WHILE PM WAGHEF AND OTHERS LANGUISH IN PRISON,

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 NOUAKCHOTT 000253

SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: DECL: 04/08/2019
TAGS: PGOV PREL PHUM MR
SUBJECT: WHILE PM WAGHEF AND OTHERS LANGUISH IN PRISON,
AZIZ SAYS THERE ARE NO POLITICAL PRISONERS

Classified By: Charge d'Affaires Dennis Hankins for reasons 1.4 (b) and
(d).


1. (C) Summary: Despite General Aziz's repeated claims that
there are no political prisoners in Mauritania, the selective
targeting of prominent anti-coup individuals indicates
otherwise. Four people, Prime Minister Waghef among them,
remain in prison charged with corruption and mismanagement
relating to the bankruptcy of Air Mauritanie. Though there
may be an element of truth to some of the charges, there is
little doubt that the detentions are selective and
politically motivated. End summary.


2. (SBU) The accused: There are four individuals involved
in the Air Mauritanie case. All of them are former directors
of the now-defunct airline, and all of them are associated
with President Abdallahi's government, to varying degrees.
All four individuals rejected the August 2008 coup d'etat and
participated in FNDD activities before they were arrested:

-- Prime Minister Yahya Ould Ahmed El Waghef: Waghef was
arrested November 13, 2008, and has remained in prison ever
since. Waghef was Director General of Air Mauritanie from
2004 to 2006.
-- Sidi Mohamed Ould Biye: Biye was arrested November 14,
2008, and has remained in prison ever since. Biye was
President Abdallahi's economic advisor.
-- Moustapha Ould Hamoud: Hamoud was arrested November 14,
2008, and has remained in prison ever since. Hamoud was
Minister of Public Service and Administration Modernization
under both Waghef governments.
-- Isselmou Ould Khattri: Khattri was arrested November 14,
2008, and has remained in prison ever since. Khattri was the
last director of Air Mauritanie, and was only in the position
for two months before the government decided to liquidate the
company.


3. (SBU) The accusations: The official charges against the
four men in the Air Mauritanie case are for "embezzling
public goods, using costly means to reschedule debt payments,
camouflaging the company's financial situation, and malicious
use of the company's name and funds to achieve personal
gains."


4. (SBU) The accusations continued: Waghef faces additional
charges relating to his administration of the Special
Intervention Program. This program was intended to provide
relief to the populace in 2008 when prices of basic
foodstuffs increased sharply. The case is known locally as
the "rice affair," in reference to supposed corruption
regarding the purchase of rice for the Special Intervention
Program. The official charges in this case are for "using
procedures contrary to the rules governing public
procurement, embezzling public property, and treason through
the disclosure of sensitive financial documents involving the
state."


5. (SBU) Detainees' status: All four men remain in prison,
and there is no indication that they will be released any
time soon. Provisional liberty was offered to Waghef on the
condition that he pay an extraordinarily high bail amount of
100 million ouguiyas (approximately $380,000 US). Waghef has
refused to pay, citing the high amount and his assertions
that he has done nothing wrong. On March 18 Waghef's legal
defense team filed a motion and held a press conference
calling for his case to be transferred from the jurisdiction
of common law to the Supreme Court in an attempt to move the
case along. The motion was rejected, and his detention
period was extended an extra four months. (Note: The
four-month provisional detention period can only be renewed
once. So in theory, Waghef will be eligible for release
around July 14, 2009. End note.)


6. (SBU) The world according to Aziz: In an interview with
the Al Arabiya satellite channel broadcast on March 31, Aziz
was asked directly about prisoners who were against "the
movement of August 6 (i.e., coup)" Aziz replied haltingly

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"this is not true... not true... not true." Struggling to
find a justification for the arrests, all he could say was
"some of those in prison support the change (i.e., coup)."


7. (C) Comment: Aziz's claims to the contrary, Post is
unaware of any prominent coup supporters who are currently in
prison because of alleged corruption or mismanagement. And
while there may actually be something behind the charges of
mismanagement and corruption -- few Mauritanians in high
government positions would be able to claim complete
innocence, and Air Mauritanie clearly suffered from poor
management -- it is clearly the window dressing used to keep
political opponents out of the public arena. By threatening
legal action and investigations into corruption, Aziz is able
to keep opponents from voicing their opposition to him too
loudly. Aziz undercut his own argument that the "FNDD Four"
are non-political cases solely subject to law enforcement
activities by including their release as one of the
inducements for the FNDD during Muammar Qadhafi's failed
mediation attempt. Under the guise of a strict
"anti-corruption campaign," Aziz is so far targeting only
opponents and threatening those who are wavering. End
comment.
HANKINS