VISAS DONKEY: DEPENDENTS OF REMY ZE MEKA:

C O N F I D E N T I A L YAOUNDE 000245 SIPDIS STATE FOR INL/C JANE BECKER E.O. 12958: DECL: 03/09/2019 TAGS: KCOR CVIS PREL CM SUBJECT: VISAS DONKEY: DEPENDENTS OF REMY ZE MEKA: CORRUPTION 212F SAO REQUEST REF: A. 08 YAOUNDE 2008 ¶B. ACTION MEMO FOR UNDER SECRETARY BURNS DATED 02/27/2009 Classified By: Political Officer Tad Brown for reasons 1.4 b and d. ¶1. (C) Summary and action request. Embassy Yaounde requests that the Department revoke the valid visas held by the wife and two dependent children of Remy Ze Meka, the Cameroonian Minister of Defense. On March 2, the Department found Ze Meka ineligible to receive a visa because his corrupt acts have had a serious adverse effect on U.S. national interests in Cameroon (ref b). Embassy Yaounde believes Ze Meka's wife and two children, having benefited from Ze Meka's corrupt acts and ill-gotten wealth, are subject to Proclamation 7750. Such a determination will prevent the U.S. from becoming a safe haven for Ze Meka's ill-gotten wealth, deal a blow to Ze Meka's power and send a deterrent message to other kleptocrats, simultaneously contributing to U.S. strategic priorities in Cameroon for advancing democracy, fighting corruption and strengthening the security sector. End summary and action request. ¶2. (C) Remy Ze Meka does not possess a valid visa, and Post does not believe he will apply for a visa, in large part because the Cameroonian press has widely publicized the existence of the 212f ineligiblity and the Embassy's willingness to find Cameroonian kleptocrats ineligible under Proclamation 7750. Nevertheless, three of Ze Meka's dependents possess valid non-immigrant visas and one son is currently in the U.S., apparently with legal permanent resident status. Herewith a summary of the relevant information available to Post: --ZE MEKA, Lydie; 12-APR-1955; wife; valid A1 visa issued at Yaounde on 21-FEB-2008, expires 20-FEB-2011; identified herself on DS-156 as the Director of Human Resources at the National Social Insurance Fund; --ZE MEKA, Yves Martial; 19-FEB-1990; son; valid B1/B2 visa issued at London on 19-JAN-2009, expires 15-DEC-2009; identified himself on DS-156 as a student at the London School of Commerce; --MEKA ZE, Rene Landry; 06-OCT-1986; son; possesses a valid B1/B2 visa issued at London 16-JAN-2009; identified himself on DS-156 as a student at the London School of Commerce; --ZE MEKA, Eric; 12-MAR-1980; son; alien number 96984795; information from the DS-156s of Yves Martial and Rene Landry indicates that Eric lives at 3346 Teagarden Circle, Apartment 404, Silver Spring, Maryland 20904; Eric is included for information only. --ZE MEKA, Marthe Marie Edwidge; 14-MAR-1978; according to documentation obtained by Post, Marthe Marie appears to be a daughter to Remy who received a B1/B2 while she was studying in Canada; Marthe Marie is included for information only. ¶3. (C) Although we have been unable to obtain detailed financial information for any of Ze Meka's dependents, Post believes there is a prima facie case that Lydie, Yves Martial and Rene Landry are all dependents of Remy Ze Meka and beneficiaries of the proceeds from his corrupt acts. ¶4. (C) Post's Human Resource Office estimates that someone in Lydie's position within the Government of Cameroon (GRC) would earn between 200,000 and 400,000 CFA per month (between $400 and $800 per month, or between $4,800-$9,600 per year). Remy Ze Meka, in his capacity as the Minister Delegate for Defense, receives between 800,000 to 1,000,000 ($1,600 to $2,000) per month in salary with as much as 500,000 ($1,000) in monthly cash allowances, for a maximum annual income of about $36,000 (plus housing). Yves Martial and Rene Landry, full-time students in London are unlikely to contribute to family income and listed on their DS-156s that the cost of their travel to the US would be borne by their family. The Ze Meka family income from official salaries is probably about $46,000 per year. Although Ze Meka has other income-generating assets, Post believes these assets were acquired through his corrupt activities (ref a). ¶5. (C) Contacts at the British High Commission in Yaounde estimate it would cost about 40,000 British pounds ($55,000 at current exchange rates) per child for students attending the London School of Commerce and residing in the Camberwell neighborhood of London, which would mean the education of Yves Martial and Rene Landry costs somewhere in the neighborhood of $110,000 per year, or more than twice the family's estimated income. ¶6. (C) Comment. Post believes there is a prima facie case establishing that Ze Meka's spouse and children have benefitted from his corrupt acts, not least in the use of his ill-gotten wealth to travel to the U.S., a luxury enjoyed by only the wealthiest of Cameroon's population. By the GRC's own definitions, more than a third of the population lives under the poverty line, and the per capita annual income is slightly more than $1,000 per year. Enforcing Proclamation 7750 to cancel the valid non-immigrant visas held by Ze Meka's dependents would deter them from using the U.S. as a safe haven and would have a deterrent effect for other klepocrats and underscore the U.S. commitment to advancing democracy and fighting corruption in Cameroon. End comment. GARVEY