Cablegate: Un Agrees to Make Results of Human Rights Mapping

VZCZCXRO0371
PP RUEHBZ RUEHDU RUEHGI RUEHJO RUEHMR RUEHRN
DE RUEHKI #0919 2151013
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
P 031013Z AUG 07
FM AMEMBASSY KINSHASA
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 6639
INFO RUEHXR/RWANDA COLLECTIVE
RUCNSAD/SOUTHERN AF DEVELOPMENT COMMUNITY
RUEHGV/USMISSION GENEVA 2091
RUEAIIA/CIA WASHDC
RHEFDIA/DIA WASHDC
RHMFISS/HQ USEUCOM VAIHINGEN GE
RUFOADA/JAC MOLESWORTH RAF MOLESWORTH UK

UNCLAS KINSHASA 000919

SIPDIS

SENSITIVE
SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: PHUM KPKO CG
SUBJECT: UN AGREES TO MAKE RESULTS OF HUMAN RIGHTS MAPPING
EXERCISE PUBLIC

REF: KINSHASA 577

1. (SBU) UN High Commissioner for Human Rights (UNHCHR)
Louise Arbour has approved public release of a proposed DRC
human rights mapping exercise report, MONUC Human Rights
Officers told PolOff July 31 following a donors meeting with
SRSG William Swing. Although Arbour and MONUC
representatives had previously assured diplomatic missions
they would strongly recommend the report be made public,
official language in the proposal had remained ambiguous.
The exercise aims to gather evidence of human rights and
international law violations in the DRC during the period
March 1993 to June 2003 (reftel). It will also include an
assessment of the existing capacities within the national
justice system to address the violations uncovered.

2. (SBU) UN officials provided additional details on the
timeline and an update on the budgetary shortfall at the July
31 meeting. The proposed exercise will begin in late October
with a 30-member team and end in April 2008. Allowing two
months for the report to be completed, a final document would
be submitted to the Security Council for approval in June.
As of July 31, two countries had made pledges toward the
$2.7M budget: Austria for $200,000 and Switzerland for
$200,000.

3. (SBU) Diplomatic representatives at the meeting expressed
near unanimous support for the project, although most also
mentioned financial difficulties in funding a project at the
end of their fiscal years. The Netherlands and the EU both
remained uncertain that a human rights mapping exercise was a
high priority at present. PolOff conveyed reservations about
recommending funding for the project if there was no
guarantee the resulting report will be made public, a point
with which the French and British representatives concurred.
Later the same day, MONUC informed PolOff that an assurance
of public release of the report would be put in writing and
sent to diplomatic missions within one week.

4. (SBU) Comment: The UNHCHR and MONUC have worked hard to
alleviate U.S. and other missions' concerns regarding
publication of the report. There remains, however,
considerable ambiguity about what is to be done with the
results of the mapping exercise once completed. The GDRC
judicial system is certainly not now capable of
systematically and effectively prosecuting guilty parties,
and the project proposal is essentially silent as to how
local justice capacity can be strengthened. From the
perspective here, prospects for possible broad international
court action seem limited. While there is certainly some
value in documenting the extensive human rights abuses over
the 1993-2003 period, the question remains as to whether this
is the best priority use for funds in this area. End comment.
MEECE

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