VISIT TO A FORMER FDLR STRONGHOLD

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 KINSHASA 000400 SENSITIVE SIPDIS E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: PGOV PREL MOPS PHUM PREF CG SUBJECT: VISIT TO A FORMER FDLR STRONGHOLD ¶1. (SBU) Summary: The Joint Monitoring Group Task Force (JMG-TF) travelled on April 17 to Nyabiondo, which lies 20 kilometers southwest of Masisi, to assess the situation on the ground, particularly with regard to the status of the FDLR in the area. JMG-TF members received a briefing from the MONUC commander in Nyabiondo, met with local FARDC commanders, a local police commander, local authorities, civil society representatives, and the local DDRRR representative. Congolese residents of the area stressed that the FDLR was on the run. MONUC confirmed that the group had faded into the forests, but the FARDC was not winning the battle for hearts and minds of the local populace. End summary. FDLR weakened in Nyabiondo -------------- ¶2. (SBU) The Congolese and Rwandan delegates noted reports that the FDLR was weakened and had dispersed into the jungle after the joint FARDC-RDF operations. MONUC Commander Colonel Lokeshsaxena said the FDLR, once an established presence in local villages, had barely been seen in the area since Operation Umoja Wetu. The FDLR had switched to guerrilla style hit and run attacks on FARDC patrols, afterwards melting back into the forest. An FDLR battalion headquarters at nearby Kashebere under Colonel Albert Kasha had disappeared along with four separate company strength deployments (estimated total numbers of 800-1000, of which 50 percent were armed). The local MONUC commander concurred with the assessment of local FARDC commanders that the latter was able to reinforce quickly in areas where it was attacked, and the FDLR had been unable to regain lost territory. ¶3. (SBU) Colonel Lokeshsaxena cautioned against giving much credibility to reports of fighting in the area, noting that his communications with Goma were almost nonexistent and the reports are typically exaggerated. The commander did, however, acknowledge that some clashes had occurred near Pinga, especially after FDLR fighters who had occupied the town learned that FARDC soldiers had raped some of the FDLR wives who remained in Pinga when the group retreated. Support to Kimia II operations ongoing -------------- ¶4. (SBU) The Rwandan delegation stressed that operations against the FDLR needed to maintain momentum and receive continued political and diplomatic support. They also asked the FARDC and local MONUC commanders about the nature of MONUC support to these operations. MONUC clarified that forces to implement Kimia II were in place and that MONUC support was logistical in nature, providing transport, supplies and medical evacuation to the wounded. The Congolese delegation noted that control of the terrain by the FARDC was paramount, stating that more effort needed to be directed towards Kibua and Walikale (west of Nyabiondo). The FARDC highlighted the excellent assistance and cooperation on the part of MONUC in the conduct of operations against the FDLR. The local FARDC commander expressed confidence that the FDLR would be cleared from the area shortly. He claimed that the group still receives funds from abroad, but had also resorted to looting. Slowdown in FDLR repatriation -------------- ¶5. (SBU) While the pace of DDRRR results has remained steady, the JMG-TF noted reports of a slowdown in the surrender and repatriation of FDLR elements around Nyabiondo since the conclusion of the joint FARDC-RDF operations. Colonel Lokeshsaxena corrected an earlier MONUC report that approximately 300 FDLR fighters near Ntoto had expressed a desire to repatriate, stating that only 73 had done so, and only seven of them were combatants. A DDRRR team remains at the MONUC base and occasionally receives FDLR defectors, but it has curtailed its outreach activities. The FARDC expressed optimism that more FDLR elements would come forward and surrender because of difficult living conditions in the bush. Activity and composition of the local population -------------- --- ¶6. (SBU) The Congolese and Rwandan delegations emphasized the importance of public information campaigns to encourage the population to disassociate itself from the FDLR. MONUC representatives highlighted that the FDLR had dominated the economy in the area and inter-married with the local population. The MONUC commander, who has served a full year in Nyabiondo, asserted privately that locals preferred the FDLR to the FARDC, noting that the rebels had not caused any problems for the populace. He produced several letters from residents complaining of FARDC abuses, and said locals would typically appeal to MONUC, rather than the local police, to resolve criminal matters. Goma Poloff asked the KINSHASA 00000400 002 OF 002 FARDC commander if his troops had been paid and he answered in the affirmative, but a FARDC major out of his line of sight vigorously shook his head no. ¶7. (SBU) The head of the DRC delegation to the JMG-TF, Colonel Mamba, explained to Goma Poloff that non-payment to integrated militias was a conscious strategy; the FARDC was aware that many militia members had never been actual soldiers, and they often deserted when they realized that they were not getting a salary. Non-payment was thus a way of filtering out unqualified soldiers, asserted Mamba (Comment: This is, to say the least, a curious and unconvincing justification for the non-payment of FARDC soldiers. End comment). FARDC integration of armed groups -------------- ¶8. (SBU) The JMG-TF heard reports that a PARECO faction is now ready to integrate in Nyabiondo after some resistance in previous weeks over issues of pay and the transfer of ranks into the FARDC. Other local PARECO forces had integrated, and there were no active militias in the area, according to Colonel Lokeshsaxena. Echoing a theme we have heard elsewhere, Lokeshsaxena said non-integrated FARDC units were more disciplined and effective than recently integrated ones. He noted that a CNDP Colonel who had been placed in command of local FARDC troops had been killed on April 14, a death he attributed to FARDC "score-settling" rather than combat. "You can't expect former enemies to become brothers in just a few weeks," added Lokeshsaxena. ¶9. (SBU) Comment: The visit confirmed that operations against the FDLR have been effective if not conclusive. They are dispersed, but not defeated, and the GDRC's failure to restore trust and legitimacy with the population could still undermine the gains made against the rebels. The Rwandan delegation, however, seemed convinced that the FARDC was making a good faith effort against the FDLR, a development that should help cement the recent warming in the bilateral relationship. End comment. GARVELINK