VZCZCXRO1500
OO RUEHROV RUEHTRO
DE RUEHKH #1435/01 3550634
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
O 210634Z DEC 09
FM AMEMBASSY KHARTOUM
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC IMMEDIATE 4924
INFO RUCNIAD/IGAD COLLECTIVE
RUEHGG/UN SECURITY COUNCIL COLLECTIVE
RHMFISS/CJTF HOA

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 KHARTOUM 001435 
 
SENSITIVE 
SIPDIS 
 
NSC FOR MGAVIN, LETIM 
DEPT PLS PASS USAID FOR AFR/SUDAN 
ADDIS ABABA ALSO FOR USAU 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: PGOV PREL PHUM PINR KDEM SU
SUBJECT: USCIRF DELEGATION'S DECEMBER 5-10 VISIT TO KHARTOUM 
 
REF: A) KHARTOUM 1370 B) KHARTOUM 1376 
 
¶1. (SBU) Summary: During their visit to Khartoum, December 5-10, a 
delegation from the U.S. Commission on International Religious 
Freedom (USCIRF) met with civil society, non-governmental 
organizations (NGO), United Nations in Sudan (UNMIS) 
representatives, the Assessment and Evaluation Commission (AEC) and 
officials from both the Government of Sudan (GoS) and Government of 
Southern Sudan (GoSS).  The December 7 detention and beating by 
police of Sudan People's Liberation Movement (SPLM) Head of Northern 
Sector Yasir Arman occurred while the delegation was here.  Arman's 
detention and mistreatment, as well as that of other peaceful 
protesters, during a December 7 political demonstration in Khartoum, 
became a focal point for the delegation's discussions here.  During 
the visit, the delegation also heard allegations that the Commission 
for the Rights of Non-Muslims was under the control of the National 
Congress Party (NCP). Many of their interlocutors expressed concern 
that the National Human Rights Commission is not yet functional and 
still awaiting appointment of commissioners. The delegation traveled 
to Jebel Aulia, an internally-displaced persons' (IDP) camp outside 
of Khartoum, where residents complained of marginalization.  End 
Summary. 
 
 
 
------------------------ 
December 7 Demonstration 
------------------------ 
 
¶2. (SBU) In two separate meetings on December 8, Yasir Arman and 
Priscilla Joseph (Note: Joseph is a member of the National Assembly 
and the head of the latter's Human Rights Committee. End Note) 
described Arman's detention and abuse at the hands of GOS police the 
previous day. The incident occurred during what both said should 
have been a peaceful protest culminating in the delivery of a 
petition to the National Assembly Speaker calling for movement on 
key legislation needed for CPA implementation (Ref A). At a second 
meeting later that same day, Arman and Joseph were joined by SPLM 
member and Government of National Unity (GNU) State Minister of 
Justice William Ajak Deng. Deng said that 11 SPLM government 
officials and over 200 other people had been arrested and detained 
in two different police stations (104 people in the central police 
station and 120 in a south station.)  According to Deng, those 
detained included 26 women, who were reportedly beaten during police 
transport.  The SPLM officials provided the USCIRF delegation with a 
list of 33 names of persons who they claimed suffered injuries 
during the previous day's arrests. 
 
¶3. (SBU) GoSS Vice President Riek Machar called the arrests of 
senior SPLM members a "humiliation" to the political party, as well 
as to the individuals.  In a December 9 meeting with the USCIRF 
delegation and the Charge d'Affaires, the GoSS VP said the NCP had 
subjected demonstrators to the very laws (i.e. the Criminal Law and 
National Security Act) that the SPLM was now trying to  replace in 
the present session of the National Assembly.  Machar added: "If we 
are to move forward, it should be the  last time these laws are 
used." 
 
-------------------------------------------- 
Role of the U.S. To Promote Democracy Process 
--------------------------------------------- 
 
¶4. (SBU) Asked by the USCIRF Chairman what the United States could 
do to help move the democracy process  forward, Machar responded 
that the role of the U.S. government was to see that the CPA is 
implemented.  He stated that the U.S. should respect the will of the 
people in Southern Sudan and prepare them for either unity or 
secession.  Furthermore, he noted that additional USG assistance 
with security training would be beneficial to ensure police are 
well-prepared for the national elections and referendum.  GoSS 
Minister of Presidential Affairs, Dr. Luka Biong Deng, was also 
present at the meeting and asked for assistance in improving the 
capacity of GoSS judges.  He called the GoSS judiciary weak, and 
said that although they now operated in a decentralized system, 
judges  continued to reflect the values and approaches of a unitary 
state.  He said the GoSS judicial system's personnel would benefit 
from training to help them adjust to the challenges of building a 
new state, and strengthen local judicial capacity. 
 
--------------------------------- 
CPA Implementation and Referendum 
--------------------------------- 
 
¶5. (SBU) Coordinator to the Chairman for the AEC, Simon Giverin, met 
with the USCIRF delegation and poloffs on December 8.  The meeting 
occurred after a scheduled plenary meeting had to be cancelled 
 
KHARTOUM 00001435  002 OF 002 
 
 
earlier in the day when SPLM representatives were no-shows for the 
session.  According to Giverin, this was the first time that one of 
the parties had not sent representatives to a plenary. (Note: The 
plenary was rescheduled and took place with both parties present on 
December 13. End Note.)  Regarding CPA implementation, Giverin 
expressed his personal concerns, calling the current situation "a 
crisis."  He added that in his view it would be very difficult to 
meet the January 2011 referendum deadline. 
 
-------------------------------- 
National Human Rights Commission 
-------------------------------- 
 
¶6. (SBU) Political Affairs and Human Rights representatives from 
UNMIS told the USCIRF delegation and poloff that there was very 
little political will to open the debate concerning the Human Rights 
Commission as mandated in the National Human Rights Commission Act 
adopted in April of this year. They cited pending election issues as 
the primary causes for delay, but also noted that all commissions 
created to further implementation of the CPA largely existed in name 
only.  They reported that the GNU Presidency had not yet appointed 
commissioners to the National Human Rights Commission, even though 
civil society groups in October had held a press conference and 
submitted a list of fifteen potential candidates for consideration. 
There was very little public awareness, in their view, of the Human 
Rights Commission and no expectation of imminent action.  They 
stated that this was despite an ongoing UNMIS advocacy campaign 
meant to highlight the need for a transparent, inclusive and 
participatory nomination process of Commissioners in line with the 
Paris Principles and international best practice. 
 
--------------------------------------------- --- 
Special Commission for the Rights of Non-Muslims 
--------------------------------------------- --- 
 
 
¶7. (SBU) According to many interlocutors with whom the USCIRF 
delegation met, the Special Commission for the Rights of Non-Muslims 
is controlled by the ruling NCP, and lacks the ability to protect 
non-Muslim citizens.  Even the Commission Chairman, Joshua Dau, 
acknowledged that the Commission only attempts to mitigate sentences 
of non-Muslims convicted under Islamic Sharia law. It does not  seek 
dismissal of the charge altogether, even though the Interim National 
Constitution exempts non-Muslims from Sharia law.  Some of the 
difficulties were due, he said, to the quick trial and sentencing 
processes carried out by the GOS Public Order Police.  Nevertheless, 
Chairman Dau and other Commission members said they saw no 
obligation to do more than seek reduced sentences for those 
convicted of Sharia law offenses.  UNMIS representatives expressed 
fear that the rights of Southerners in the North would be exposed in 
2011 following the Referendum on Southern unity with the north or 
independence.  Some of the Commission members confirmed this concern 
by stating that if the Referendum vote  was for secession, those 
Southerners who could not go back to the South would have to "find 
their own way" in a Sharia-based system. 
 
--------------------------------------------- --- 
Meeting with IDP Camp Residents Outside Khartoum 
--------------------------------------------- --- 
 
¶8. (SBU) Residents of an IDP camp in Jebel Aulia, approximately 40 
km outside the city of Khartoum, reported no harassment of Christian 
religious worship or confiscation of religious materials; however, 
they said they felt marginalized as a Christian community.  They 
noted frequent questioning from police and denial of time away from 
work or school to attend Sunday religious services.  They claimed 
social, as well as systemic, discrimination in their daily lives. 
Many claimed that prevailing social customs in the north included 
pressure on their children to convert to Islam.  When asked how many 
would return to the South if it seceded in 2011, three-fourths of 
those present said they would do so.  Some said they would have to 
raise money before they could resettle in the South.  Among those 
who spoke with the USCIRF delegation, there was a general lack of 
knowledge about repatriation.  Many believed that there were no 
longer  repatriation services.  Some in the IDP camp said they felt 
their government had abandoned them. 
 
¶9. (SBU) The USCIRF delegation did not clear this cable prior to 
departing Sudan. 
 
ASQUINO