DRC PASSPORTS AND CORRUPTION: YET ANOTHER

UNCLAS KINSHASA 001100 DEPT FOR AF/C LAMORA, CA/VO/F URBANIC, CA/FPP MATTINGLY, AND CA/EX BOETTCHER; JOHANNESBURG FOR RCO MAY SIPDIS SENSITIVE E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: CASC CMGT CVIS ASEC OTRA CG SUBJECT: DRC PASSPORTS AND CORRUPTION: YET ANOTHER CHALLENGE TO GOOD GOVERNANCE IN THE CONGO REF: KINSHASA 1007 ¶1. (SBU) Summary: On November 9, 2009, the Government of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (GDRC) announced that all non-biometric passports would be cancelled effective December 31, 2009 (reftel). The announcement marked the culmination of a two-year effort by the GDRC to regularize passport issuance and reduce wide-spread corruption undermining confidence in Congolese documents. At the same time, the twists and turns of the process itself and the final product that resulted reveal the challenges the government faces in trying to provide basic services to citizens. The process also offers an example of how corruption and bad government are inextricably linked. By January 1, 2010 Congolese travelers will have a more secure travel document, but oversight of the process has not improved, and the problems associated with Congolese passports continue to exist with nearly every document the GDRC issues. End Summary. ¶2. (U) On November 6, 2009 the GDRC announced that all non-biometric passports would expire December 31, 2009. The new passports incorporate standard security features: they are machine readable and use a digitized photo. Biographic data is no longer hand-written, a practice that rendered many passports illegible in the past, and the passports have unique serial numbers. The government insists that it has sufficient stock on hand to ensure an adequate supply to passport offices throughout the Congo. The government also has promised to speed passport issuance -- which can take as long as six months -- and to standardize fees, thus reducing incentives for corruption. ¶3. (SBU) But the two-year process of replacing the old passports has not gone smoothly, largely as a result of the government's weak administrative capabilities. In 2008, for example, the government ran out of stock for tourist passports and issued all Congolese travelers official passports, annotating the documents for tourists. Some European countries refused to recognize the annotated passports. In February 2009 the passport replacement program was suspended when the GDRC learned that the new passports repeated serial numbers and lacked a space for travelers to sign their names. In August 2009 the government moved all passport issuances to Kinshasa because embassies abroad were not remitting fees. In addition, the government has not been able to standardize fees or speed issuance: Congolese citizens are likely to pay two to four times the official rate of $150 in bribes, and the wait time remains at six months. ¶4. (SBU) Most important of all, no governmental oversight exists to insure the identity of Congolese travelers. Applicants are required to submit one of two forms of identification: a voter card, or a certificate of nationality. (Note: Old passports are not accepted as proof of identity. End note.) Voter cards are issued irregularly and usually in conjunction with upcoming elections. A photo is attached to the voter card, and fingerprints are taken, but the information presented is accepted at face value, and passport offices lack the capacity to compare fingerprints. The certificate of nationality is issued after an interview at the Ministry of Justice; it lacks a photo, and the biographic information it contains is not verified. ¶5. (U) Cultural traditions explain these practices, at least in part. Congolese law allows a citizen to obtain a birth certificate, a marriage certificate, a divorce certificate, a national ID, and in Qa marriage certificate, a divorce certificate, a national ID, and in some cases, an adoption decree based on a statement made in front of a judge. The statement is not verified by a government official. Many Congolese citizens, particularly in rural areas, distrust the state, and see no reason to spend money to obtain official documents. As a result, nearly all documents are registered years late. Naming conventions are not standardized: many applicants for American visas have changed their names three or four times, each name backed by a valid passport. ¶6. (SBU) But an even bigger reason is money. Government officials receive abysmal payment for their services (if they are paid at all) and work in primitive conditions. Long-time, mid-level officials may earn as little as $200 per month. Municipal offices around Kinshasa open late and sometimes close by noon, as bureaucrats hurry to their second (or third) job. Offices lack computers, air conditioning, desks, and even paper. MFA diplomats sometimes ask embassies to send a driver, because the MFA cannot afford transportation to deliver diplomatic notes. Municipal offices, particularly in outlying areas of Kinshasa, resemble open air markets, where documents are freely bartered and where it is impossible to tell who the genuine officials are. In these kinds of conditions, the temptation to take and solicit bribes is overwhelming, even for the most honest bureaucrats. ¶7. (SBU) Comment: Neither corruption nor poor management alone are to blame for the lack of governmental services in the Congo. Instead, the two combine to derail efforts aimed at improving public administration. As a case in point, in August the Ministry of Education informed the consular section that 16 high-school diplomas submitted with diversity visa applications were fake. The applicants were refused visas. In October, the Ministry corrected itself and said the diplomas were genuine. The consular section does not know if clerks at the Ministry made a genuine error or received bribes to change their decision, but we have learned, as many Congolese citizens already knew, that the government lacks the capacity -- and, sometimes, the will -- to verify the documents it issues. End comment. Garvelink