VZCZCXRO8464
PP RUEHGI RUEHMA RUEHROV
DE RUEHKH #1956 3450807
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
P 110807Z DEC 07
FM AMEMBASSY KHARTOUM
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 9493
INFO RUCNFUR/DARFUR COLLECTIVE
RHMFISS/CJTF HOA

UNCLAS KHARTOUM 001956 
 
SIPDIS 
 
DEPT FOR AF/SPG, S/CRS, AF SE NATSIOS 
ADDIS ABABA FOR USAU 
DEPT PLS PASS USAID FOR AFR/SUDAN 
 
SENSITIVE 
SIPDIS 
 
E.O. 12958:  N/A 
TAGS: PGOV PREL KPKO SOCI AU UNSC SU
SUBJECT: AMIS TAKES STOCK 
 
¶1. (SBU) The African Union Mission in Sudan (AMIS) held a combined 
review session, awards ceremony, and tribute to fallen AMIS soldiers 
on December 9. Speakers included Darfur Peace Agreement 
Implementation Team (DPAIT) Head Sam Ibok, Joint Special 
Representative Rodolphe Adada, and AMIS Military Advisor Lt. Col. 
Ferdinand Eze. 
 
¶2. (SBU) DPAIT Head Sam Ibok told the 150 plus audience members that 
"tonight AMIS gets to tell its side of the story."  He said that 
AMIS' job was "mission impossible," but while the international 
community expressed concern for Darfur, it was Africans that single 
handedly acted.  AMIS arrived in Sudan without any previous 
experience, without equipment and without funding, he said, "but one 
doesn't wait around while your neighbor's house burns down." 
 
¶3. (SBU) Ibok thanked the European Union, the UN, and countries 
including the U.S for their support. He thanked the Government of 
Sudan, saying "without them we would have no parameters."  While we 
were frustrated with the GoS, we found that when we engaged, we had 
the ability to come out ahead.  AMIS was set up to fail, and some 
have called us the "African Mistake In Sudan."  "They asked us how 
we could work with the same government that was trying to undermine 
us, but we dd." 
 
¶4. (SBU) Ibok said that critics need to portray the AU as a failure 
in order to pave the way for UNAMID. However, we need to manage the 
expectations of UNAMID because in the end, the problems of DARFUR 
require a political solution, and the AU is the pre-eminent 
political body on the continent. 
 
¶5. (SBU) Comment: Other speakers echoed Ibok's recognition for 
African sacrifice in the face of a lack of resources and expressed 
gratitude to all troop and financial contributors.  Billed as a 
stock-taking event, the atmosphere was intended to be upbeat but 
there was a decidedly somber mood among participants, not least 
because of the ceremony commemorating the AMIS troops who were 
killed in the line of duty.  Uncertainty among the AMIS staff 
regarding their future is undoubtedly another reason.  Many AMIS 
staff members have submitted applications to UNAMID, but few hiring 
decisions have been made, and UNAMID seems to be casting its net 
widely to find the best applicants. 
 
FERNANDEZ