US embassy cable - 04KINSHASA1608

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 KINSHASA 001608 
 
SIPDIS 
 
E.O. 12958: DECL: 12/31/2014 
TAGS: PGOV, PINS, PHUM, CG 
SUBJECT: VP RUBERWA COULD BE BACK IN KINSHASA SOON, SAYS 
RCD OFFICIAL 
 
 
Classified By: Poloff Edward Bestic for Reasons 1.5 B and D 
 
SUMMARY:  A senior official from the RCD ex-rebel movement 
reports that transitional government vice-president Azarias 
Ruberwa might return to Kinshasa before President Mbeki's 
scheduled August 30 arrival.  This follows a public statement 
by members of the CIAT, encouraging Ruberwa and other RCD 
leaders to travel to Kinshasa and resume their participation 
in the transitional government, and a similar (albeit 
slightly inflammatory in parts) announcement by the 
government August 25.  Separately, a senior official of the 
MLC ex-rebel movement says that President Kabila has agreed 
to compromise on the issue of amnesty.  In our view, RCD 
leaders realize they have overplayed their hand and are 
looking for an exit.  The compromise on amnesty is a minor 
victory for the RCD (and a positive development) but Ruberwa 
is the big loser in this latest round.  END SUMMARY. 
 
 
RCD Official Says Ruberwa to Return 
----------------------------------- 
2. (C) Congolese Rally for Democracy (RCD) member Christian 
Kambinga, who is vice-minister of international cooperation 
in the transitional government, told Ambassador August 25 
several RCD parliamentarians are leaving Goma for Kinshasa 
"today," and RCD president Azarias Ruberwa (vice-president in 
the transitional government) could return to Kinshasa before 
the arrival of South African President Thabo Mbeki, scheduled 
for August 30.  He also asked the International Committee to 
Support the Transition (CIAT) to urge South African President 
Thabo Mbeki to join with them in mediating between the RCD 
and other members of the transitional government, a request 
Ambassador declined.  (Note:  Mbeki is scheduled to arrive in 
Kinshasa August 30, for what the S. African Embassy here 
calls "routine government consultations," departing the next 
day.  End Note.) 
 
 
CIAT Chastises RCD 
------------------ 
3. (U) Members of the International Committee to Support the 
Transition (CIAT) issued a communique on August 24 which: 
--"notes with regret" certain RCD leaders' decision to 
"temporarily suspend their participation in transitional 
institutions" 
--invites those same RCD members to "immediately" return to 
Kinshasa, the national capital 
--calls on all political leaders to promote dialogue and 
national reconciliation, and refrain from inflammatory speech 
or acts 
--reaffirms that there is no alternative to the transitional 
process, as enshrined by the Global, Inclusive Agreement and 
the constitution 
(Note:  Informal translation.  End Note.) 
 
Government Extends a Conditional Hand 
------------------------------------- 
4. (U)  At an August 25 briefing for the diplomatic community 
and selected press, the Foreign Ministry presented the 
government's official response to the Eastern situation, 
notably: 
 
-- called on VP Ruberwa to quickly return to Kinshasa and 
resume his official duties in support of the transition 
-- expressed "surprise" at his complaints, and at the 
location he chose to share his views 
-- recalled that Kinshasa is the seat of legitimate 
government of the DRC, whereas Goma was for many years "one 
of the bases for the aggression perpetrated against our 
country" 
-- pointed out that, during an end-year review of 
transitional progress conducted by the government, Ruberwa's 
security and political affairs committee declined to present 
a report (although all other VPs did provide such an 
evaluation), and that Ruberwa, along with others, voted to 
continue the transition in its present form and goals 
-- reiterated that the Congolese people demand elections, and 
the transitional government will continue its progress with 
the goal of ensuring fair, transparent and credible elections 
for the Congolese people. 
(Note:  Informal translation.  End Note.) 
 
 
Possible Compromise on Amnesty Issue 
------------------------------------ 
5. (C) Thomas Luhaka, Congolese Liberation Movement (MLC) 
spokesman and the MLC's parliamentary group leader, told 
poloff August 25 that National Assembly president Olivier 
Kamitatu met with President Kabila on August 24, and agreed 
to a compromise on the draft amnesty law that parliament is 
currently debating.  (Comment:  This is a major shift for 
Kabila, whose supporters have been pushing hard to exclude 
individuals convicted by a military tribunal in 2003 of 
assassinating former president Laurent Kabila.  This has been 
a key issue for the RCD, many of whose leading supporters in 
the East were condemned during the trial.  End Comment.) 
According to Luhaka, Kabila has agreed for the National 
Assembly to simply adopt the language already contained in 
Kabila's own provisional amnesty decree of April 15, 2003, 
which gave amnesty for acts of war and political offenses 
committed between 1998 and 2003, without excluding the 
alleged assassins. 
 
 
COMMENT 
------- 
5. (C) RCD leaders, realizing they have overplayed their hand 
in recent days, are looking for an exit.  The compromise on 
amnesty is a minor victory for the RCD--and a positive 
development in our view.  Nonetheless, Ruberwa is the big 
loser in this latest round, caught between the hardliners and 
an apparent majority that refused to suspend their 
participation in the transitional government.  END COMMENT. 
MEECE