KENYA: AMBASSADOR'S REMARKS TO KENYA

UNCLAS NAIROBI 000541 SIPDIS DEPARTMENT FOR AF/E E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: PREL KDEM PHUM PGOV KE SUBJECT: KENYA: AMBASSADOR'S REMARKS TO KENYA ANTI-CORRUPTION COMMISSION UNCLASSIFIED -- ENTIRE TEXT. ¶1. As reported in septels, as part of efforts to tackle the culture of impunity, and specifically corruption, the Mission is using a combination of private pressure on the coalition government leaders, support for Parliament, a range of programs like the MCC threshold, assistance to civil society and others, and vigorous public diplomacy. ¶2. This message reports remarks delivered by the Ambassador in February at the closing session of FBI-sponsored investigative training for personnel of the Kenya Anti-Corruption Commission. They were widely and positively covered in the media. ¶3. Begin text of Ambassador,s remarks: Given the importance of fighting corruption, I am delighted to join you today for the closing of this U.S.-funded Public Anti-Corruption Training Seminar. I know that you have gained a lot from the experienced U.S. instructors ) and they have undoubtedly benefited from your perspective as well. I am confident that you will employ this new expertise to investigate and prosecute incidents of corruption in the public sector. The Kenya Anti-Corruption Commission is Kenya,s front line in the fight against corruption. That is why the U.S. Government has been working hard for years in support of the KACC. In my remarks to the "Kenya We Want" conference earlier this week, I stated that we want for Kenyans what they want for themselves: a prosperous democratic future that will advance the well-being of all Kenyans. Although this is a very ambitious agenda, many Kenyans have told me that it can be carried out if leaders demonstrate the political will to do so, and if the Kenyan people insist on action. As the professionals of the KACC, you all are at the forefront of the fight against corruption. I urge you all to be bold and energetic against corruption. At a time when politicians sometimes send conflicting and confusing signals about their political will to fight corruption, an even heavier responsibility falls on the professionals who must pursue this immensely challenging task. I understand how difficult it is to do your jobs effectively, but as you proceed, you should be motivated by the fact that the Kenyan people have high expectations for action against corruption. The fight against corruption must be waged from the top down, but also from the bottom up ) and each individual, both within the KACC and throughout the society ) bears responsibility for acting with integrity to fight corruption. The recent scandals regarding the shortage and pricing of maize, and the unusual allocation of oil to companies that have resulted in serious public losses are just two of the daily litany of public questions about corruption. These scandals highlight the huge challenges inherent in investigating and prosecuting corruption. Public corruption investigations involve some of the most complex work in law enforcement. Even in the United States, these types of investigations often last for months, or even years. You, the investigators and lawyers who are charged with identifying, investigating, and prosecuting corrupt activities, must be smart ) and patient. You have to use increasingly sophisticated investigative techniques to prove a crime has been committed to counter the increasingly sophisticated criminal techniques being used to take and hide the stolen money. And since these criminals are not constrained by borders as you often are, you also need to develop close working relationships with counterparts and colleagues in other countries to trace the proceeds of illegal activities. You have just completed a week of training in which you have worked with a U.S. federal judge, a U.S. federal prosecutor, and a number of agents from the Federal Bureau of Investigation, who specialize in public corruption investigations. The discussions and presentations were designed to demonstrate some of the best practices United States and international investigators are using to successfully prosecute these cases. Now you must harness these techniques to support Kenyan efforts. I understand that during this training seminar, you looked at corruption in various areas of government and explored methods that you may be able to employ to identify, investigate, and prosecute corrupt practices. You studied how corruption may involve a wide range of activity, from the high-level embezzlement of public funds to the petty corruption of traffic police who take bribes at roadside checkpoints. Corruption may take place purely within the borders or Kenya, or it may involve cross-border activities. The illegal activity you investigate may originate in the private sector, or it may be initiated by a corrupt official. It may take the form of embezzlement, or it may involve the misappropriation of funds by a public official. In other words, public corruption may be disguised in many different ways. The result, however, is always the same: corruption undermines the public trust. A primary purpose of this training has been to encourage you to build partnerships with other investigators in the law enforcement community, both here in Kenya and abroad. I hope you take what you have learned this week and apply new investigative techniques in the public corruption investigations you are handling. I encourage you to develop a network among your Kenyan colleagues and others in the international law enforcement community who do this type of work. The partnerships you build will help you enhance your investigative skills and improve your ability to trace the proceeds of the criminal activities perpetrated against the people of Kenya. There has never been a more opportune or important time in Kenya,s history to fight corruption. Kenyans and their friends in the international community agree that there can be no return to the ways of the past, and the culture of impunity must not be allowed to persist. Half measures, whether with respect to institutional reforms or to fighting the scourge of corruption, will not be credible to the Kenyan people or to the international community. We stand with the Kenyan people who are insisting that the corruption cases which have come to light be fully investigated and perpetrators prosecuted. It is not a question of rounding up the usual suspects and rearranging positions, and then doing business as usual. The tragic crisis of last year has opened up an unparalleled opportunity to bring about fundamental change, and I believe that nothing less than fundamental change will satisfy the Kenyan people. If carried out, that change will lay the basis for stronger democratic institutions and a better future for all Kenyans. There is in fact no alternative to the reform agenda ) and the fight against corruption is a key element of that agenda. Unless actions are taken to begin altering the culture of impunity, Kenya faces the specter of even greater trouble in the future, and none of us want to see that. While Kenyans are impatient for change, I would argue against those that might become cynical and those nay-sayers who see the glass as half empty. The procurement act, more transparent government procedures, and greater scrutiny by civil society, the private sector, and the media are all encouraging. But Kenyans want more, much more. They want a clear break from the old culture of impunity. They want effective enforcement against and prosecution of corruption. I urge the coalition government to send clear signals of strong support for the KACC and to provide all the resources necessary to undertake effective action. In thinking about the agenda for fundamental change in Kenya, and the fight against corruption, I want to recall what then Senator Obama said when he addressed students at the University of Nairobi in 2006. Senator Obama stated that: "In the end, if the people cannot trust their government to do the job for which it exists - to protect them and to promote their common welfare - all else is lost. And this is why the struggle against corruption is one of the great struggles of our time." He went on to say that, based on his observations, "the Kenyan people are crying out for real change, and many Kenyans seemed to be sending (signals) of dissatisfaction with the pace of reform, and real frustration with continued tolerance of corruption at high levels. Of course, in the end, one of the strongest weapons your country has against corruption is the ability of you, the people, to stand up and speak out about the injustices you see. The Kenyan people are the ultimate guardians against abuses. In today's Kenya - a Kenya already more open and less repressive than in my father's day - it is that courage that will bring the reform so many of you so desperately want and deserve." Those words were prescient then and remarkably relevant now. I wish you success in your anti-corruption efforts, and I want to emphasize our unwavering support for you and for the Kenyan people as they pursue fundamental change. I would like to thank the Director of the Kenya Anti-Corruption Commission, Justice Aaron Ringera, for supporting this training effort. I also want to thank Judge Virginia Kendall and all of the instructors who shared their knowledge and experiences with you. End text. RANNEBERGER