VZCZCXRO5886
PP RUEHBZ RUEHDU RUEHGI RUEHJO RUEHMR RUEHRN
DE RUEHKI #0689/01 2341533
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
P 211533Z AUG 08
FM AMEMBASSY KINSHASA
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 8327
INFO RUEHXR/RWANDA COLLECTIVE
RUCNSAD/SOUTHERN AF DEVELOPMENT COMMUNITY COLLECTIVE
RUEAIIA/CIA WASHDC
RHEFDIA/DIA WASHDC
RHMFISS/HQ USEUCOM VAIHINGEN GE
RUZEJAA/JAC MOLESWORTH RAF MOLESWORTH UK

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 KINSHASA 000689 
 
SENSITIVE 
SIPDIS 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: PGOV PREL MOPS KPKO CG BE
SUBJECT:  GOMA ROUND-UP AUGUST 19 
 
REF: KINSHASA 664 
 
¶1.  (SBU) EU representative Veronique Aulagnon told Goma PolOff 
August 19 that EU envoy Roeland van de Geer planned to attend the 
September 1 meeting of the Joint Monitoring Group in Kinshasa.  He 
planned to travel first to Kigali, to meet Sezibera August 27, and 
then to Goma on August 28.  Van de Geer had spoken with Tim Shortley 
and had hoped to meet up with him in Goma, but van de Geer would not 
be able to travel to Goma after Kinshasa as he had to attend a 
meeting of the Great Lakes Forum. 
 
¶2.  (SBU) Nkunda's status:  Goma PolOff met M'hand Ladjouzi, MONUC 
PolOff (protect), and asked about Nkunda's status, in the wake of 
CNDP's refusal to meet van de Geer several weeks ago.  Ladjouzi said 
that he got a return call from Nkunda in the past few days, so 
Nkunda is certainly still around.  Ladjouzi alluded to swirling 
speculation about Nkunda's health (in fact, in recent meetings he 
had looked fatigued and his face spotted) and political-military 
discord within the organization (likely true, especially following 
the issuance of a warrant for Jean Bosco), but he discounted that 
the blockage occurred because of confused signals within the CNDP. 
He believed Nkunda was angry with the international facilitation 
which he perceived has abandoned him in favor of the government, 
which was attempting to gain through the Amani process what it had 
failed to achieve on the battlefield. 
 
¶3.  (SBU) Meeting of Joint Commission Plenary:  At a subsequent 
meeting with the full team, Ladjouzi said the "Bureau Executive" of 
the Peace/Security Joint Commission had met August 18 (Note: "The 
Bureau" included General Etumba, Ladjouzi in place of Alpha Sow who 
is accompanying Alan Doss on a visit to the Kivus, and CNDP's Rene 
Abandi as permanent secretary. End note)  They agreed to a plenary 
on August 26, with the agenda of formally presenting the four 
reports drafted without the CNDP at the sub-committee level and the 
ad hoc report of the working group on restoration of state authority 
(reftel).  Abandi said that there could also be discussion at the 
plenary of a fuller disengagement (pull-back of forces), as long as 
it was disengagement with weapons retained.  The meeting began 
testily, with Etumba and Abandi criticizing each other hotly, but 
the tenor improved. 
 
¶4.  (SBU) Members of the International Facilitation debated whether 
the plenary would do more harm than good, and agreed if it could not 
be further postponed (noting that Interior Minister Denis Kalume had 
insisted at the recent Steering Committee meeting in Goma that the 
plenary must take place at once), then it would be important to 
prepare the way in advance with Etumba and the CNDP.  Ladjouzi noted 
that Etumba had departed for Kinshasa and would not return to Goma 
before Saturday, August 23.  Some team members encountered CNDP 
local representative Bertrand Basimwa after the meeting (he was at 
MONUC for a meeting with Alan Doss, who had traveled overland to 
Masisi but failed to return as planned by helicopter due to poor 
weather), who said he and Abandi would need to get back to "their 
leadership" by Thursday to confirm strategy for the plenary and 
would then not be back in Goma before the plenary.  (Note:  The IF 
team will try to get with CNDP tomorrow.  The least bad scenario may 
be that CNDP complains at the plenary but agrees to some discussion 
of pull-back at Kimoka.  End note). 
 
¶5.  (SBU) The IF team will meet Doss tomorrow (August 20) at 1800. 
UK rep Tom Pravda offered to do a draft of priorities for the 
discussion.  He proposed (1) demilitarization of the Haut Plateau in 
South Kivu, (2) North Kivu disengagement (pull back), and (3) DDR 
for peripheral armed groups.  Ladjouzi objected to the last as 
worthy but unattainable at present due to disinterest on the part of 
the government and unavailability of donor resources.  Aulagnon said 
it was key to get on with the High Plateau since the FRF (Forces 
republicaines federalistes) had been coaxed into beginning to be 
amenable.  MONUC PolOff Phil Winter noted that Doss was keen on 
proceeding with work on the road from Fizi to the Haut Plateau, 
while he said that Alpha Sow (formerly head of office in Bukavu) had 
strongly remonstrated with Doss (which is not characteristic of Sow) 
that people in South Kivu would see undue preference given to the 
Banyamulenge.  Doss had agreed that "equal preference" should be 
given to the road from Bukavu toward Kisangani via Hongo (much more 
important to most people in South Kivu).  Meanwhile, according to 
Willet Weeks, consultant to the Amani Program Coordinator, Malu Malu 
has taken a particular interest in a third corridor, to Shabunda 
(direction Kindu), apparently due to interior mineral resources and 
FDLR presence.  Weeks added that it was important for the team to 
raise with Doss the absence of an effective or open 
ceasefire-monitoring mechanism. 
 
¶6.  (SBU) Ceasefire incident:  Winter said that the North Kivu 
Brigade had reported earlier in the day an incident August 17 just 
northwest of the old JTN plantation, 15 kilometers northwest of 
 
KINSHASA 00000689  002 OF 002 
 
 
Kitchanga.  FARDC from the north opened fire from long range on CNDP 
elements from the south reportedly within the so-called "exclusion 
zone" and the CNDP returned fire.  The NK Brigade said it intervened 
at once, stopped the exchange of fire, and a meeting would be held 
at JTN among the parties to discuss.  Two children suffered minor 
injuries.  (Note:  It appears that the NK Brigade is doing some key 
monitoring in at least the sensitive JTN area. End note). 
 
GARVELINK