VZCZCXRO5843
RR RUEHROV
DE RUEHDJ #1193/01 2811455
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
R 081455Z OCT 09
FM AMEMBASSY DJIBOUTI
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC 0884
INFO IGAD COLLECTIVE
RHMFIUU/DEPT OF JUSTICE WASHINGTON DC
RUEATRS/DEPT OF TREASURY WASHINGTON DC
RUEHEG/AMEMBASSY CAIRO 0011
RUEHYN/AMEMBASSY SANAA 0036

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 DJIBOUTI 001193 
 
SENSITIVE 
SIPDIS 
DEPARTMENT FOR AF/E, G/TIP, AND L/LEI 
CAIRO FOR DOJ 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: PGOV KJUS KCRM KTFN PTER FBI DJ
SUBJECT: GODJ WELCOMES ENGAGEMENT WITH DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE 
 
REF: 08 DJIBOUTI 554; 09 DJIBOUTI 1155; 09 DJIBOUTI 1043 
 
¶1.  (SBU) SUMMARY.  During a visit of Cairo-based Department of 
Justice (DOJ) attache to Djibouti, GODJ officials uniformly 
reiterated their willingness to cooperate with the USG on judicial 
issues.  The Minister of Justice and other senior officials 
confirmed that if the U.S. did not want to conclude a bilateral 
agreement on judicial cooperation, Djibouti was ready to share 
information and evidence on a case-by-case basis, and/or to base 
cooperation on provisions in international treaties signed by both 
governments.  Under Djiboutian law, international conventions 
supersede national law.  In addition, GODJ officials signaled 
Djibouti's interest in a more broad-based bilateral relationship on 
judicial matters, including potential technical assistance and 
training.  END SUMMARY. 
 
 
 
¶2. (U) Cairo-based DOJ attache and Sanaa-based Legatt visited 
Djibouti October 3-5 for meetings with Minister of Justice Mohamed 
Siad Barkat, Procureur General Djama Souleiman Ali, Financial 
Intelligence Unit Head Ali Daoud, Ministry of Foreign Affairs 
Director of Bilateral Relations Mohamed Ali Hassan, and other 
members of their staffs.  EmbOffs attended all meetings, and CDA, 
a.i. participated in the meetings with Djama Souleiman Ali and 
Mohamed Ali Hassan. 
 
 
 
¶3. (SBU) DOJ attache told Minister of Justice Mohamed Siad Barkat 
that as crime becomes more transnational, there was an even greater 
need for international cooperation,  and that the DOJ considered 
Djibouti a key partner in the region.  Minister Barkat welcomed the 
DOJ visit and the idea of a broad-based partnership on judicial 
issues.  Djibouti and the U.S. already have a strong relationship, 
he said, and the GODJ is ready to continue collaboration on 
judicial questions.  Minister Barkat said that Djibouti would be 
interested in concluding a bilateral agreement on judicial 
cooperation.  However, when DOJ attache explained that the USG was 
moving away from bilateral agreements in favor of cooperation based 
on existing international conventions, and on political will and 
friendship between countries, Barkat said that Djibouti would be 
ready to continue working with the U.S. on a case-by-case basis, on 
the foundation of reciprocity.  He also agreed that cooperation 
could be based on international treaties signed by both the U.S. 
and Djibouti, noting for example that Djibouti had already signed 
the majority of international conventions relating to terrorism 
(Ref A).  DOJ attache stressed that any request from the USG would 
be accompanied by assurances of reciprocity.  Barkat and his team 
confirmed that under Djiboutian law, international conventions 
ratified by Djibouti trump national law in case of a conflict. 
 
 
 
¶4. (SBU) Barkat welcomed upcoming U.S.-Djibouti initiatives in the 
justice sector, including Djiboutian participation in a USG-funded 
seminar in Algeria on fighting money laundering, terrorist finance, 
and transnational crime, and a planned G/TIP INCLE-funded program 
to provide a Department of Justice Office of Overseas Prosecutorial 
Development, Assistance, and Training (OPDAT) Intermittent Legal 
Advisor to help the Ministry of Justice better investigate and 
prosecute cases of trafficking in persons (ref B). 
 
 
 
¶5. (SBU) Procureur General Djama Souleiman Ali told CDA and DOJ 
attache that there was "no problem" for Djibouti to exchange 
evidence or information with the USG.  As a prosecutor, Ali said, 
it was a "pleasure to help a colleague in the search for the 
truth."  Djibouti has always been ready to collaborate with the 
U.S. at the judicial level, and judicial personnel and 
investigators have benefitted from informal training and 
investigative support from the FBI (ref C). While noting that 
mutual judicial assistance is often based on a bilateral treaty, he 
said that his staff would be happy to work with the DOJ directly on 
an "informal," case-by-case basis, without necessarily going 
through the "diplomatic circuit."  On the issue of potential 
deportations of third-country nationals, Ali noted a recent meeting 
with Human Rights Watch and Amnesty International to discuss an 
alleged detention by USG authorities of an individual in Djibouti. 
 
DJIBOUTI 00001193  002 OF 002 
 
 
¶6. (SBU) In a separate meeting, Chief Prosecutor Maki Omar 
Abdoulkader said that as long as fundamental rights were respected, 
Djibouti had no issue with collaborating informally.  Abdoulkader 
also noted the need for training in the judicial system, especially 
in light of major challenges such as trafficking in persons.  In 
the future, he said, Djibouti might even be able to prosecute 
pirates.  Abdoulkader welcomed the proposed OPDAT program and the 
seminar in Algeria. 
 
 
 
¶7.  (SBU) MFA Director of Bilateral Affairs Mohamed Ali Hassan said 
he was happy that the DOJ considered Djibouti an important partner. 
"Your visit is important," he told DOJ attache.  While the GODJ has 
traditionally sought bilateral judicial assistance agreements, for 
example with the French, Hassan said that the GODJ remained willing 
to work with the USG on a case-by-case basis, and that cooperation 
could be grounded on international conventions signed by both 
counties.  He added, however, that even in the absence of a formal 
bilateral agreement, the GODJ was primarily interested in "building 
a bilateral partnership" on judicial issues.  Counter terrorism, 
trafficking, and other related issues are key priorities for the 
GODJ, and require a high degree of international cooperation. 
Hassan welcomed the OPDAT program, and said that the GODJ would be 
interested in additional training or technical assistance provided 
by the DOJ.  It is important, he underlined, for the Ministry of 
Justice to be "involved from the beginning," and not simply be 
called upon when evidence is needed.  The GODJ would welcome DOJ 
assistance to diagnose weaknesses in the justice system, and to 
work together on key issues.  In short, he said, "more cooperation 
would be desirable." 
 
 
 
¶8. (SBU) Financial Intelligence Unit (FIU) Chief Ali Daoud told DOJ 
attache and Legatt that while Djibouti had made enormous progress 
in fighting financial crime, there was still work to do to address 
this crosscutting challenge.  Daoud said that Djibouti had been 
actively engaged with regional partners, including through the 
Intergovernmental Authority on Development (IGAD), and was also 
working to improve inter-ministerial cooperation at the Djiboutian 
level through a technical counterterrorism committee (ref A).  He 
said that while the FIU had not referred any cases of money 
laundering to the judiciary, his staff had been able to help 
resolve several cases of suspicious transactions referred by banks 
to the FIU.  The FIU would "immediately" know who had a banking 
account in Djibouti, Daoud said, and in case of a USG inquiry, 
would likely be able to confirm informally if a certain individual 
held a bank account in-country.  The decision to share any further 
information, Daoud said, would likely be taken above the FIU level. 
While suggesting that a bilateral agreement might be useful, Daoud 
said that the FIU was very open to working with international 
partners, including the United States.  Daoud also confirmed that 
when the FIU receives USG notifications of terrorist designations, 
the information is disseminated through the banking community. 
Daoud and one other FIU colleague will participate in the Algeria 
seminar on combating money laundering, terrorist finance, and 
transnational crime. 
 
 
 
¶9.  (SBU) COMMENT.  GODJ officials uniformly confirmed their 
openness to judicial cooperation with the U.S., and their desire to 
see more broad-based collaboration in the justice sector.  Despite 
the relative absence of large-scale USG technical assistance 
programs in the justice sector, overall U.S. engagement with key 
justice interlocutors has been strong-for example, a significant 
number of Ministry of Justice and FIU officials attending meetings 
with DOJ attache are International Visitor Leadership Program 
alumni.  While GODJ officials may have expected the U.S. to follow 
the "French" model of seeking a formal bilateral agreement, they 
readily agreed to work with the USG on a case-by-case basis, and if 
applicable, on the foundation of international agreements signed by 
both countries.  All parties agreed that judicial cooperation must 
be based on the fundamental principles of reciprocity and political 
will.  This visit confirmed that the political will to work with 
the USG exists-and that Djibouti would welcome further USG 
engagement in the justice sector.  END COMMENT. 
WONG