ADNA Meeting Minutes - Dec 3, 2013

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Dec 12, 2013, 1:23:47 PM12/12/13

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ADVOCACY NETWORK FOR AFRICA

Meeting Notes – December 3, 2013 -- IPS, Washington DC

Participating organizations represented:

Africa Faith and Justice Network Friends of the DRC

American Friends Service Committee United Methodist Church – General Board of Church and Society

Society of African Missions Independent analysts

Presbyterian Church USA Amnesty International

Association of Concerned Africa Scholars Institute for Policy Studies

Maryknoll Office of Global Concerns US Dept of State – Office of Special Envoy to Great Lakes

US Dept of State – Bureau of African Affairs

PRELIMINARIES: Facilitator Mark Harrison welcomed all and led introductions and agenda adjustments.

1) HUMANITARIAN ASSISTANCE FACILITATION ACT (H.R. 3526):

On 18 Nov it was introduced by Rep. Chris Smith, with Rep. Jim McGovern cosponsoring on Dem side. The purpose is to facilitate humanitarian action in conflict zones. The bill took two years, starting with famine in Somalia due to concerns with Al Shabaab, who were in control in some areas which needed relief. US law prevented dealing with terrorists. UN did something with Norwegian refugee relief. State Dept has had discussions with InterAction. See AFSC, and see the Charity & Security Network summary of HACA at http://www.charityandsecurity.org/. The bill will also be in Senate. It says if you do humanitarian work, you need to inform the US government of whom you are dealing with---a concern about terrorist networks. US NGOs are under legislation to report on dealings with orgs on the official US Terrorist list. If so, they could be prosecuted. This bill turns around the process of licensing. And also it facilitates doing work to prevent or mitigate armed conflict from happening. It was created because aid orgs were concerned about helping foment conflict inadvertently. And it it is a legal protection for organizations to do the work they are doing. Republicans support it. After a few weeks ADNA members may be invited to meetings to support this bill. Under current situation, without some remedy, there are times when no aid at all enters conflict situations.

On other aid issue: The fate of the important Agriculture Bill is affected by farm lobbies and shipping company lobbies.

2) U.S. FUNDING FOR DEVELOPMENT IN AFRICA (i.e., PEPFAR; Foreign Aid):

The suggestion is to have someone in ADNA or from outside to give us an update at a future ADNA meeting on development assistance and the budget, because African aid may take a hit in that budget. (Possible names of resource organizations: BFW; InterAction; Pearl Alice Marsh has worked on aid reform for a long time.) Consensus: Mark will find someone and schedule someone to speak on this topic to the ADNA meeting at a future time.

3) BOKO HARAM DESIGNATION AS A “TERRORIST ORGANIZATION”:

Amnesty has put out a statement on Nigeria. Two weeks ago State Dept formally designated Boko Haram (of Nigeria) as a terrorist organization. Prof. Carl LeVan and ACAS had opposed this designation because with it, real problems come for academics and peacebuilding orgs to function in Northern Nigeria. Also there are concerns about human rights violations on Nigerian Government side, and worry that this will increase level of violations by Govt. Nigerian Govt forces had engaged in torture in some facilities. Amnesty has documented this. State Dept issued the designation the morning of the Hearing on Boko Haram in the House Subcommittee on Africa.

It creates problems also for people sending remittances to families in Northern Nigeria, by putting them in category of supporting suspected terrorist activities. But Nigerian Govt and many Nigerians wanted this designation. Some who signed the objections to it have received hostility and threats. Negotiations rather than military suppression is finally going to be needed to resolve Northern Nigeria conflict. There were no NGOs at the Hearing who could witness to some of these issues of human rights violations on both sides. The designation spreads a wide net to pick up people who are not really part of Boko Haram. Pressure for negotiations and following the rule of law by both sides are what is needed.

Last week: A Human Rights Watch report of Nov 29 says BH is mostly child soldiers (.http://www.hrw.org/news/2013/11/29/nigeria-boko-haram-abducts-women-recruits-children). It is true that the Nigerian military does not meet certain requirements either. But designation of BH as “terrorism” overrides as a higher priority. Rebel use of child soldiers would not deter US assistance to Nigerian Govt.

A lot of African ambassadors in DC are OK with the designation. Most Nigerians are saying,“BH is killing us; don’t be solicitous of them.” There are penalties attached on financing when designation occurs. With BH, their money does not come from abroad. Designation allows Nigerian Government to get training etc.

It is true that BH uses terror. The designation brings good tools, but they are too blunt for the task; what’s needed is a “scalpel.”

4) CENTRAL AFRICAN REPUBLIC: There is increasing fighting between different armed groups. Several UN officials have raised the possibility of religion-based and ethnicity-based genocide. There is use of child soldiers, humanitarian crisis. It is difficult to provide assistance. African-led Peacekeeping has been there a year but is nonoperational due to lack of finances. French troops are there, with another 400 and up to 1000 due. UN SC will vote on December 5 on a resolution to send in Peacekeepers (up to 7000). Not sure if that will proceed. It would take a long time to get them on the ground. Restoring law and order and security is the immediate issue.

CAR had a change of govt from Bozize to Djotodia (both coup leaders). So those accused of causing problems: current Pres Djotodia was with Seleka rebels. Bozize went to Paris. Djotodia now says he is not part of Seleka. Not being paid, they are causing havoc in countryside. It should be noted who is doing what. Many came from Chad and are Muslim, whereas CAR is not majority Muslim. Kony is probably in CAR and is said to be telling the new president he wants to negotiate. Whether genocide is a real possibility is not clear. There was a hearing in the House on CAR. See insightful testimony by one of the Roman Catholic Bishops, Nestor-Desire Nongo Aziagbia (http://docs.house.gov/meetings/FA/FA16/20131119/101520/HHRG-113-FA16-Wstate-Nongo-AziagbiaT-20131119.pdf) . See also AFJN website. Emphasis is on foreigners taking over the country, especially Chad being the “Rwanda” of CAR, to exploit natural resources, and therefore not being interested in peace. Also the question of what France’s interests are. Former Pres Bozize brought in South African companies to give them contracts as a result of delay by the French—this is another theory on causes. Bozize had appealed to France and France declined. But now that the new Pres is there, France is increasing involvement. France may get UNSC to pass authorization for UN Peacekeepers.

Since independence from France there have been coups and countercoups for decades. As usual it is about oil, diamonds, gold, mining, etc. France is still interested. Sudan also has a role. Atrocities seem to be happening on both sides. Seleka and Balaka are both doing bad things and civilians are caught in middle. Faith-based orgs are providing humanitarian assistance and hope for negotiations. Could there be a US Special Envoy? There is a special advisor. There are activities going on with US military advisors in CAR (originally 100, and then increased in 2012). Diplomatic efforts are needed rather than military. Bishop’s message was no one is paying significant attention to humanitarian aid or negotiations

France invited countries of the region to meet in Brazzaville. French are acting as if the UN resolution is going to pass. Al Jazeera ran an interview with the CAR Prime Minister and asked if Boko Haram had a presence in CAR—he said he could not confirm. State Dept at the Hearing was asked by Rep Bass about a Special Envoy. But they said it is sufficiently staffed. Calls for the African force to be made into a UN force were said by US not to be a good idea. Any multilateral response takes time. Bilateral responses tend to be on military level and not on political or human assistance.

There has been US-NGO advocacy on the US having a stronger role. The Protection and Prevention Working Group has been active. This may be interpreted as support for the UN intervention. They call for diplomacy, protection, using all the tools. Among those was military peacekeeping presence and a mandate to protect the population. Without that, other elements cant go forward. Seleka seems not to have a political divide. The political divide is mainly between Bozize and Djotodia. But Seleka is split for other reasons.

ADNA actions: Colleagues from CAR may join us on these issues at January’s ADNA meeting. FCNL sponsored a letter on CAR, but it has already been sent.

5) DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC OF THE CONGO: State Dept reports that Special Envoy for the Great Lakes and DRC Russell Feingold is cautiously optimistic. He is sorry the Kampala Dialogue did not issue in action. US was always skeptical about this Dialogue and did not participate until the last couple of weeks. At that point, the UN envoy, MONUSCO, and US Special Envoy were there and tried to get an agreement. The substance was reached. But DRC refused to sign due to concerns about the title of the document. Still, failure of the Dialogue is not a major stumbling block, according to Special Envoy’s office. They say the Framework for Peace, Security, and Cooperation process is the basic path for moving forward. Kampala meeting was one Govt and one armed group, among many actors. The Framework calls for DRC, Rwanda, Burundi, and possibly other key signatories too, to be involved. There are land issues, ethnic tensions, border security issues, etc. US is seen as promoting the broader dialogue. It needs to be endorsed by the whole Region. Amb. Feingold is going to travel to regional Heads of State to garner support for the dialogue. The Framework would be long-term arrangement of two years or more, and with an African mediator--unlike previous efforts.

Questions and Answers of ADNA members with State Dept representative:

When Congolese Army was going after rebels in Eastern DRC they looted, raped and killed, and had forced porters. Some ADNA members have names, pictures, etc. of victims from North Kivu Province. Needed: State Dept investigation of these cases.

Answer: But MONUSCO has been reporting that DRC Army has been behaving well. There can be units that do OK and others not. Misconduct reports are very concerning.

MONUSCO wanted to tell a positive story, according to some insiders. Civil Society is saying, “We do not want Ugandan forces to be part of the ADF. They have been a player in the conflict.”

Answer: DRC is skeptical to allow any foreign military. Obviously they did allow the Rwandan army in previous years. But now, due to getting burned, they are reluctant to allow.

DRC did not want to sign a peace agreement with M23.

Answer: The US Govt understands that. Call it something different. M23 seems to be splitting. The lead M23 negotiator in Kampala has been removed. Chances for resolution are slipping due to this split.

On the radio and CNN and in public, Sen. Feingold said DRC soldiers were behaving well. If it is not the case, it is a serious issue.

Answer: Militarily they are behaving better. FARDC has been inept but now doing better. Apart from human rights.

On elections: Where will the money come from for transparent elections—can US ask Kabila to ask for money from “big corrupt fish” in DRC who can provide money? Some agencies can provide names of such people.

Answer: Elections and transparency are huge. DRC has to improve over 2011 elections when it comes to 2015. DRC Prime Minister has encouraged us on tackling corruption. It is huge problem, but they are showing signs of addressing it. The Prime Minister has a memo on the “big fish”--companies taking Congolese money.

What to do with the offspring of FDLR? Does DRC have a law about being born in DRC, or parents being born there?

Answer: State Dept is working on this issue.

We got the impression from Feingold that Kampala was a particular focus. M23 for all intents and purposes gets its power from Rwanda and Uganda. There is not enough pressure on Rwanda and Uganda to cease their intervention in DRC permanently. E.g., names were submitted to UNSC of names of M23 who were under sanction. Some individuals on US and UN sanctions list were in Rwanda and Uganda, but we are not seeing Feingold pressuring these countries to turn them over. These countries are having impunity. US seems to push economic integration for stability—but is this just providing Rwanda and Uganda with access to DRC resources with approval of U.S. Government, World Bank, et al.?

Answer: There is a practical problem with sanctions on M23 because Rwanda is on UNSC and on Sanctions Committee---listing someone requires unanimous vote in Sanctions Committee. US Govt tries to parallel UN in its own sanctions listing. US Govt a couple of months ago pushed to list additional names at UN, but Rwanda resisted and prevailed. Individuals are present in Rwanda: Accountability is pushed by US Govt with DRC. DRC lacks a really good judicial branch—courts, lawyers, judges, decent prisons. Prosecutions have to be fair. This includes for M23 perpetrators. Fair and transparent way is required. Kabila has supported mixed chambers. That would allow international judges to oversee the process. That is what US would like. Kampala document (not signed) had strong language in it. We don’t want Rwanda to turn folks over if they are just going to get lost in the DRC justice system. There is also a protocol for handing people over. Rwanda is anti-death penalty and wants not to hand over to DRC if there is a death penalty (as there is).

A group of experts had submitted a list of individuals in advance of discussions at UNSC. Would USGovt proceed if Rwanda were not on UNSC?

Answer: No. Listing any sitting government official has serious consequences. People say forget relations with Rwanda are valued higher than DRC events. But to proceed against government officials anywhere has big implications as policy.

Some top officials have international arrest warrants out on them under the principal of international jurisdiction. Even in Rwanda and Uganda.

Answer: Those arrest warrants were a decision of the Government of Spain, not a US Govt decision.

Staff of Sen. Feingold is happy to receive emails through his staff. Contact them also if ADNA would like to meet with Great Lakes Special Envoy Sen. Feingold. AFJN would coordinate arrangements for such a meeting. Sen. Feingold needs a listing ahead of time of who will attend such a meeting.

6) EGYPT: US Pres Obama has not yet called the removal of Pres Morsi a “coup,” which would stop all aid to the country. There is an attempt on the Hill to change that law, to allow the US more flexibility. It had relevance to Mali too. Congress will probably to go in a direction opposite to what we would like. This issues is linked to Boko Haram and others—how to deal with complex groups and automatic triggers in policy?

In Egypt: A new draft constitution on Dec 2 was handed to the new interim President who will hold a national referendum on it. If it goes well, there will be elections for President and legislature. There was another constitution when Morsi was there. The concerning thing is that the military’s power has been strengthened in the proposed draft of the new constitution. The military appointed everyone. See what happens in next 30 days.

Situation is dangerous in Egypt. ADNA should keep an eye on it. We may need a letter. Pres Obama cut off 20% of aid for Egypt apart from the automatic cuts. Obama is under heavy pressure to support the Egyptian military. The White House is to a degree supporting democracy.

An ADNA independent analyst will continue to follow the Egyptian situation.

7) MALI: In late November, Mali had legislative election. Turnout was low and it was inconclusive. US Govt had declared the situation a “coup” early on, after some days. Some say “democracy has been restored” (so aid can resume) because a new parliament has been elected. But the low turnout may require runoffs. Maybe the turnout was low because Mali did not have good conditions for elections. It is good that they arrested the man who made the coup and charged him with having “disappeared” and tortured other soldiers and civilians who disagreed with him. He had gone from Captain to Lieutenant General, from $315 /mo to $8000/month. He said people were sent to kill him. The official ceasefire is now off in Mali.
The ethnic problem and grievance of Tuaregs in North remain. There is reconstruction and reconciliation to do. It will be very difficult. Tuaregs have been asking for independence for 50 years. Tuaregs and jihadists did terrible things when they took over 50% of the country. Mali’s issue is how to reconcile the different groups. Tuaregs are insistent and are in charge of Kita. How did they take it over from jihadists? ADNA should follow Mali developments.

8) AFRICAN GROWTH AND OPPORTUNITY ACT (AGOA): There is a drafting committee to combine different versions of an AGOA Working Group advocacy statement to be completed by or before the first quarter of 2014. There is a meeting of the AGOA WG on Dec 18 or so to go over it. The hope is to shape the language of the AGOA reauthorization bill. It was heartening to hear State Dept Africa Bureau head Amb. Linda Thomas-Greenfield say she wants to improve AGOA.

Mark C. Clack is back. He was an advisor in both House and Senate subcommittees. He will join the AGOA WG. TransAfrica will also be providing input. There are plans for meetings about AGOA with the African diplomatic corps.

9) ECUMENICAL ADVOCACY DAYS: Held in Washington, March 21-24, 2014: A gathering of church people to educate and advocate for just policies. Theme: “Jesus Weeps: Resisting Violence, Building Peace.” There is an Africa Track: Four workshops revolving around themes including Peacekeeping; nonviolent conflict resolution; restorative justice; AFRICOM and use of drones; land-grabbing and extractive industries. Africa Track planners are partnering some of these with the Latin America Track. Final topics will be sent out shortly, along with a request for suggestions for some additional speakers. See www.advocacydays.org.

10) RECEPTION FOR ASST. SECRETARY OF STATE FOR AFRICA: ADNA has not yet gotten a response from Amb. Linda Thomas-Greenfield to the request to meet with her. (She is traveling). Our request is in the pipeline. Her staff wants to be strategic in scheduling periodic meetings.

Amb. Thomas-Greenfield’s recent speech is not yet on her website. Her speech was very substantial on policy toward Africa. The request to post it will be relayed by State Dept Staff present at this meeting. Some ADNA members felt the speech came across as too much addressed to the private sector, not human rights folks, and other advocates. Not enough “balance” and not enough portrayal of Africa as more than just a resource producer. Its future development must include resource processing on the Continent.

11) “POWERAFRICA” and “ELECTRIFY AFRICA”: The “PowerAfrica” initiative came from Obama in July; it covered six non-Francophone countries: Liberia, Mozambique, Tanzania, Ethiopia, Nigeria, South Africa, for five years. In July the amount projected was $7 billion. Now it is around $20 billion. The US private sector is getting on the bandwagon.

“Electrify Africa” was put forward by Congress as a complement (though it came first)—it is for all countries and has no time limit. The legislation may be overemphasizing oil and Liquefied Natural Gas. So it addresses resources being accessed for Europe, Asia, and elsewhere. That is what gets companies excited. Senate has a draft of legislation that is being marked up. The House bill H.R. 2548, is calling for removal of the cap on carbon emissions set with OPIC, which was put in place with environmental groups such as Greenpeace and Friends of Earth. There is a meeting Dec 3 with staffers working on these issues with environmental groups and others, to urge non-elimination of the cap, and to urge an emphasis on solar and wind and less on dirty fuels like coal, gas, nuclear. The idea is to propose alternate language on the House side. A Senate bill is still in Menendez office But Congress returns only briefly: House is in session for two weeks; Senate comes back briefly next week. So it is likely these bills won’t come up until next year. ACAS has expressed concern and has a Working Group for both PowerAfrica and Electrify Africa, to come up with an advocacy statement intended for academics in particular.

Which is more threatening to Africa: lack of power, or climate change? And what of support for renewables; Africa is drenched with sunlight. Rep. Karen Bass did a policy briefing on these two initiatives and there was some discussion of solar. Europeans are using Libya and Tunisia to have solar farms to export power to Europe. Also there is a connection between land-grabbing and “renewables” defined as biofuels.

At next ADNA, Emira will update on this issue. Mark is also attending relevant meetings.

12) ANNOUNCEMENTS:
SOMALIA is boiling again The Prime Minister has been removed by a vote of No Confidence. UN has asked for 4000 more troops. The issue is linked to events in Kenya too. ADNA needs to watch the situation. Conflict Prevention: “Early Warning:” Kofi Annan had proposed this approach repeatedly when he was UNSG.

NEXT ADNA MEETING: Tuesday, JANUARY 7, 2014. 11:00 a.m. at IPS, 1112 16^th St., N.W., Washington DC (or phone in). Chair: Jacques Bahati. Notes: S. Price