VZCZCXRO1475
RR RUEHGI
DE RUEHC #4736 3101549
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
R 061515Z NOV 09
FM SECSTATE WASHDC
TO RUEHGI/AMEMBASSY BANGUI 1470
RUEHGV/USMISSION GENEVA 0073
INFO RUEHDS/AMEMBASSY ADDIS ABABA 8571
RUEHKM/AMEMBASSY KAMPALA 6600
RUEHKH/AMEMBASSY KHARTOUM 8412
RUEHKI/AMEMBASSY KINSHASA 0561
RUEHNR/AMEMBASSY NAIROBI 3676
RUEHNJ/AMEMBASSY NDJAMENA 5032
RUEHRO/AMEMBASSY ROME 2877
RUEHBS/USEU BRUSSELS

UNCLAS STATE 114736 
 
SIPDIS 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: CD CG CT PHUM PREF PREL SU
SUBJECT: HUMANITARIAN RESPONSE FOR NEW CONGOLESE REFUGEES 
IN THE CAR 
 
REF: A. BANGUI 236 
     ¶B. AMBASSADOR COOK AND REFCOORD ZORICK EMAILS OF 
        NOVEMBER 2-4 
 
Sensitive but Unclassified. 
GENEVA FOR RMA 
ADDIS-KAMPALA-NDJAMENA-NAIROBI FOR REFCOORDS 
USEU FOR THOMAS 
ROME FOR FODAG 
¶1.  (U)  This is an action request.  See paras 4 and 5. 
 
¶2. (SBU) Department greatly appreciates Embassy Bangui,s 
forward thinking and analysis with regard to arrival of the 
newest Congolese refugees in southeastern CAR (Refs). It has 
been helpful to get an initial impression of the number of 
beneficiaries, their assistance needs, the projected duration 
of their displacement, and the initial response being 
organized by the humanitarian community.  Given that the 
impact of LRA depredations is being felt by victims across a 
widening swath of territory (in the CAR, DRC, and southern 
Sudan) as the military operations to destroy the LRA break it 
into small groups, the Department will appreciate additional 
updates as the situation develops and by septel will be 
sending addressee posts a suggested outline of information 
that would be helpful to have in hand. 
 
¶3.  (U)  The USG response at this point would be from 
State/PRM, principally via the UNHCR, responding to appeals 
for funds should UNHCR's emergency reserve fund -- to which 
PRM has already contributed for 2009 -- be exhausted.  Thanks 
to the alert from Embassy Bangui sources about the arrival of 
the new refugees, UNHCR Bangui, along with other UN agencies 
and non-governmental humanitarian organizations, has already 
led an assessment mission to the affected area in and around 
the town of Zemio.  The next step will be for these agencies 
to articulate the identified assistance needs, including the 
food aid needs to be addressed by WFP, and determine the 
required budget to address these.  Should internal UN funding 
mechanisms not be sufficient, UNHCR would then turn to 
outside donors for support.  The International Committee of 
the Red Cross (ICRC) may also be called upon to address 
assistance for the refugees, though ICRC generally does not 
intervene in refugee situations if the assistance available 
to them is sufficient through the UN system.  At the moment, 
ICRC,s interventions in southeastern CAR focus mostly on 
assisting Central African internally displaced persons (IDPs) 
- also displaced due to LRA activity - around the town of Obo. 
 
¶4.  (U)  For Bangui:  From Ref B e-mails, it seems that WFP 
is in need of cash contributions at this point in order to 
provide for the new refugees.  Please confirm and advise 
whether local purchase is an option. 
 
¶5.  (U)  For Geneva:  PRM would appreciate UNHCR/Africa 
Bureau's urgent assessment of the situation in the CAR and an 
update on its regional planning and preparedness as well as 
information on how UNHCR will cover the costs of the 
emergency response (operational reserve or a new funding 
appeal?). 
CLINTON