US embassy cable - 05KINSHASA170

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 05 KINSHASA 000170 
 
SIPDIS 
 
FOR DRL/PHD (Michael Orona, Patrick Harvey) 
 
E.O. 12958; NA 
TAGS: PHUM, ELAB, KDEM, PGOV, PREL, CG 
SUBJECT: DR Congo: Supporting Human Rights and 
Democracy 
 
Ref: 04 State 267453 
 
1.  (U) The Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) 
emerged in 2002 from a war that claimed more than three 
million lives. With the assistance of the international 
community, the former government, rebel groups, civil 
society, and the political opposition formed a 
transitional government in 2003. This government is 
preparing for democratic elections in 2005, the first 
in more than 40 years. Although the transitional 
government has made some progress unifying the country, 
it remains effectively divided into two zones-areas 
that were controlled by the Kinshasa-based government 
during the conflict, and most of eastern DRC, which was 
controlled by various rebel groups during the conflict. 
Echoes of the war still haunt Congolese civilians, 
especially in eastern parts of the country, where they 
continue to be chased from their homes, attacked by 
various armed groups and government soldiers, and 
subjected to widespread human rights violations. A 
prominent U.S. NGO estimates that more than 31,000 
people a month die in eastern Congo, making it the 
deadliest humanitarian crisis in the world. The UN 
estimates 2.2 million Congolese are internally 
displaced, and 360,000 are refugees. 
 
In western parts of the country, the human rights 
record remained poor, while in eastern DRC conditions 
were even worse. Armed groups and government soldiers 
continue to commit numerous, serious abuses, 
particularly in North and South Kivu, Maniema, 
Equateur, northern Katanga, and the Ituri district of 
Orientale province. Armed men committed massacres, 
summary executions, cannibalism, mutilation, 
kidnappings, and torture. They also burned and looted 
villages, extorted money and belongings from 
impoverished rural communities, and held civilians, NGO 
workers and MONUC peacekeepers for ransom. Particularly 
violent and widespread rape, forced labor- including 
sexual slavery- and the recruitment of child soldiers 
were severe problems. Armed groups attacked local and 
international NGOs and killed MONUC peacekeepers, 
usually with impunity. 
 
The United States is responding to the human rights and 
democracy crisis in the DRC via a multi-faceted 
approach which includes support to the transitional 
government and its efforts to organize elections; 
assistance (via USAID and the NGO community) to victims 
of human rights violations; training and education 
programs (through USAID, the Ambassador's Democracy and 
Human Rights Fund, and Public Diplomacy) to support a 
change in the prevailing social climate and efforts to 
restore the crippled justice system; and military 
education programs through IMET to begin the long 
process of unifying and professionalizing the Congolese 
military. 
 
Secretary of State Powell and National Security Advisor 
 
SIPDIS 
Rice spoke to President Kabila by phone several times 
in 2004, emphasizing U.S. support for the transitional 
government and the need for continued progress on 
political reform, security sector reform and human 
rights concerns. Additionally, President Kabila and 
other Congolese leaders met on numerous occasions with 
senior State Department officials who stressed the 
importance of adhering to the election schedule 
established by existing peace accords. 
 
The United States is one of 16 members which comprise 
the International Committee to Accompany the Transition 
(CIAT), a unique body which advises and assists the 
transitional government. The Embassy also works closely 
with the UN Mission in the Democratic Republic of the 
Congo (MONUC) and the Congolese Independent Electoral 
Commission to develop the most transparent and 
effective system possible for conducting elections. We 
are working with appropriate international agencies, as 
well as Congolese ministries and commissions, to 
implement the national Disarmament, Demobilization, and 
Reintegration (DDR) plan. Mission staff visited all 11 
provinces during the year and used discussions with 
local officials, student groups, NGOs, church 
organizations and members of the local media to 
underscore the importance of democratic elections, 
basic human rights, and inter-community reconciliation. 
 
USAID's Office for Transition Initiatives sponsored a 
$9 million program to create stability in war-torn 
areas which includes training for 16,800 people in 280 
communities on tolerance, the promotion of the rights 
of women and people of other ethnicities and religions, 
and democracy and governance. This same program 
supported independent media by funding Radio Okapi (a 
nation-wide network) and five community radio stations. 
USAID also provided two international NGOs with over $4 
million to reintegrate former combatants into their 
communities and provided a staff member and extensive 
technical support to the national DDR program. 
 
USAID's democracy program invested $12 million to meet 
key benchmarks in the transition process such as 
improving local security and stability, including human 
rights; drafting key legislation, such as the 
Constitution; and strengthening the Independent 
Electoral Commission, political parties, and key 
parliamentary subcommittees. 
 
USAID provided expert technical and logistical support 
through the International Foundation for Electoral 
Systems (IFES) and the National Democratic Institute 
(NDI) to support the development of a sound electoral 
system and improved political party capacity. As a 
result, the Electoral Commission became operational at 
the national level, and the groundwork was laid for the 
Elections Law itself. Five Democracy Resource Centers 
are now operating in Kinshasa and four strategic 
provincial locations, providing vital information and 
training on the transition process and elections in 
particular to thousands of Congolese citizens in 
provincial capitals and isolated areas. 
 
Global Rights (GR), with help from USAID, organized a 
series of national seminars bringing together Congolese 
politicians and civil society, especially women and 
youth to ensure popular input into key electoral, human 
rights, and justice-related legislation. GR also 
created Strategic Rights Groups in five of the DRC's 
provinces as permanent mechanisms for advocating human 
rights and justice sector reform with government 
authorities at the local and national levels. Finally, 
GR increased pressure for access to justice at the 
provincial level and reduced criminal impunity in 
eastern DRC by focusing on the rights of the vulnerable 
groups and selecting cases of appalling violence 
against women and children to be submitted to 
appropriate regional bodies such as the African 
Commission on Human and Peoples' Rights 
 
USAID's community stabilization and conflict management 
program has engaged thousands of participants following 
the DRC's conflict in community rehabilitation projects 
engaging ex-combatants. USAID is assisting communities 
in former conflict zones to productively reintegrate ex- 
combatants and resolve local conflicts occurring during 
the transition. Through the International Foundation 
for Education and Self Help (IFESH) 2,000 ex-combatants 
are being reintegrated in 50 communities, 4,000 jobs 
were created, and local capacity to mediate conflict 
was strengthened in 75 communities, producing a 
positive impact on over 60,000 residents of these 
communities. To date, over 900 ex-combatants have been 
registered and 400 are currently engaged in 
reintegration projects. 
 
USAID has been actively working to combat sexual 
violence in eastern DRC since 2001. In January 2004, 
USAID conducted an assessment mission, published an 
extensive report entitled "Sexual Terrorism: Rape as a 
Weapon of War in Eastern DRC," and developed a broad 
gender-based violence strategy. USAID provides funding 
to experienced international organizations that work 
with local NGOs, health structures, and community-based 
organizations to provide support to survivors. Since 
2003, these programs have assisted over 13,000 victims. 
In FY2004 alone, USAID provided $1.4 million dollars to 
assist victims of rape and sexual violence in eastern 
DRC. The International Rescue Committee (IRC) supported 
12 local NGOs in North and South Kivu, which provided 
health, psychosocial, socio-economic reintegration, and 
judicial services to rape victims. Since mid-2002, the 
project has assisted over 10,000 victims of rape, their 
families, and their communities, and aims to assist 
another 7,000 over the next 18 months. Over the past 
year and a half, with U.S. support, a local 
organization called Action for Rights' Education (AED) 
won 57 of the 60 rape cases it brought to court, 
including eight convictions against members of the 
military. In late 2004, AED received a special $50,000 
grant to expand its services in South Kivu. 
 
In Maniema and the Ituri district of Orientale 
Province, USAID partners Cooperazione Internationale 
(COOPI) provides psychosocial and socio-economic 
reinsertion activities for rape victims.  So far, they 
have assisted over 3,000 rape survivors, the youngest 
age 3 and the oldest age 84.  They plan to assist 
another 5,000 survivors over the next 18 months. CARE 
recently started a new project in Maniema to provide 
health clinics with medicines and improve doctor and 
nurses' treatment and counseling skills. Global Rights 
is working to improve rape victims' access to the 
judicial system. 
 
USAID partners, including World Vision and Save the 
Children, received $1 million in Displaced Children's 
and Orphans' Fund (DCOF) grants to help street 
children, many of whom have been accused of sorcery. 
 
The U.S. Department of Defense (DOD) provided 
approximately $300,000 in IMET funding for military 
education programs. For example, in FY2004, DOD began 
the process of re-establishing an English language lab 
in the DRC, sent officers to military training in the 
United States, and conducted on-site surveys to develop 
seminars on civil-military relations and the role of 
the military in a democracy. 
 
Through its Public Diplomacy office, the Embassy sent a 
number of International Visitors to the United States 
to participate in democracy and human rights-related 
programs that ranged from conflict resolution and human 
rights, to the role of media in the United States, to 
transparency and good governance. Through the 
Ambassador's Democracy and Human Rights Fund, the 
Embassy also provided over $80,000 to local 
organizations that taught people about democracy, human 
rights and the national transitional government. Groups 
developed teaching materials and trained trainers in 
church groups and schools; produced radio broadcasts, 
books, and pamphlets; and developed programs to protect 
prisoners' rights. An excellent civic education module 
for high school students that was developed by an 
Islamic human rights organization using democracy funds 
is currently being distributed to schools in several 
provinces. 
 
Embassy officials met with the government several times 
to promote progress in trafficking-in-persons issues, 
especially of children associated with armed groups. 
For example, Embassy officials worked with UNICEF to 
encourage the government to finalize official 
demobilization certificates for child soldiers. The 
U.S. Department of Labor also provided $7 million to 
the International Labor Organization for seven 
countries, including the DRC, to help former child 
soldiers return to civilian life. 
 
The United States is not playing a role when it comes 
to financing security-sector reform and electoral 
operations. This reduced visibility limits US influence 
over current and future developments. In January 2005, 
Post submitted a request for $10.2 million in 
supplemental ESF funding to support the elections and 
the reintegration of former combatants into their 
communities (reftel). 
 
 
2.  (U) Democracy and Human Rights Programs Addendum 
---------------------------------------- 
 
-------- 
USAID 
--------- 
 
Office of Transition Initiatives 
-------------------------------------- 
 
USAID's Office of Transition Initiatives conducts a $9 
million program to create stability in war-torn areas 
on tolerance, the promotion of the rights of women and 
people of other ethnicities and religions, and 
democracy and governance.  This same program also 
supports independent radio by funding Radio Okapi and 
community radio stations. 
Assisting Rape Victims 
------------------------------ 
 
The International Rescue Committee (IRC) Assisting 
Victims of Sexual Violence 
-- FY 2004 Budget: $550,000 
-- IRC supports 12 local NGOs who provide services to 
victims of rape and sexual violence in North and South 
Kivu. 
Cooperazione Internationale (COOPI) Assisting Victims 
of Sexual Violence 
-- FY 2004 Budget: $550,000 
-- COOPI provides services for victims of rape and 
sexual violence in Maniema province and the Ituri 
district of Orientale province. 
CARE Health Assistance to Rape Victims 
-- FY 2004 Budget: $100,000 
-- CARE provides health services, including medicines, 
to victims of rape and sexual violence in Maniema 
Province. 
Global Rights Judicial Support to Combat Sexual 
Violence 
-- FY 2004 Budget: $200,000 
-- Global Rights works to combat impunity related to 
rape and sexual violence committed against women and 
girls during armed conflict. 
Assisting Abandoned Children 
------------------------------------- 
 
Save the Children-UK Prevention and Reduction of Child 
Separation and Abandonment 
-- FY 04 Budget: $350,000 
-- Save the Children uses funds from the Displaced 
Children's and Orphans' Fund (DCOF) to reduce the 
number of children separated or abandoned by their 
families in Kinshasa and Mbuji Mayi. 
Save the Children-UK Assisting Children Accused of 
Witchcraft 
-- FY 04 Budget: $740,776 
-- This project assists children accused of witchcraft 
(estimated at 60% of all of Kinshasa's street children 
- or over 10,000 children). 
PACT Prevention and Reduction of Child Separation and 
Abandonment 
-- FY 04 Budget:$430,000 
-- PACT uses DCOF funds to reduce the number of 
children separated or abandoned by their families in 
Lubumbashi, Katanga province. 
World Vision Prevention and Reduction of Child 
Separation and Abandonment 
-- FY 04 Budget: $220,000 
-- World Vision uses DCOF funds to reduce the number of 
children separated or abandoned by their families in 
North Kivu Province. 
 
Democracy and Governance 
----------------------------------- 
 
Developing an Electoral System and Political Party 
Capacity 
(Consortium for Elections and Political Process 
Strengthening: International Foundation for Electoral 
Systems and National Democratic Institute) 
-- FY 04 Budget: $4,046,923 
-- IFES and NDI work closely with the DRC's Independent 
Electoral Commission (IEC) and 40 political parties to 
support the development of a sound electoral system and 
improve political party capacity. 
 
Global Rights-Support for Civil Society to Protect 
Human Rights and Engage in the Transition 
-- FY 04 Budget: $4,046,923 
-- Global Rights promotes justice sector reform through 
legislative advocacy initiatives and works to promote 
access to justice and reduced criminal impunity in 
eastern DRC. 
 
Development Alternatives Incorporated-Support for 
Transitional Institutions Including the Process of 
Disarmament, Demobilization and Reintegration 
-- FY 04 Budget: $2,901,000 
 
International Foundation for Education and Self-Help- 
Community Conflict Management and Reintegration 
-- FY 04 Budget: $1,245,708 
-- IFESH and DAI work with former combatants and their 
communities to rehabilitate communities and manage 
conflict. 
-- Its community stabilization and conflict management 
program has engaged thousands of participants following 
the DRC's conflict in community rehabilitation projects 
employing ex-combatants. 
 
Innovative Resources Management-Anti- 
Corruption/Economic Governance Activities 
-- FY 04 Budget: $1,353,987 
-- IRM's project exposes and reduces corruption and 
abuse of authority along the Congo River. 
 
Search for Common Ground-Support for Peace-building 
through Media 
-- FY 04 Budget: $585,813 
-- Search for Common Ground uses the radio to engage 
isolated communities in the transition process. 
 
------------------------------ 
US Department of Labor 
------------------------------- 
Prevention and Reintegration of Children Involved in 
Armed Conflict: an Inter-Regional Programme 
-- September 2003-December 2006. Seven million dollars 
for seven countries, including the DRC. 
--  This  program helps reduce the number  of  children 
serving   in  armies  and  armed  groups,   and   helps 
reintegrate them back into their communities. 
MEECE