VZCZCXRO9757
RR RUEHMA RUEHPA
DE RUEHFN #0317/01 2231600
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
R 111600Z AUG 09
FM AMEMBASSY FREETOWN
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC 2816
INFO RUEHZK/ECOWAS COLLECTIVE

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 03 FREETOWN 000317 
 
SIPDIS 
 
DEPARTMENT FOR AF/W (JHUNTER) 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: PGOV PREL PHUM SL
SUBJECT: JULY POLITICAL ROUND-UP - FREETOWN 
 
REF: FREETOWN 304 
 
¶1. Summary: President Koroma's need for a disciplined, 
effective civil service was reinforced in July through the 
launch of the Public Sector Reform Unit and a campaign 
against lateness and absenteeism. The National Registration 
Secretariat will soon be empowered to issue national ID cards 
and ECOWAS passports, which could raise needed revenue for 
the government. The Human Rights Commission published its 
annual report, showing that violence against women, lack of 
access to justice, and the need for increased government 
responsiveness to human rights issues and structural change 
continue to be critical problems. Activists reiterated the 
need for gender equality by lobbying Parliament to fully 
implement UNSCR 1325 on Women, Peace and Security, while the 
Inter-Religious Council reaffirmed a commitment across 
religions to support tolerance. The Ministry of Trade and 
Industry is giving a boost to indigenous business through a 
competition that will provide seed money to innovative 
entrepeneurs. The German, Chinese, and Japanese governments 
provided bilateral support. End Summary. 
 
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PUBLIC SECTOR REFORM LAUNCH 
--------------------------- 
 
¶2. On July 28, President Koroma launched a new public sector 
reform initiative aimed at enhancing the public service. The 
Public Sector Reform Unit, under the Office of the President, 
was initially created due to the President's desire to 
resuscitate the entire civil service in order to provide more 
efficient and effective services to the population. Aided by 
support from DFID, UNDP, the World Bank and others, the 
Public Sector Reform Unit has developed a series of programs 
and recommendations for ministries and departments throughout 
the country in an effort to build synergy, redefine roles, 
and provide training across the government sector. President 
Koroma has put a tremendous amount of support behind Public 
Sector Reform as a key element of his "agenda for change." 
 
-------------------------------- 
GETTING TOUGH WITH CIVIL SERVICE 
-------------------------------- 
 
¶3. As a precursor to the launch mentioned in para. 2, the 
Attitudinal and Behavioral Change Secretariat (ABC) within 
the Office of the President in partnership undertook a 
lateness and absenteeism awareness campaign and survey on 
Government Ministries and Departments on July 6. The Deputy 
Coordinator of the ABC said that the Public Sector and the 
Civil Service are not working in consonance with the 
President's call for change. He said they were undertaking a 
survey to ascertain the scope of the problem, as absenteeism 
and lateness demonstrates a lack of initiative and undermines 
the productivity of the civil service. Comment: This 
initiative reflects the lack of discipline and rules 
enforcement capabilities in individual ministries. End 
Comment. 
 
--------------------------------------------- --- 
NATIONAL ID CARDS/ECOWAS PASSPORTS COMMISSIONED 
--------------------------------------------- --- 
 
¶4. Since his election in 2007, Koroma has pushed to empower 
the National Registration Secretariat. The passing of the 
National Registration Act in 2008 accomplished this by giving 
the Secretariat a renewed mandate to register all citizens 
and non-citizens residing in Sierra Leone. In a move to meet 
these goals, the Secretariat will soon begin issuing national 
ID cards and ECOWAS passports. At a launching ceremony on 
July 30, Koroma claimed that the government's adoption of the 
ECOWAS passport is a clear manifestation of his government's 
commitment to Sierra Leonean citizens' right to travel within 
member ECOWAS states. However, this initiative will also be 
crucial to national security and revenue generation. 
 
--------------------------------------- 
HUMAN RIGHTS COMMISSION PRESENTS REPORT 
--------------------------------------- 
 
¶5. The Human Right Commission of Sierra Leone (HRCSL) which 
was established by an Act of Parliament in 2004, following 
the Lome Peace accord in 1999 and the recommendations of the 
Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC) presented its 
annual report 2008 to the President and the speaker of 
Parliament. The report highlighted concerns about violence 
against women and children, the lack of universal 
comprehensive health care, limited access to justice, poor 
conditions in detention facilities, and the high incidence of 
teenage pregnancy. On an institutional level, the HRCSL 
continues to point to the government's failure to take action 
 
FREETOWN 00000317  002 OF 003 
 
 
on the Constitutional Review Committee's report, which was 
submitted in January 2008. The Commission also notes that 
President Koroma promised to establish and Truth and 
Reconciliation Follow-Up Committee, but has yet to do so. 
Comment: The HRCSL report also highlights its own dire 
financial straits: it has limited funding to monitor and 
investigate human rights abuses, even as it struggles to grow 
to cover all regions of the country. Without continued 
support from the Peace Building Commission and other donors, 
the HRCSL will be unable to effectively function. End Comment. 
 
--------------------------------- 
GENDER ACTIVISTS LOBBY PARLIAMENT 
--------------------------------- 
 
¶6. On July 1, the Executive of the "Mano River Women for 
Peace Network," in collaboration with the "West African 
Network for Peace" held consultations with Parliamentarians 
on issues related to gender equality and violence. In 
particular, they shared information and advocated for the 
implementation of United Nations Security Council Resolution 
(UNSCR) 1325 on Women, Peace, and Security, which was adopted 
by the United Nations in 2000 but has not been fully 
incorporated into the laws of Sierra Leone. The resolution 
gives equal opportunity and rights to women, condemns 
violence against women and children, and encourages economic 
empowerment. The Deputy Minister of Social Welfare Gender and 
Children Affairs added her voice to the plea, and urged MPs 
to lobby their colleagues to pass the resolution into law 
because they have a responsibility to take the lead in 
protecting women and children in the society. Comment: Per 
reftel A, issues of gender-based violence and inequality are 
rampant here. Recent laws are an excellent starting-point for 
addressing the issues, but limited capacity to implement 
these and subsequent laws will continue to be a major 
obstacle. End Comment. 
 
--------------------------------------------- - 
INTER-RELIGIOUS COUNCIL COMMITTED TO TOLERANCE 
--------------------------------------------- - 
 
¶7. The Inter-Religious Council met on July 21 to reaffirm its 
commitment to religious tolerance. The council members 
discussed the need to remind their congregates about the 
importance of peace and political stability in the 
development process. They agreed that religious leaders 
should play a mediation role in political disputes. They also 
agreed that they must be a united front, regardless of 
religious affiliation, and that they should therefore desist 
from attempting to win converts from one another by using 
financial or material rewards. 
 
--------------------------- 
GOVERNMENT PRESSURED ON ICC 
--------------------------- 
 
¶8. Civil Society groups urged the government to demonstrate 
its respect for rule of law. On July 17, the Campaign for 
Good Governance (CGG) became the latest civil society group 
to pressure the government to demonstrate its commitment to 
international treaties by advocating for the prosecution of 
Sudanese President Omar Al-Bashir. Sierra Leone is a 
signatory to the Rome Statute that established the ICC, and 
CGG believes the government should show its commitment to 
protecting the dignity and rights of all people, including 
those victimized by war. At the recent AU Summit, Sierra 
Leone supported the AU consensus that refuses to hand over 
Al-Bashir to the ICC. Comment: It is interesting that CGG, 
which was founded by Foreign Minister Zainab Bangura, took a 
decidedly different view from the Government regarding 
Al-Bashir. End Comment. 
 
--------------------------------- 
INDIGENOUS BUSINESS GIVEN A BOOST 
--------------------------------- 
 
¶9. On July 7 the Ministry of Trade and Industry, in 
partnership with Soros Economic Development Fund and DFID, 
launched a "Business Bomba" Competition. "Bomba" in Sierra 
Leone's local parlance means "success" or "prosperity." The 
Bomba competition is aimed at improving support for 
entrepreneurs as a core part of the government's private 
sector development strategy. The theme of the competition is 
"Innovation, Ambition and Aspiration." Small-scale 
entrepreneurs will submit business proposals, in the hopes of 
obtaining USD 2,500 of start-up funds. Two hundred 
applications will be processed, sixty shortlisted and the top 
twenty selected for funding. 
 
------------------- 
BILATERAL RELATIONS 
 
FREETOWN 00000317  003 OF 003 
 
 
------------------- 
 
¶10. On July 2, the former Ambassador of the Federal Republic 
of Germany, Rolf Saligmann, handed over a consignment of 
office equipment and other materials to the Immigration 
Department (Note: Ambassador Saligmann departed his post in 
July. His replacement, Ambassador Thomas Freudenhammer, is 
in-country and met with Ambassador Perry August 5. End Note). 
Ambassador Saligmann said that this donation marks an 
important development in the bilateral relationship between 
the two countries, with the cooperation extending beyond 
humanitarian assistance and into capacity building. Comment: 
Germany is increasingly starting to engage on 
security-related issues in Sierra Leone. While this is a 
welcome development, they will need to liaise with other 
donors in the sector to ensure the appropriateness of their 
activities: a recent narcotics-related training funded by the 
German government, for example, was held for an agency that 
has minimal involvement in interdiction efforts, and 
organized without the knowledge of the lead agencies and 
donors. End Comment. 
 
¶11. The Chinese Embassy donated anti-malaria drugs to the 
Minister of Health and Sanitation at the end of July. The 
drugs have been distributed to all primary health units, 
country wide. 
 
¶12. A visit from the new Japanese Ambassador to Sierra Leone, 
Keiichi Katakami, promoted Japan's assistance in the area of 
food security and other bilateral aid. Ambassador Katakami 
presented the government with nearly 6,220 metric tons (MT) 
of rice, and also signed a Non-Grant Aid agreement for USD 
6.3 million. The money will be used to import petroleum 
products into Sierra Leone. Comment: The government's 
donation of 6,220 MT of rice was stymied by the reported 
theft of 122 MT. It is currently unclear if the rice was 
stolen in-transit or at the port; an investigation is 
ongoing. Theft at the port is commonplace here, targeting 
even humanitarian aid. End Comment. 
PERRY