VZCZCXRO3741
OO RUEHBZ RUEHDU RUEHGI RUEHJO RUEHMR RUEHRN
DE RUEHKI #0349/01 0991302
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
O 091302Z APR 09
FM AMEMBASSY KINSHASA
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC IMMEDIATE 9462
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 000349 
 
SENSITIVE 
SIPDIS 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: PGOV PREL MOPS PHUM PREF KPKO CG
SUBJECT:  EASTERN DRC NOTES - APRIL 9; FARDC ABUSES INCREASING 
 
¶1. (U) The items contained in this report consist principally of 
spot information from various sources.  This report is not 
exhaustive, nor can all the information contained therein be 
confirmed at this time. 
 
FARDC Abuses Increasing 
----------------------- 
 
¶2.  (SBU) Most of the rank and file of the FARDC in the Kivus have 
not been paid (many in three months) and there has been an increase 
in FARDC abuses as a result.  MONUC, diplomatic and NGO sources 
report incidents of looting, roadblocks and displacement of 
populations in several towns in North and South Kivu.  While MONUC 
has been feeding FARDC soldiers in some locations and is preparing 
to transport 13 tons of food to Kindu to support a deployment of 
2,500 FARDC troops there, as unpaid FARDC soldiers deploy to more 
remote locations, command and control loosens, increasing the army's 
tendency to prey on the local population. 
 
¶3.  (SBU) MONUC reports that the families of FARDC troops who 
recently deployed to Kindu are at the Goma airport, expecting to 
follow along or be fed by MONUC.  On the evening of April 2, 
hundreds of these women protested outside of MONUC headquarters, 
across the street from the airport.  MONUC sources told us on April 
3 that their complaints should be directed to the FARDC, which 
sometimes takes responsibility for transporting soldiers' families, 
but has declined to do so for the current operation. 
 
¶4.  (SBU) Much further north, Oxfam had to halt a food distribution 
in Lubero when angry wives of FARDC troops disrupted the 
distribution, demanding to be included.  NGO sources claim some 
people are nervous about accepting food distributions, fearful that 
the food will attract hungry (and potentially deadly) FARDC 
soldiers. 
 
¶5.  (SBU) A PARECO Major has threatened to pull 400 fighters out of 
the FARDC unless salaries are paid.  Ex-CNDP fighters are also 
grumbling.  A senior GDRC military source told us April 3 that the 
GDRC has provided money to pay the regular troops of the FARDC, but 
not enough for all the newly integrated soldiers.  Rather than pay 
some and leave some without their salaries, the FARDC decided to 
postpone payments for entire integrated units.  Meanwhile, a FARDC 
unit is touring North Kivu in a hurried effort to get integrated 
troops registered and identification issued. 
 
¶6.  (SBU) NGO's report that some roads are virtually off-limits 
because of the dangers of FARDC robbery and random banditry. 
Regions to the west of Masisi and south of Lubero are especially 
troublesome.  An International Rescue Committee (IRC) source told us 
that their vehicles have been stopped and robbed by armed men in 
uniform three times in the past two weeks.  At least four other 
NGO's have also been hit.  However, unpaid FARDC soldiers are not 
the only threat.  Deprived in many places of traditional sources of 
income due to the recent joint operation, the FDLR has turned to 
banditry, looting and robbing towns and travelers.  Other armed 
militias and criminal elements have become more active as well. 
NGO's are, however, reluctant to accept MONUC escorts because MONUC 
is a declared enemy of the FDLR and the NGO's operate in FDLR areas. 
 They fear close identification with MONUC would make them targets. 
Additionally, a number of NGO's have written a letter to the North 
Kivu Governor urging him to address the problem of FARDC abuses. 
 
¶7.  (SBU) The UK Department for International Development has 
several thousand tents left over from a prior project and is willing 
to distribute them to the FARDC.  A UK/Dutch team is currently in 
Goma to determine priority areas.  A UK source told us that the 
tents would most likely go to Rutshuru and Masisi, where the lack of 
adequate shelter threatens the integration of the CNDP into the 
FARDC (Note:  Deployed FARDC troops in the Kivus must sometimes make 
their own shelter using little more than saplings and leaves.  End 
note.). 
 
¶8.  (SBU) Comment:  The GDRC's failure to pay salaries puts the 
whole integration exercise as well as Operation Kimia II at serious 
risk.  Rebels and militias who chose to join the FARDC are 
reconsidering their decision.  It is quite unlikely that FARDC 
troops will implement operations against the FDLR if they remain 
unpaid.  One source with extensive military contacts told us, 
however, that the FARDC approach may be deliberate.  Commanders 
pocket much of the payroll, and then "turn loose" the rank and file 
to make their own way by preying on the population.  End comment. 
 
 
Integration and Conflict 
------------------------ 
 
KINSHASA 00000349  002 OF 002 
 
 
 
¶9.  (SBU) MONUC sources in Pinga report that PARECO contacts have 
told them an additional 715 of their fighters want to integrate into 
the FARDC.  The PARECO sources also reported that "General" 
Ntasibanga, who has threatened Pinga, has only 30 men under his 
command. 
 
¶10.  (SBU) The FDLR killed a village chief in Chirebe (north of 
Bunyakiri) for unknown reasons.  The rebels also set up a roadblock 
in Kanga, causing many locals to flee the area.  Near Bukavu, 
ex-CNDP fighters were seen patrolling in the Kahuzi Biega National 
Park in a formed unit (Note:  Ex-CNDP fighters within the FARDC are 
proud of their past affiliation, and often retain some part of their 
former camouflage uniform to distinguish them from regular FARDC. 
End note). 
 
¶11.  (SBU) A Dutch diplomat who recently traveled to Lubero 
described an emerging humanitarian crisis in the area.  He said 
local NGO's claim that 150,000 - 300,000 IDP's are pouring into the 
region from the west, due to FDLR retaliations and FARDC looting. 
Many of these IDP's migrated west over the past ten years from the 
crowded areas around Lubero, so when they are uprooted they return 
to the homes of family and friends, rather than to IDP camps.  This 
makes it difficult for NGO's to identify and assist them. 
 
¶12.  (SBU) Comment:  Recent military activity has stirred up 
hornets' nests in many parts of the Kivus.  Unpaid FARDC, rushed 
integration, and plans for further offenses against the FDLR 
contribute to the volatile situation.  Most sources agree that gains 
have been achieved against the FDLR, but a small though increasing 
number are questioning whether it was worth the cost.  End comment. 
 
 
BROCK