USAU: CONGOLESE SENATE LEADER PREVIEWS VISIT TO

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 03 ADDIS ABABA 000059 NOFORN SIPDIS STATE FOR AF/FO, AF/C, AF/RSA, AND IO/UNP E.O. 12958: DECL: 01/14/2020 TAGS: PREL MARR KCOR PGOV CG AU SUBJECT: USAU: CONGOLESE SENATE LEADER PREVIEWS VISIT TO UNITED STATES REF: 09 KINSHASA 01144 Classified By: USAU CDA JOEL MAYBURY, REASONS 1.4 (B) AND (D). ¶1. (C/NF) Summary: In a confidential visit to Addis Ababa en route back to Kinshasa after personal leave in Europe, President of the Congolese Senate Kengo wa Dondo (strictly protect) reached out to the US Mission to the African Union (USAU) and gave a preview of what he hopes to discuss with Africa Bureau leadership during a visit to Washington next month (reftel). He discussed with USAU acting DCM on January 5 the state of play in Congo, focusing on moribund state organs, providing a negative assessment of Kabila's leadership, and calling for a refreshed dialogue with the United States Government. Kengo expressed nervousness about his meetings in Addis and his upcoming visit to Washington, now scheduled for mid-February. End Summary. -------------- Congo is Dead -------------- ¶2. (C/NF) Kengo began by stating that Congo has been dead a long time and that to revive Congo, state authority must be reestablished. He focused on four elements of state authority, including the military, the police, the justice system, and government administration at all levels. ¶3. (C/NF) Kengo characterized the Armed Forces of the Democratic Republic of Congo (FARDC) as a "residue" and an "army of juxtaposition." It is a hodge-podge of forces loyal to previous governments, as well as numerous former militias from Congo's two civil wars. There is no standardization in recruitment or training, and promotion is not based on merit. To be effective, Kengo said the FARDC must be professional, operational, mobile, paid regularly, well-equipped, and billeted. None of this exists now. The army goes months without being paid, risking mutiny. ¶4. (C/NF) Kengo called for a republican army built initially around Congo's means, rather than its needs. We cannot have an army bigger than we can afford, he said. Kengo called for a reduction from what he estimates to be a force of more than 120,000 to 50,000-60,000 personnel. These personnel should be concentrated mainly at bases in Kamina and Kitona. Only once we are an emerging nation can we begin to expand our military to meet our needs. Stability in a democracy passes necessarily through a republican army, said Kengo. ¶5. (C/NF) Kengo suggested that an effective police force, at national, provincial, and local levels, would mitigate the need for a large military. Like the FARDC, the Congolese Police are unprofessional and irregularly paid. ¶6. (C/NF) Kengo called for the reestablishment of the justice system, saying there is no legal recourse in Congo, particularly for commoners. Reform requires political will foremost, which Kengo suggested might be lacking, but training and resources are also needed to effect change. ¶7. (C/NF) Kengo characterized government administration in Congo as corruptible. Congolese are required by law to register a child's birth within fifteen days, yet are forced to bribe officials to obtain the requisite birth certificate. Customs officials conspire with business, robbing the country of revenue. He accused the government of violating contracts with foreign investors, citing Freeport-McMoRan's Tenke Fugurume contract row as an example. The administration lives on the backs of the people. How can we develop and establish rule of law on this foundation, Kengo asked rhetorically? -------------- -------------- Leadership is lacking . . . or, the fish rots from the head -------------- -------------- ¶8. (C/NF) Kengo intimated that the main obstruction to reform in Congo is President Kabila, although he never mentioned the president by name. Kabila is insular, choosing not to engage in foreign diplomacy, yet he restricts the exercise of diplomacy by members of his government. Kengo said Kabila ADDIS ABAB 00000059 002 OF 003 has chastised legislative leaders for meeting with foreign counterparts, accusing them of "substituting parliamentary diplomacy for classical diplomacy." Kengo asked for our complete discretion in reporting on his visit to Addis, and requested close-hold USG facilitation of his meetings in Washington (in lieu of relying on the Congolese Embassy there),so that he is not required to be accompanied by Congo's Ambassador to the United States when he meets with the Africa Bureau and select congressional representatives. (Note: Kengo's visit to Addis was shrouded in personal visit to Brussels; he plans similar deniability for his eventual trip the United States.) ¶9. (C/NF) Kengo reproached Kabila for his absence at the last two African Union Summits, meetings of the United Nations General Assembly, COMESA, SADC, and La Francophonie. Most recently, Kabila missed the Summit on Climate Change in Copenhagen, opting instead to travel to Bukavu. For once Congo has something to sell, referring to its endangered tropical forest, and Kabila refused to travel to Copenhagen. ¶10. (C/NF) Despite laudatory presidential elections in 2005, democracy in Congo is extremely fragile and the constitution under attack. One election does not constitute democracy; true democracy is more about what happens between elections. Local elections, which should have been held seven months following the presidential elections, still have yet to materialize. Provinces do not received the 40 percent tax retrocession called for in the constitution. Last May, in an official letter to the Prime Minister, President Kabila ordered that all public disbursements are subject to presidential approval, effectively removing the financial management of the government from the Prime Minister, the Ministers of Finance and Budget, and the Governor of the Central Bank. ¶11. (C/NF) Kengo said that the report from a constitutional review commission established in July 2009 has yet to be published officially. Senate representatives on the commission reportedly informed Kengo that the commission went beyond its terms of reference and proposed increasing the presidential term from five to seven years. Kengo revealed that other proposals by the commission include the president presiding over Congo's high judicial council (conseil superieur de la magistrature) and eliminating the central government's obligation of tax retrocession. Kengo diplomatically caveated his comments on the commission's report by saying that he had received nothing official, but suggested that rumors of the report's contents are indicators that Kabila may intend to further centralize power in the presidency. -------------- More Dialogue with USG -------------- ¶12. (C/NF) Kengo indicated a need for more dialogue with the United States Government. He called for increased American investment, particularly in agriculture and the extractive industries, and requested our support for lightening Congo's 12 billion dollar debt. He harkened back to the days when General Motors and Goodyear had manufacturing plants in Congo, a World Bank representative in the Treasury, and expatriate advisors embedded in Customs. He also requested USG support in the United Nations Security Council regarding MONUC. Kengo stated that the little governance that exists in Congo is provided by the United Nations, yet the only thing animating Kabila is the withdrawal of MONUC. If MONUC leaves Congo prematurely, Kengo predicted it will be a "catastrophe." -------------- Comment -------------- ¶13. (C/NF) Kengo's hopes for a quick visit to Washington hidden by his Christmas holiday in Europe were dashed by Kabila's call for an extraordinary parliamentary session beginning on January 15. While the reason for the extraordinary session was unknown to Kengo, it cannot last for more than 30 days. Kengo hopes to travel shortly ADDIS ABAB 00000059 003 OF 003 thereafter; USAU instructed Kengo to request facilitation from Embassy Kinshasa for his meetings with the Africa Bureau, as well as Senator Feingold, Senator Brownback, and Congressman Payne. ¶14. (C/NF) Most striking was not Kengo's call for more dialogue with the United States, but rather his apparent fear of being caught engaging in diplomacy. Also worrisome, if true, are the indicators that Kabila is further consolidating power at the expense of the Prime Minister, and may even be engaging in constitutional manipulation. While in Addis, Kengo also had meetings with African Union Commission Chairperson Jean Ping, and the European Union Delegation to the African Union. End Comment. MUSHINGI