Under Secretary Otero's Visit Pushes on Reform and Other

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 03 NAIROBI 000153 SIPDIS E.O. 12958: DECL: 2010/02/10 TAGS: PREL KE SUBJECT: Under Secretary Otero's Visit Pushes on Reform and Other Issues CLASSIFIED BY: Michael Ranneberger, Ambassador, DOS, Exec; REASON: 1.4(D) ¶1. Summary. During her January 25-28 visit, Under Secretary Otero advanced U.S. efforts to press for implementation of the reform agenda, including through meetings with President Kibaki and Prime Minister Odinga, and in a town hall forum at the University of Nairobi. Otero covered a wide range of other issues, including refugees, environment, trafficking in persons, science and technology, youth and women's issues. End summary. ¶2. During her January 25-28 visit to Kenya, Under Secretary for Democracy and Global Affairs Otero pushed for implementation of the reform agenda, and addressed a wide range of other issues, including science and technology, human rights, trafficking in persons, environment, youth and women's empowerment, and refugees. (Refugee and Environment reported septels.) -------------- Reform Agenda -------------- ¶3. The Under Secretary's meetings with the Interim Independent Electoral Commission (IIEC) and the parliamentary Reform Caucus, her discussions with President Kibaki and Prime Minister Odinga, a town hall meeting at the University of Nairobi, and a press conference at the end of the visit focused on the reform agenda, among other issues. The IIEC laid out the challenges it faces with respect to plans to hold a national referendum on the new draft constitution as early as the May/June timeframe. The IIEC appealed for assistance beyond what the U.S. is already providing. The U/S agreed to consider this. At the same time, she emphasized the need to ensure careful preparations for the referendum, particularly with respect to voter registration, in order to bolster the credibility of the process. Reform-minded members of parliament discussed the urgent need for implementation of the reform agenda and made clear the large hurdles reformers face in working against the political establishment. The U/S said that she would work to help ensure a successful visit when a delegation of the Reform Caucus comes to Washington February 6. ¶4. Otero urged President Kibaki and Prime Minister Odinga to resolve the contentious issues with respect to the new draft constitution, and then to work together to sell the new constitution to the Kenyan people. She emphasized Secretary Clinton's and President Obama's determination to push for and support full implementation of the reform agenda. She noted the Ambassador's speech of the previous day on the reform process, and she commented that it laid out the U.S. position clearly. Odinga agreed that Kenya is at a "defining moment." He said that the Parliament Select Committee (PSC) had just reached agreement on the contentious issues. Odinga said he supported the PSC decision to adopt a presidential system, because the PSC also adopted a system of checks and balances. Odinga said he expects the constitutional review Committee of Experts to accept most of the PSC's proposed changes, and then approval by the Parliament. Odinga appealed for U.S. funding to support holding of the referendum as early as May/June. Otero said that she would convey the request. She welcomed the progress made by the PSC and urged action on the full range of other reform agenda issues. She urged Odinga to work hard to sell the draft constitution to the nation, emphasizing that the holding of a non-divisive referendum is important to help heal the nation. She stressed the need to ensure careful preparations for the referendum so that it will be carried out in a credible manner. Odinga agreed on the need for careful planning, but also stressed the need to hold the referendum quickly in order to maintain momentum. Otero told Odinga Kenya is at a turning point: it could move in a positive direction through a "consensus approach" with respect to the referendum and implementation of the reform agenda, or it could move in a negative direction. Otero stressed the need for accountability in order to bring about healing and reconciliation. She also emphasized the need to empower youth economically and to participate peacefully in the political process. ¶5. Otero made essentially the same points to President Kibaki. Kibaki commented that while many of the issues Kenyans are grappling with have been around for a long time, "Kenya has never faced a more challenging situation." The situation in Kenya is NAIROBI 00000153 002 OF 003 more complex than ever before, Kibaki said, because democratic space has never been greater and thus there is dramatically increased participation and "new thoughts." He welcomed the compromise on contentious issues reached by the PSC which, he observed, may reflect a "new spirit of cooperation." He said that he and Odinga would help sell the new constitution to the people. Achieving a new constitution is the key issue, Kibaki stated. Otero welcomed the progress being made on the constitution. Picking up on Kibaki's point about expanded participation in the democratic process, she emphasized the need to find ways to empower youth and women to participate in the political process. Kibaki agreed, and pointed to the government's youth fund and Ministry of Youth (Note: both are tainted by corruption.). Otero said that youth are not being utilized to their full potential in the economic and political process, and noted that a special division has been established in the State Department to search for ways to empower youth participation through use of technology. A constructive discussion ensued with Kibaki and his team on the youth issue. As a result, the Ambassador said that he would arrange a briefing for key government officials on all U.S. efforts to empower youth. ¶6. Otero emphasized the need for implementation of the reform agenda, saying that it will be a key legacy for President Kibaki. As part of that process, accountability and prosecutions for post-election violence are essential, Otero said. She added that greater efforts to promote healing and reconciliation are vitally needed as well. There was an extended discussion regarding the Dadaab refugee issue. -------------- -- Town Hall Forum and Press Conference -------------- -- ¶7. The Under Secretary conducted a town hall forum with nearly 1,000 students and faculty from the University of Nairobi's polytechnic school. She opened with remarks focusing on the reform process, refugees, trafficking in persons, and environment. She discussed the role of the university students to support the reform process and to prepare themselves as future leaders. The Under Secretary spoke at length about the role which technology can play in empowering youth to participate in the political process. "You should be the actors and agents of change," she told the students. The Under Secretary fielded questions ranging from how best to advance democracy in Kenya, to how best to employ technology to support economic and political empowerment, to the challenges facing women in Kenya. ¶8. The town hall meeting was covered by the media. At her press conference following the town hall, Under Secretary Otero emphasized U.S. determination to push for and support implementation of the reform agenda. She said that he delivered that message to the President and Prime Minister. Her comments and broader visit were extensively covered by the Kenyan media. -------------- Engaging with Women Leaders -------------- ¶9. Over dinner Under Secretary Otero engaged with women leaders, including the Minister for Gender, the National Chairperson of Maendeleo Ya Wanawake (one of the largest national women's groups), the head of the National Commission of Human Rights, representatives of key human rights NGOs, and Ann Ngoju, who heads a prominent NGO and has been chosen as a recipient of the Secretary's Women of Courage award this year. The discussion covered the challenges women face to participate fully in the economic and political process; the potential for women to achieve a greater voice in the nation's affairs through a new constitution; post-election violence; mentoring of girls; and the efforts women are making to fight the culture of impunity, among other issues. Under Secretary Otero emphasized the USG's strong support to NAIROBI 00000153 003 OF 003 empower women to participate more effectively in the political process and in economic development. The women leaders expressed concerns about curtailment of democratic space through government intimidation of civil society. The women leaders urged the U.S. to maintain pressure on the coalition leaders to implement the reform agenda, saying "nothing is achieved through the benevolence of the politicians." -------------- Trafficking in Persons -------------- ¶10. The Under Secretary's visit to the Domestic Workers Training Center called attention to the problem of trafficking in persons. The center has twice benefitted from Self-Help Funds, and is subcontracted by IOM to provide assistance to victims of domestic trafficking. This includes children rescued from servitude as domestic workers. The Center has begun national advocacy for the rights of domestic workers. -------------- Science and Technology -------------- ¶11. In addition to addressing science and technology issues at the town hall forum, the Under Secretary met with Michael Joseph, the head of Safaricom, which has an 85 percent market share for cell phones and related technology. Joseph discussed Safaricom's innovative products, including its M-PESA funds transfer service, and a microcredit product (customers will be pre-approved for a loan based on their cell phone usage). Joseph said mobile phone technology is bringing about social, economic, and political change in Kenya by empowering the population. Joseph is exploring how cell phones could be used to facilitate transfer of election results to a central database. He further discussed the need for lower-cost netbooks and hardware to increase access to education and business opportunities. The Under Secretary suggested that Joseph look at E-GOV efforts in Latin America, where "digital villages" are being set up to facilitate access to government services, to provide anonymous reporting on corruption, and to provide feedback on government services and officials. -------------- Comment -------------- ¶12. The Under Secretary's visit provided very timely support to USG efforts to press for implementation of the reform agenda, as well as to address a wide range of other issues. The combination of private and public diplomacy (which occurred in the context of the Ambassador's speech on the reform process, as reported septel) provided a significant boost to the Mission's ongoing strategy. RANNEBERGER