US embassy cable - 05NAIROBI4328

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 NAIROBI 004328 
 
SIPDIS 
 
STATE FOR AF/E 
 
E.O. 12958:  N/A 
TAGS: KE, PHUM, PGOV, PINS, KPAO, PREL 
SUBJECT:  Nairobi Embassy Bombing Victims Maintain Protest 
At Former Embassy Site 
 
SUMMARY 
 
1. (U) On July 12, 14 victims of the August 7, 1998 Embassy 
bombing began a live-in protest at the "August 7 Memorial 
Park," located at the site of the former US Embassy in 
downtown Nairobi.  Though the protestors are basically 
peaceful, their presence inhibits the park from being used 
for its original purposes - as a location for personal 
reflection and a site for appropriate educational, cultural 
and memorial events.  The protestors falsely claim that a 
November 5, 2001 letter from a U.S. Federal judge directs 
the USG to pay each of the 5,000 bombing victims and their 
families $270,000.  The Park Trustees, an independent body, 
previously received assurances from the Nairobi City Council 
that the protestors would be evicted on September 5 but 
later learned that the City Council had changed its position 
and no longer accepts responsibility for the eviction. 
Moreover, the protestors appear to be heartened by recent 
press coverage of the mid-September meeting in which several 
members of Kenya's Parliament discussed the protestors' 
plight with Senators Hillary Clinton and Barrack Obama. 
They also receive moral support from several local non- 
governmental organizations (NGOs), such as Christians for a 
Just Society (CFJS),that regularly writes letters on their 
behalf. 
 
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Background 
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2.(U)  Following the 1998 bombing, the U.S government 
established a $42 million victims' "Humanitarian Assistance 
Program" fund that was liquidated in 2002.  Since the 
bombing was a terrorist act, the U.S. assistance fund was 
established for moral, not legal reasons.  Among the fund's 
projects: sixteen local hospitals were reimbursed for 
providing emergency care to bomb blast victims and more than 
1,350 survivors obtained medical treatment and 
reconstructive surgery; school fees and costs were paid for 
1,450 children of deceased and disabled victims; sixty 
buildings were rehabilitated and grants given to over 300 
businesses to allow them to reopen and a comprehensive 
nationwide disaster preparedness program was established. 
The fund also allowed for the creation of the August 7 
Memorial Park on the site of the bombing and supported the 
successful prosecution of four of the terrorists who are now 
serving life sentences in the United States.  The fund did 
not provide for cash restitution to the victims since the 
United States was also a victim, and not the perpetrator, of 
the terrorist attack. 
 
3. (U)  After delivering the judgment against the four 
convicted terrorists on November 5, 2001, a Federal judge in 
Southern District Court in New York issued the victims a 
letter confirming that he had ordered the convicted 
terrorists to pay compensation to them for all medical, 
property, financial and emotional losses suffered by the 
attack.  However, the judge acknowledged that his order 
might only be symbolic since the four were believed to be 
without assets and each was serving a life sentence.  The 
only glimmer of hope was the possible discovery of 
previously hidden assets or if the defendants profited from 
the sale of the accounts of the attack.  Though the judge's 
wording clearly does not support their view, the protestors 
claim that the 2001 ruling directs the U.S. Government to 
compensate each of the approximately 5,000 registered 
victims in the amount of 20 million Kenyan shillings (about 
$270,000), approximately $1.4 billion in total.  The group 
evidently receives support from several local non- 
governmental organizations, such as Christians for a Just 
Society (CFJS), and may receive legal support from unknown 
U.S. sources, although none have been in direct contact with 
the U.S. Embassy.  CFJS has written three letters to Kenyan 
politicians and President Kibaki, each time with cc's to the 
Ambassador. 
 
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Current Situation 
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4.(U)  Strategies for resolving this matter remain vague. 
All efforts to reach out to the group to convince them that 
their claim is with Al Qaida and not the U.S. Government 
have failed.  This includes meetings with the former PAO, 
the deputy mayor of Nairobi, park Trustees, and others.  On 
several occasions, such as during August 7 and September 11 
memorial and commemoration services held at the park, the 
group received significant media attention, and on each 
occasion the embassy clarified the amount and nature of the 
humanitarian assistance that the United States Government 
had previously provided.  At present, neither the United 
States nor Kenyan Governments have additional victim support 
funds available.  At last month's September 11 Memorial 
Service the Ambassador again confirmed that the Humanitarian 
Assistance Program funds had been exhausted and that no 
additional funds would be made available. 
 
5.(U)  The 14 protestors themselves show no sign of stopping 
their protest which is by all accounts peaceful.  In July 
and August they would chant, which made use of the park 
difficult for ceremonial events, but in the recent weeks 
they have simply remained seated stoically on a hill in a 
corner of the park.  They sleep much of the day and at night 
under plastic sheeting.  Relatives and friends pass them 
food and water through the park's iron gates.  They use the 
park's restrooms for washing and cleaning.  When these close 
in the evening they relieve themselves in corners on the 
park grounds, which is cleaned up by the park maintenance 
staff each morning.  Pedestrians have complained at 
witnessing the protestors bathing openly on the city streets 
outside the park.  The local press ran stories of a mid- 
September meeting between several MPs and Senators Clinton 
and Obama at which the MPs asked the senators to establish 
an additional fund to "compensate victims of the embassy 
bombing."  The meeting itself, combined with the continued 
direct encouragement of CFJS, has clearly inspired the 
protestors who continue to relay that they will not depart 
the park until their demands are fully met. 
 
6.(U)  Following the September 21 reversal by the City 
Council, the Park Trustees decided on October 12 to abandon 
the idea of eviction and instead will close the Park next 
week until the issue has been resolved.  As long as the 
protestors remain, the park has little chance of becoming 
economically viable, which is the Board's primary goal.  The 
Park maintains an impressive visitors' center, with photos 
and displays from the August 7 attack.  It serves as an 
education center for school trips and a poignant location 
for gatherings.  It is also an appropriate setting for 
personal reflection in busy downtown Nairobi.  However, the 
Trustees and park staff have set aside plans to make the 
park economically sustainable until after the protestors 
depart. 
 
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Comment 
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7.(U)  The situation confronting these 14 protestors is, 
indeed, sad.  The majority of the fourteen were injured for 
the sole reason that they were riding in a bus that was next 
to the embassy when the bombs exploded.  However, what is 
particularly sad is that of the more than 5,000 victims 
these fourteen seem unable to rebuild their lives and move 
on.  Rather than channel their frustrations against 
terrorism or the terrorists, their belief is that financial 
remuneration from the United States will relieve their 
physical and emotional suffering. 
 
Bellamy