VZCZCXRO9679
RR RUEHAT RUEHSK RUEHSL
DE RUEHGV #0528 1771115
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
R 261115Z JUN 09
FM USMISSION GENEVA
TO RUEHNR/AMEMBASSY NAIROBI 1865
RUEHKH/AMEMBASSY KHARTOUM 5328
RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC 8750
INFO RUEHZJ/HUMAN RIGHTS COUNCIL COLLECTIVE
RUCNDT/USMISSION USUN NEW YORK 3049

UNCLAS GENEVA 000528 
 
SENSITIVE 
SIPDIS 
 
SENSITIVE BUT UNCLASSIFIED - PLEASE HANDLE ACCORDINGLY 
DEPT FOR IO/RHS, DRL/MLGA, L/HRR 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: PHUM AORC UNHRC US SU NGO
SUBJECT: SUBJECT: SUDANESE CHURCH LEADERS URGE INTENSIFIED 
SUPPORT OF CPA 
 
 ¶1. (SBU) Acting Political Counselor and Political Section 
intern met with the Sudanese Church leaders affiliated with 
the World Council of Churches on June 17 on the margins of 
the Human Rights Council session in Geneva.  Rev. Both Reth 
Luang of the Presbyterian Church of Sudan, Isaac Kenyi 
Kungur of the Sudanese Catholic Bishops Conference,  Bp. 
Micah Laila Dawidi of the Bishop Episcopal Church of Sudan, 
Dr. Theodor Rathbeger of the World Council of Churches,and 
Ms. Marina Peter of Sudan Focal Point Europe urged 
heightened attention to the situation in Sudan, and in 
particular the fragility of the Comprehensive Peace 
Agreement (CPA). 
 
¶2. The group highlighted their concerns that the 
Comprehensive Peace Agreement (CPA) could collapse if not 
properly nurtured, implying that the international 
community had lessened its focus on the CPA.  Kungur and 
Luang both argued for international support of the CPA, 
which in their view still required monitoring and lacked 
sufficient strength to keep the country stable.  Dawidi 
suggested that there is a possibility that the intention of 
the GOS was to let the CPA fail, something that should not 
be allowed to happen.  Kungur expressed fear of government 
collapse if the CPA failed, noting the 16 month lag in 
holding elections originally scheduled for 2008.  Peter 
pointed out the high level of fatalities in Southern Sudan 
which have exceeded that of Darfur and called for added 
attention to this area.  Kungur also felt the conflict to 
be spreading and displayed pictures of the destruction and 
death in the town of Abyei and the region of Mahjiria, 
neighboring Darfur. 
 
¶3. The group encouraged the United States to remain engaged 
with Sudan on Darfur, but to focus as well on the 
North/South tension and the risk of collapse of the CPA. 
STORELLA