VZCZCXRO5846
PP RUEHGI RUEHMA RUEHROV
DE RUEHKH #0217 0431236
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
P 121236Z FEB 08
FM AMEMBASSY KHARTOUM
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 9949
INFO RUCNFUR/DARFUR COLLECTIVE
RUCNIAD/IGAD COLLECTIVE
RHMFISS/CJTF HOA
UNCLAS KHARTOUM 000217
SIPDIS
DEPT FOR AF/SPG, S/CRS, AF SE WILLIAMSON, INL FOR PERRINE
ADDIS ABABA FOR USAU
DEPT PLS PASS USAID FOR AFR/SUDAN
SENSITIVE
SIPDIS
E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: PGOV PREL KPKO SOCI AU UNSC SU
SUBJECT: UNMIS CIVPOL POLICE COMMISSIONER VITTRUP ON POLICING IN
SUDAN
1. (SBU) Summary: UNMIS Police Commissioner Vittrup told poloff
January 31 that the UN Mission in Sudan (UNMIS) Civilian Police Unit
wants to address the current lack of southern Sudanese police
capacity by improving the quality and quantity of police training.
He said civilian police can play a vital role in election security.
End summary.
2. (SBU) Vittrup said that UNMIS Civilian Police (CIVPOLS) work with
the entire police structure in Sudan including those in the North
and the South. He said that the police in the North are relatively
professional and are capable of basic aspects of modern policing
such as disposal of Improvised Explosive Devices (IED) and riot
control. However, the Southern Sudanese Police Services (SSPS) has
some serious deficiencies that UNMIS would like to help address. On
a scale of zero to 100 (with 100 being most effective), the SSPS
scored a 15 in a recent UNMIS CIVPOL assessment. "They scored zero
in almost every area except arrests," said Vittrup.
3. (SBU) The GOSS says there are 40,000 former SPLA soldiers who
have transitioned into the SSPS, but UNMIS can only account for
17,463, according to Vittrup. Many of the SSPS do not have any
training in policing, and the training is unevenly distributed.
While the highest-ranking officers are very highly trained, the
street officers have no training whatsoever in policing. Currently
the UN CIVPOLS provide a three-month training program to only 40
SSPS officers at a time. At this rate of training, noted Vittrup,
it would take 12 years to provide training to all of the current
SSPS police.
4. (SBU) Vittrup said that most of the 675 CIVPOLS work alongside
SSPS to provide on-the-job training to them. However, he noted that
the harsh realities of the operating environment in the South impede
effective training efforts. For example, a donor has offered 120
police cars to the South, but few of the police are able to drive,
there are no maintenance facilities, there is no way to license the
cars or the drivers, and there is no fuel budget for the SSPS.
5. (SBU) Vittrup would also like to improve the capacity of UNMIS to
provide specialist police training. Vittrup noted that civilian
police forces often have within their services specialists in the
use of non-lethal force. UNMIS wants to recruit police officers who
are specialists in areas such as riot control, to replace some of
the generalists UNMIS has up to now. Vittrup added that UNMIS is
seeking donors to provide funding for additional trainers so it can
train a greater number of SSPS officers more quickly.
6. (SBU) Comment: There are additional obstacles to effective UNMIS
police training in Sudan, such as the lack of a revised National
Police Act and turf battles among UN agencies. The rollout of INL
programming in the South comes as a fortuitous opportunity. GOSS
Regional Cooperation Minister Barnabas Marial Benjamin signed the
Criminal Justice Sector Assistance MOU after an enthusiastic review
by GOSS Legal Affairs Minister Michael Makuei and Internal Affairs
Minister Paul Mayom. Mayom's ministry oversees the SSPS. He in
particular was supportive of the Department's language regarding
elections security training for police - and particularly what it
holds for the further demarcation of duties between the SPLA and
SSPS.
POWERS