US embassy cable - 05ASUNCION1249

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 ASUNCION 001249 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SOUTHCOM FOR POLAD DAN JOHNSON 
NSC FOR SUE CRONIN 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: PGOV, PREL, PINR, PTER, KCRM, SNAR, PA 
SUBJECT: PARAGUAYAN LEADERS GATHER TO DEVELOP SECURITY PLAN 
 
1.  Summary.  On 9/16-9/18, senior Paraguayan officials 
gathered for a workshop sponsored by the Center for 
Hemispheric Defense Studies (CHDS) to discuss developing a 
national security plan.  This workshop grew out of a visit by 
Vice President Castiglioni to the U.S. in May with leading 
U.S. officials, including VP Cheyney and SECDEF Rumsfeld, to 
discuss Paraguay's concerns about national security 
challenges.  VP Castiglioni and the Ambassador presided at 
the opening and conclusion of the workshop.  At the request 
of the Paraguayan Government, the workshop focused on three 
objectives: 1) promoting greater respect for rule of law, 2) 
strengthening public security, and 3) expanding border 
security.  Participants generally agreed on the need to 
strengthen institutions, improve interagency coordination, 
and expand the presence of the state throughout the country 
to meet these objectives.  At the conclusion of the event, VP 
Castiglioni promised to present President Duarte with the 
salient recommendations emerging from the workshop with a 
view to developing a comprehensive plan to meet Paraguay's 
national security challenges.  End Summary. 
 
2.   On 9/16-9/18, a team of experts from the National 
Defense University's Center for Hemispheric Defense Studies 
(CHDS), headed by CHDS Director Richard Downie, took 40 
senior Paraguay Officials including the Minister of Interior, 
the Minister of Defense, the National Police Commander, the 
Attorney General, 2 Supreme Court Judges, two Senators, the 
Vice Foreign Minister, and the Directors of Paraguay's 
Anti-Drug Secretariat and its Anti-Money Laundering 
Secretariat through the steps necessary for developing a 
 
SIPDIS 
national security plan.  Participants were broken up into 
three groups.  The workshop began with a team building 
exercise/competition requiring each group to build a bridge 
connecting two tables 3 meters apart using basic materials 
including paper, paper clips, tape, and cups.  Surprisingly, 
many of the participants, including the Supreme Court Judges 
and the Attorney General, threw themselves into the activity 
setting a tone for active participation and teamwork 
throughout the week's exercises which focused on 1) 
establishing objectives, 2) developing a strategy, 3) 
identifying resources, 4) building coordination, and 5) 
establishing measures of effectiveness. 
 
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Developing a Strategy 
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3.  Per feedback from VP advisors, CHDS facilitators had 
identified the 
following objectives as central to developing a national 
security plan: 
 
-- promoting greater respect for rule of law 
-- strengthening public security 
-- expanding border security 
 
There was a broad agreement on some of the factors that 
presently impeded the government's efforts to instill a 
greater sense of security within the general population 
including: 
 
-- overcentralization 
-- poor coordination 
-- poor communication 
-- limited resources 
-- lack of leadership 
-- lack of teamwork 
 
While each group worked independently to develop a strategy 
to advance the national security objectives identified above, 
it was noteworthy how many common elements emerged from each 
group.  All of the groups essentially agreed on the need to 
 
-- strengthen/modernize institutions 
-- improve coordination amongst institutions 
-- expand the presence of the state both on the border but 
also in the interior of the country where state security 
institutions are largely absent 
-- combat impunity/promote transparency 
 
Each group reached similar agreement on the resources 
necessary to deliver national security including: 
 
-- all state agencies with a role in promoting security 
-- training for each of these agencies 
-- international support 
 
The groups identified the following to measure effectiveness: 
 
-- crime levels 
-- citizen confidence 
 
4.  Much focus was placed on the need for greater 
coordination.  One participant in the workshop remarked on 
the meeting's usefulness if for no other reason than that it 
served an incentive to draw together all of the key players 
on security issues for a group discussion of the challenges 
they each face and how they can best meet them together. 
Some of the participants from the military expressed some 
reluctance about being charged with responsibility for public 
security since being brought out of the barracks last 
November but this issue was largely glossed over.  In 
addressing concerns as relate to Paraguay's inability to 
control its border a number of complaints were lodged against 
the powerful Brazilian community that owns large tracts of 
land mostly for cattle or soy cultivation.  Several of the 
groups stressed the need for concrete measures to cultivate a 
greater sense of national identity among the border 
populations. 
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Next Steps 
---------- 
 
5.  In the wake of last year's kidnapping and murder of 
Cecilia Cubas, the daughter of a former Paraguayan president, 
amidst overall rising crime levels, a concern about security 
often ranks second only to concerns about the economic 
situation/jobs in national polls querying citizens about 
leading concerns.   With this in mind, VP Castiglioni 
embraced the opportunity availed by this workshop to assist 
the GOP in developing a strategy to improve national security 
and enhance cooperation amongst the entities charged with 
responsibility for meeting this challenge.  At the concluding 
ceremonies, Supreme Court Judge Alicia Pucheta, one of the 
leading participants in the workshop, remarked that she had 
found the workshop the single best training experience she 
had participated in during her 35 year legal career.  VP 
Castiglioni appeared genuinely impressed with the 
presentations made by each group summarizing the conclusions 
drawn from the workshop and offering recommendations to meet 
Paraguay's public security challenges.  He committed himself 
to presenting to President Duarte the most salient 
recommendations emerging from the workshop.  We will be 
following up to ensure that presentation occurs and that we 
capitalize on the good will and greater sense of team work 
that emerged from this workshop. 
 
 
KEANE