NEPAL: PM STILL MULLING PROMOTION OF CONTROVERSIAL

C O N F I D E N T I A L KATHMANDU 001078 SIPDIS E.O. 12958: DECL: 01/23/2019 TAGS: PGOV PHUM MARR NP SUBJECT: NEPAL: PM STILL MULLING PROMOTION OF CONTROVERSIAL GENERAL REF: A. KATHMANDU 906 ¶B. KATHMANDU 929 ¶C. KATHMANDU 982 Classified By: Charge d'Affaires, a.i., Randy W. Berry. Reasons 1.4 (b/ d). ¶1. (C) During a November 24 meeting at his request, Chief Secretary Madhav Ghimire told Charge that Prime Minister Nepal had not made a final decision to promote General Toran Jung Bahadur Singh to Lieutenant General, despite press reports to the contrary. Post had previously expressed concern about the promotion of Singh (refs A-C),who is commanded the 10th Brigade at a time when one of its battalions allegedly committed serious human rights abuses, including torture of detained Maoists in the Maharajgunj Barracks and the alleged execution of 49 of the detainees in the Shiva Puri forest north of Kathmandu. Investigation Done; No Evidence Against Singh -------------- ¶2. (C) Ghimire claimed that a committee consisting of the Secretaries from the Ministry of Home Affairs, the Ministry of Defense, and the Prime Minister's office had reviewed Singh's case and not found any evidence directly implicating Singh in any crime or human rights abuse. No court cases had been filed against Singh. Ghimire suggested that perhaps the order to commit human rights abuses at Maharajgunj Barracks came "from the palace" or even the then-Chief of the Army Staff, "bypasing Singh," adding that sometimes commanders "simply have to follow orders." In this situation, it would be unfair to deny Singh the promotion. Should evidence later emerge implicating Singh, then he could be prosecuted. Charge Outlines U.S. Concerns -------------- ¶3. (C) Charge said that any credible investigation of the abuses committed at Maharajgunj Barracks must be complete and assign proper responsibility. Charge noted that the promotion of Singh would have a negative impact on the current government's image and on the ability of the U.S. to cooperate with the Nepal Army. The United States assigns great importance to ending impunity for human rights abuses, be they attributed to the Nepal Army or Maoists. Any decision to promote Singh puts the interests of one individual career over that of the institution. ¶4. (C) Ghimire thanked Charge for his honest assessment. The Prime Minister values U.S. support and does not want to "surprise" the United States. As the Prime Minister's Foreign Policy Advisor, Rajan Bhattarai, suggested in late October (ref C),Ghimire said the GON was preparing "four or five" criminal cases against the perpetrators of the most egregious human rights abuses, including the Maina Sunuwar case. Charge said progress on those cases would be welcome, but that the concerns about General Singh's promotion would nonetheless continue. Comment -------------- ¶5. (C) The Prime Minister is clearly under intense pressure to promote Singh, including perhaps from New Delhi. Carefully-planned military careers, including the ascension of Major General Gaurav S.J.B. Rana (reportedly a close ally of India) to Chief of the Army Staff, turn on the Singh promotion. Post will continue to stress the negative implications of the Singh promotion on U.S.-Nepali military cooperation and press for an independent, credible investigation of the Maharajgunj incident. BERRY