MONUC TROOPS ABANDON AID WORKERS, FARDC PILLAGES IDP CAMP

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 KINSHASA 000023

SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: DECL: 2020/01/25
TAGS: PHUM PGOV KPKO MONUC MOPS CG
SUBJECT: MONUC TROOPS ABANDON AID WORKERS, FARDC PILLAGES IDP CAMP

CLASSIFIED BY: William J. Garvelink, Ambassador, STATE, Embassy
Kinshasa; REASON: 1.4(B),(D)


1. (C) Summary: MONUC forces escorting aid workers in a North
Kivu IDP camp abandoned their post on January 15 under threat from
a rogue FARDC unit that then pillaged the camp. MONUC's Force
Commander lodged a protest with the commander of the South African
soldiers (RSABATT) involved. The Force Commander also reportedly
demanded that the FARDC punish the FARDC punish the relevant
officer and troops. DCM met with deputy presidential chief of
staff on January 19 to protest FARDC actions. End summary.




2. (SBU) On Friday, January 15, representatives of UNHCR, the
German assistance agency (GTZ),and the Congolese National Refugee
Committee were distributing food in an IDP camp located in Muhanga,
approximately 25 kilometers southwest of Kitchanga, in North Kivu
province. Muhanga is a recent-caseload camp made up of persons who
fled fighting in surrounding hills during Kimia II operations.
These IDPs are primarily Rwandophone, presumably Hutu. The
agencies conducting the distribution were accompanied by a MONUC
military escort consisting of South African soldiers (RSABATT).




3. (SBU) During the routine food distribution at approximately
2pm, a convoy of two light pickups rented by International Medical
Corps (IMC) was en route to Kitchanga, transporting building
supplies for the rehabilitation of health centers in Mweso
district, a USG-funded project. Per IMC practice, the convoy was
unescorted. Along the road, the convoy was intercepted by a
military unit wearing FARDC uniforms (Note: The leader of the unit
has since been identified as Major Muzungu. End note). The unit
commandeered the IMC vehicles and, at gunpoint, ordered them to
drive to Muhanga, where they arrived at approximately 3pm. With
IMC markings, the vehicles were admitted into the camp without
inspection.




4. (SBU) The FARDC unit appeared surprised to find the food
distribution was already in progress and under RSABATT escort.
While some witnesses say the RSABATT ordered the FARDC soldiers to
depart the IDP camp, all accounts consistently report the FARDC
soldiers leveled their weapons at the MONUC escort and ordered them
to leave the camp. Surprisingly, the South African blue helmets
complied, abandoning the aid workers and IDPs.




5. (SBU) Without armed opposition, the rogue FARDC unit assaulted
several persons and looted the camp. Civilian workers were
"manhandled" and a GTZ driver beaten with a rifle butt is now in
hospital. The uniformed perpetrators robbed the camp of
approximately $500 in cash and high value personal items such as
mobile phones, and departed in the IMC vehicles. The IMC vehicles
and personnel were abandoned, unharmed, in Kitchanga.




6. (C) According to MONUC sources, RSABATT forces did not report
the incident upon returning to their base. The Force Commander
strongly protested the break in discipline and procedure in a
letter to the RSABATT commander. The commander of MONUC's North
Kivu brigade wrote to the commander of the Amani Leo operations in
North Kivu, Colonel Bobo, demanding action against Major Muzungu,
claiming the incident called into question MONUC-FARDC cooperation
on Amani Leo. On January 19, DCM raised the issue with President
Kabila's deputy chief of staff Louise Mayumba, who was not aware of
the incident. She promised to look into the matter and get back to
us.




7. (C) Comment: Unfortunately, incidents of FARDC harassment of
civilians are not infrequent. What made this incident different
was the presence of MONUC troops, who should have better protected
the civilians. Although MONUC's rules of engagement permit the use
of deadly force against armed elements threatening or impeding the
UN from carrying out its protection mission, doctrine adopted
during Kimia II and Amani Leo place the FARDC into a special
category. "We tell our troops not to see the FARDC as the enemy,"
said MONUC operations planning officer for North Kivu, Col. Yogesh
Sharma. A decision to fire on FARDC troops, especially in a
crowded civilian environment, would have nonetheless been a

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difficult decision for a junior commander, or even any commander.
The South Africans were clearly thinking that a forceful response
might have escalated tensions resulting in greater violence. They
may have been right but the FARDC is emboldened as a result of
their diffidence. End comment.
GARVELINK