to fully implement UNSCR 1325 on Women, Peace and Security, while the Inter-Religious Council reaffirmed a commitment across religions to support tolerance. The Ministry of Trade and Industry is giving a boost to indigenous business through a competition that will provide seed money to innovative entrepeneurs. The German, Chinese, and Japanese governments provided bilateral support. End Summary. -------------- PUBLIC SECTOR REFORM LAUNCH -------------- ¶2. On July 28, President Koroma launched a new public sector reform initiative aimed at enhancing the public service. The Public Sector Reform Unit, under the Office of the President, was initially created due to the President's desire to resuscitate the entire civil service in order to provide more efficient and effective services to the population. Aided by support from DFID, UNDP, the World Bank and others, the Public Sector Reform Unit has developed a series of programs and recommendations for ministries and departments throughout the country in an effort to build synergy, redefine roles, and provide training across the government sector. President Koroma has put a tremendous amount of support behind Public Sector Reform as a key element of his "agenda for change." -------------- GETTING TOUGH WITH CIVIL SERVICE -------------- ¶3. As a precursor to the launch mentioned in para. 2, the Attitudinal and Behavioral Change Secretariat (ABC) within the Office of the President in partnership undertook a lateness and absenteeism awareness campaign and survey on Government Ministries and Departments on July 6. The Deputy Coordinator of the ABC said that the Public Sector and the Civil Service are not working in consonance with the President's call for change. He said they were undertaking a survey to ascertain the scope of the problem, as absenteeism and lateness demonstrates a lack of initiative and undermines the productivity of the civil service. Comment: This initiative reflects the lack of discipline and rules enforcement capabilities in individual ministries. End Comment. -------------- --- NATIONAL ID CARDS/ECOWAS PASSPORTS COMMISSIONED -------------- --- ¶4. Since his election in 2007, Koroma has pushed to empower the National Registration Secretariat. The passing of the National Registration Act in 2008 accomplished this by giving the Secretariat a renewed mandate to register all citizens and non-citizens residing in Sierra Leone. In a move to meet these goals, the Secretariat will soon begin issuing national ID cards and ECOWAS passports. At a launching ceremony on July 30, Koroma claimed that the government's adoption of the ECOWAS passport is a clear manifestation of his government's commitment to Sierra Leonean citizens' right to travel within member ECOWAS states. However, this initiative will also be crucial to national security and revenue generation. -------------- HUMAN RIGHTS COMMISSION PRESENTS REPORT -------------- ¶5. The Human Right Commission of Sierra Leone (HRCSL) which was established by an Act of Parliament in 2004, following the Lome Peace accord in 1999 and the recommendations of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC) presented its annual report 2008 to the President and the speaker of Parliament. The report highlighted concerns about violence against women and children, the lack of universal comprehensive health care, limited access to justice, poor conditions in detention facilities, and the high incidence of teenage pregnancy. On an institutional level, the HRCSL continues to point to the government's failure to take action FREETOWN 00000317 002 OF 003 on the Constitutional Review Committee's report, which was submitted in January 2008. The Commission also notes that President Koroma promised to establish and Truth and Reconciliation Follow-Up Committee, but has yet to do so. Comment: The HRCSL report also highlights its own dire financial straits: it has limited funding to monitor and investigate human rights abuses, even as it struggles to grow to cover all regions of the country. Without continued support from the Peace Building Commission and other donors, the HRCSL will be unable to effectively function. End Comment. -------------- GENDER ACTIVISTS LOBBY PARLIAMENT -------------- ¶6. On July 1, the Executive of the "Mano River Women for Peace Network," in collaboration with the "West African Network for Peace" held consultations with Parliamentarians on issues related to gender equality and violence. In particular, they shared information and advocated for the implementation of United Nations Security Council Resolution (UNSCR) 1325 on Women, Peace, and Security, which was adopted by the United Nations in 2000 but has not been fully incorporated into the laws of Sierra Leone. The resolution gives equal opportunity and rights to women, condemns violence against women and children, and encourages economic empowerment. The Deputy Minister of Social Welfare Gender and Children Affairs added her voice to the plea, and urged MPs to lobby their colleagues to pass the resolution into law because they have a responsibility to take the lead in protecting women and children in the society. Comment: Per reftel A, issues of gender-based violence and inequality are rampant here. Recent laws are an excellent starting-point for addressing the issues, but limited capacity to implement these and subsequent laws will continue to be a major obstacle. End Comment. -------------- - INTER-RELIGIOUS COUNCIL COMMITTED TO TOLERANCE -------------- - ¶7. The Inter-Religious Council met on July 21 to reaffirm its commitment to religious tolerance. The council members discussed the need to remind their congregates about the importance of peace and political stability in the development process. They agreed that religious leaders should play a mediation role in political disputes. They also agreed that they must be a united front, regardless of religious affiliation, and that they should therefore desist from attempting to win converts from one another by using financial or material rewards. -------------- GOVERNMENT PRESSURED ON ICC -------------- ¶8. Civil Society groups urged the government to demonstrate its respect for rule of law. On July 17, the Campaign for Good Governance (CGG) became the latest civil society group to pressure the government to demonstrate its commitment to international treaties by advocating for the prosecution of Sudanese President Omar Al-Bashir. Sierra Leone is a signatory to the Rome Statute that established the ICC, and CGG believes the government should show its commitment to protecting the dignity and rights of all people, including those victimized by war. At the recent AU Summit, Sierra Leone supported the AU consensus that refuses to hand over Al-Bashir to the ICC. Comment: It is interesting that CGG, which was founded by Foreign Minister Zainab Bangura, took a decidedly different view from the Government regarding Al-Bashir. End Comment. -------------- INDIGENOUS BUSINESS GIVEN A BOOST -------------- ¶9. On July 7 the Ministry of Trade and Industry, in partnership with Soros Economic Development Fund and DFID, launched a "Business Bomba" Competition. "Bomba" in Sierra Leone's local parlance means "success" or "prosperity." The Bomba competition is aimed at improving support for entrepreneurs as a core part of the government's private sector development strategy. The theme of the competition is "Innovation, Ambition and Aspiration." Small-scale entrepreneurs will submit business proposals, in the hopes of obtaining USD 2,500 of start-up funds. Two hundred applications will be processed, sixty shortlisted and the top twenty selected for funding. -------------- BILATERAL RELATIONS FREETOWN 00000317 003 OF 003 -------------- ¶10. On July 2, the former Ambassador of the Federal Republic of Germany, Rolf Saligmann, handed over a consignment of office equipment and other materials to the Immigration Department (Note: Ambassador Saligmann departed his post in July. His replacement, Ambassador Thomas Freudenhammer, is in-country and met with Ambassador Perry August 5. End Note). Ambassador Saligmann said that this donation marks an important development in the bilateral relationship between the two countries, with the cooperation extending beyond humanitarian assistance and into capacity building. Comment: Germany is increasingly starting to engage on security-related issues in Sierra Leone. While this is a welcome development, they will need to liaise with other donors in the sector to ensure the appropriateness of their activities: a recent narcotics-related training funded by the German government, for example, was held for an agency that has minimal involvement in interdiction efforts, and organized without the knowledge of the lead agencies and donors. End Comment. ¶11. The Chinese Embassy donated anti-malaria drugs to the Minister of Health and Sanitation at the end of July. The drugs have been distributed to all primary health units, country wide. ¶12. A visit from the new Japanese Ambassador to Sierra Leone, Keiichi Katakami, promoted Japan's assistance in the area of food security and other bilateral aid. Ambassador Katakami presented the government with nearly 6,220 metric tons (MT) of rice, and also signed a Non-Grant Aid agreement for USD 6.3 million. The money will be used to import petroleum products into Sierra Leone. Comment: The government's donation of 6,220 MT of rice was stymied by the reported theft of 122 MT. It is currently unclear if the rice was stolen in-transit or at the port; an investigation is ongoing. Theft at the port is commonplace here, targeting even humanitarian aid. End Comment. PERRY