ZAMBIA REMAINS NON-COMMITTAL ON COUNTRY SPECIFIC

UNCLAS LUSAKA 000794 SENSITIVE SIPDIS E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: PREL PHUM UNGA ZA SUBJECT: ZAMBIA REMAINS NON-COMMITTAL ON COUNTRY SPECIFIC HUMAN RIGHTS RESOLUTIONS REF: A. SECSTATE 116265 ¶B. LUSAKA 750 ¶1. (SBU) Post previously reported that the Zambian Government (GRZ) expressed an interest in single country resolutions that offered a roadmap to resolve the problems described in the resolutions or included technical assistance to help the named country tackle the issues involved, and that they would be unlikely to support what they characterized as "name and shame" resolutions (Ref. A). On October 30, Post provided resolution language to Silumelume Mubukwanu, Acting Assistant Director for International Organizations at the MFA and asked whether the GRZ could support the resolutions as written this year or suggest what they would consider improvements to the texts that would allow the GRZ to be supportive. ¶2. (SBU) On November 12, MFA Permanent Secretary Tens Kapoma reported that he had the texts but had not yet reviewed them. As such, he could not say what the GRZ position on the resolutions or the "no action" motions would be. Kapoma added that Zambian United Nations PermRep Lazarus Kapambwe had met recently with U.S. delegates in New York on the resolutions, but he did not know the outcome of that meeting. In a separate conversation, Mubukwanu said that he had distributed the resolution texts to an inter-agency government group but had received no responses. Post will follow up with MFA and report any substantive response on Zambia's position on the upcoming single-country resolutions. BOOTH