GDRC THOUGHTS ON CNDP INTEGRATION, SGBV, AND SADC

C O N F I D E N T I A L KINSHASA 001063 SIPDIS E.O. 12958: DECL: 12/04/2019 TAGS: PREL PGOV KWMN ECON CG SUBJECT: GDRC THOUGHTS ON CNDP INTEGRATION, SGBV, AND SADC Classified By: William J. Garvelink for reasons 1.4 (b) and (d). ¶1. (U) During a December 2 meeting with polcouns, John Muabma, an advisor in the Ministry of Regional and International Cooperation, discussed the CNDP's transition from a military movement to a political party, sexual and gender based violence (SGBV),and the DRC's role in SADC and other Central and Southern African regional organizations. SGBV -------------- ¶2. (C) In Muamba's opinion, undisciplined government and rebel forces were the single most frequent cause of SGBV in the DRC. While violence against women was a nationwide problem, the conflicts in the East had greatly exacerbated SGBV. An effective way to combat SGBV would be to shore up military justice, Muamba added (Comment: on-going training of military magistrates on sex crimes by the U.S. military's Defense Institute of International Legal Studies -- DIILS -- continues to make steady progress in this area. End comment). CNDP -------------- ¶3. (C) Commenting on GDRC relations with the CNDP (Muamba's ministry had the lead in negotiating with the CNDP over the past several years),and the rebel group's transformation into a political party, Muamba noted that such transitions had always been uneven and difficult in recent DRC history. Pointing to RCD-G, RCD-K, and the MLC as examples of such transitions, he argued that it would similarly take time for the CNDP to transition completely to a political entity. SADC and Other Regional Organizations -------------- ¶4. (C) Muamba maintained that SADC, in the view of most Congolese, had evolved from an organization that "supported anti-DRC groupings" (RCD-G, and to a lesser extent the CNDP) into one in which the DRC now "felt very comfortable." (Comment: Muamba was clearly equating South Africa with SADC, as many other SADC members, including Angola, Zimbabwe, and Namibia, have been rather more sympathetic to the GDRC in its conflicts with rebels. End comment.) Now, thankfully, SADC's focus had shifted towards economic integration issues. On Zimbabwe, Muamba was hesitant to offer any comments on next-steps, reflecting typical DRC ambiguity on Zimbabwe. On Madagascar, Muamba radiantly recounted Foreign Minister Thambwe's handling, as SADC chair, of Transition President Rajoelina's failed attempt to speak at UNGA. ¶5. (SBU) Muamba said, for the moment, the DRC continued to prefer membership in a wide-range of regional organizations (SADC, COMSEA, CEEAC, CEGPL, ICGLR),as opposed to putting all its egss in one regional basket. The GDRC, according to Muamba, recognized that the developed world preferred dealing with regional economic organizations, rather than on a bilateral basis. The GDRC, Muamba added, would concentrate on deepening its participation in regional organizations that offered economic benefits to the country. GARVELINK