Cablegate: Zanzibar: Big Turnout for Embassy Zanzibar Affairs

R 031501Z SEP 08
FM AMEMBASSY DAR ES SALAAM
TO SECSTATE WASHDC 7837
INFO SOUTHERN AF DEVELOPMENT COMMUNITY COLLECTIVE
AMEMBASSY ANTANANARIVO
AMEMBASSY DAKAR
AMEMBASSY KAMPALA
AMEMBASSY LONDON
AMEMBASSY LUANDA
AMEMBASSY NAIROBI
AMEMBASSY PARIS

UNCLAS DAR ES SALAAM 000565

AF/E FOR JLIDDLE

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: PGOV TZ
SUBJECT: ZANZIBAR: BIG TURNOUT FOR EMBASSY ZANZIBAR AFFAIRS
OFFICER "COMING OUT PARTY"

1. The August 28 Embassy reception to announce the creation
of the new Zanzibar Affairs Office and to introduce the new
incumbent saw the largest turnout of any official USG
Zanzibar representation event in institutional memory.
Almost 200 people attended, including several Ministers and
&A-listers8 from government, police and military, religious
leaders, NGO,s, civil society and the small but influential
American community. About two-thirds of those invited
attended the event, and some host-country guests commented
that the reception proved to be a good venue for networking
because of the depth and diversity of the attendees.

2. Conspicuously absent, however, was senior leadership of
the main opposition party CUF. At a follow-up meeting with
senior CUF political adviser Dr. Juma Ameri Muchi, Dr. Muchi
said that CUF was having an important party-wide caucus in
Dar es-Salaam at the time of the event (septel). The
Ambassador will soon meet with CUF senior leadership.

3. COMMENT: Although Zanzibar accounts for less than five
percent of Tanzania,s population, its national influence and
the extent of U.S. engagement is significant, with Millenium
Challenge Account, PEPFAR and the Presdient,s Malaria
Initiative, inter alia, totaling tens of millions of dollars.
The Embassy,s &Zanzibar Affairs Officer8 will be based in
Dar es-Salaam until such time as an American Presence Post
can be funded and established, as originally planned. END
COMMENT.

4. The speech of the Charge d'Affairs received national press
play, the most-quoted portions excerpted below:

The friendship between our two peoples is based on shared
values, experiences and aspirations. The first American
diplomat came to Zanzibar in 1837, 171 years ago. We
recently established the Zanzibar Affairs position at the
American Embassy as a means of strengthening our historic
partnership with the people of Zanzibar.

Ambassador Green often reminds us that we serve the United
States Mission to the United Republic of Tanzania, not the
United States Mission to Dar es Salaam. We work with people
throughout this great country. In the case of Zanzibar, we
recognize your historic role as a principal source of Swahili
culture. A peaceful, well-governed, healthy and prosperous
Zanzibar can greatly influence the entire region for the
better. We wish to patrner with the people of Unguja and
Pemba, and with their government, political, religious,
business and civil society leaders to achieve these common
aims. David Scott's job as Zanzibar Affairs Officer will be
to help us support the effort of Zanzibari Tanzanians to
build a better Zanzibar and so a better Tanzania.

We respect Zanzibar's history, its cultural achievements and
its unique union with mainland Tanzania. I note that
Tanzanians have often debated particular aspects of the Union
Agreement, and continue to do so to this day. Lively debate
about fundamental issues characterizes free societies.
Tanzania is clearly a free society. In our view, it is
healthy for such a debate to be moderated by mutual respect
and tolerance. This is a challenge for politicians
worldwide, including in my own country!

I said that the new Zanzibar Affairs Officer will work to
strengthen our partnership with the Zanzibaris. That
partnership has produced benefits for both peoples We
distributed a fact sheet listing achievements of that
partnership, and let me cite a few highlights...

GREEN

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