US embassy cable - 03ABUJA113

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Identifier:	03ABUJA113
Wikileaks:	View 03ABUJA113 at Wikileaks.org
Origin:	Embassy Abuja
Created:	2003-01-17 15:50:00
Classification:	CONFIDENTIAL
Tags:	PHUM PREL LY NI UNHRC
Redacted:	This cable was not redacted by Wikileaks.

C O N F I D E N T I A L ABUJA 000113 
 
SIPDIS 
 
 
FOR IO AND AF 
 
 
E.O. 12958: DECL: 01/17/2013 
TAGS: PHUM, PREL, LY, NI, UNHRC-1 
SUBJECT: NIGERIA: LIBYAN CHAIR 
 
REF: (A) State 5849 
-    (B) 02 Abuja 3310 
 
 
Classified by DCM Andrews: Reason: 1.5(d) 
 
 
1.  (C) Summary: Nigerian President Obasanjo reportedly is 
making telephone calls in an effort to replace Libya with 
Mozambique as the Africa Group's candidate to chair the 2003 
CHR session.  End Summary. 
 
 
2.  (U) DCM Andrews delivered ref A demarche by phone to 
Presidential International Affairs Advisor Ad'Obe Obe the 
morning of January 17.  An appointment had been scheduled, 
but Obe telephoned to say the President had called him. 
 
 
3.  (C) While a poor connection and Obe's short fuse for 
seeing the President precluded making the entire demarche, 
all key points got across.  DCM put particular emphasis on 
Libya's violation of the human rights of Nigerian citizens. 
Obe undertook to raise the issue with Obasanjo. 
 
 
4.  (C) Obe contacted us in the this afternoon after talking 
to Obasanjo.  Obe said the President would contact the AU 
Chairman to see if Mozambique (the next AU Chairman) might 
replace Libya.  Obe hoped to provide us further "feedback" 
on Obasanjo's efforts later in the day. 
 
 
5.  (C) COMENT: We believe that the GON has never been happy 
with the prospect of a Libyan CHR Chair (see also ref B), 
but Foreign Minister Sule Lamido attended the Ministerial, 
and he may not have resisted as strongly as Obasanjo would 
have liked.  Libya's announcement that it planned to 
execute a Nigerian citizen raised Tripoli's "negatives" in 
Nigeria this week; Nigerian Deputy FM Onyia called in the 
Libyan Ambassador to protest.  The execution was supposed 
to take place this morning.  Apparently, it has been 
rescheduled for January 18 (tomorrow).  If this sentence is 
carried out as now scheduled, we can anticipate a 
reasonably vigorous effort by Obasanjo and the GON to stop 
Libya from assuming the chair. 
JETER