INDEPENDENT NEWS

Cablegate: Unamid Police Lack Critical Resouces

Published: Mon 12 May 2008 08:47 AM
VZCZCXRO1522
PP RUEHGI RUEHMA RUEHROV
DE RUEHKH #0719 1330847
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
P 120847Z MAY 08
FM AMEMBASSY KHARTOUM
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 0785
INFO RUCNFUR/DARFUR COLLECTIVE
RHMFISS/CJTF HOA
UNCLAS KHARTOUM 000719
DEPT FOR AF/SPG, S/CRS, INL, AF SE WILLIAMSON
ADDIS ABABA FOR USAU
DEPT PLS PASS USAID FOR AFR/SUDAN
SENSITIVE
SIPDIS
E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: KCRM PREL KPKO SOCI AU UNSC SU
SUBJECT: UNAMID POLICE LACK CRITICAL RESOUCES
REF: KHARTOUM 570
1. (SBU) SUMMARY: UNAMID civilian police (CIVPOL) leadership have
identified deficiencies in their programs such as the need for a
greater police presence in IDP camps, additional female officers
from Police Contributing Countries (PCC), and additional senior
police officers with more experience. UNAMID CIVPOLS believe that
they still have the good will and trust of most of the IDPs and want
to take advantage of this with additional programs, but are stymied
by a lack of resources. END SUMMARY.
ELEMENTARY POLICE INFRASTRUCTURE NEEDED
--------------------------------------
2. (SBU) UNAMID North Sector Commander Christopher Buik told poloff
that the lack of police infrastructure, such as police stations in
IDP camps, hinders efforts to provide security to IDPs. He said
that without police stations there are limited avenues for people to
report crimes. While UNAMID CIVPOLS would like to construct police
stations with basic requirements such as separate detention cells
for women, men and juveniles, they are limited by DPKO program
restrictions on how much they can spend on construction. Buik
expressed frustration with DPKO's limitations on construction and
noted that the EU had proposed funding the construction of a number
of stations for AMIS using local materials and labor. However after
the transition, UNAMID insisted the UN do all police station
construction themselves but has yet to follow through on
construction of the much-needed police stations in IDP camps. Buik
said that having a simple police building with some chairs for
meeting community leaders would go a long way toward facilitating
investigations and improving security in the camps.
ADDITIONAL FEMALE OFFICERS NEEDED
---------------------------------
3. (SBU) UNAMID's Deputy Police Commissioner Elizabeth Muwanga
identified an additional need, that of more female police officers.
She told poloff that only 200 of the current 1550 UNAMID CIVPOLS are
females and that additional female police officers are required
because female IDPs feel more comfortable reporting sexual crimes to
another female. "If these women don't report crimes, the criminals
will remain at large and commit additional assaults," observed
Muwanga.
MORE EXPERIENCED POLICE OFFICERS NEEDED
---------------------------------------
4. (SBU) UNAMID's Acting Chief of Police Administration Ralf Gehling
told poloff that there is also an urgent need for additional
experienced western-trained police officers. Gehling said his
officers have different backgrounds, levels of training, and
cultural attitudes toward police work. Gehling, who was part of the
EU-supported advisory team to AMIS, said that while there is a
common international core of basic policing methods, many of the
UNAMID police are re-hatted AMIS police who have mixed policing
techniques based on French, Portuguese, and British colonial systems
from within Africa. Gehling said that more experienced
western-trained senior police officers are needed to provide
on-the-job training and supervision, if overall police performance
is to improve.
IDP ATTITUDES TOWARD POLICE STILL LARGELY POSITIVE
--------------------------------------------- -----
5. (SBU) Both Gehling and Muwanga believe that there is still a
positive "wait-and-see attitude" among IDPs toward UNAMID civilian
police in the IDP camps, but admit that this positive perception
might change in the absence of a more robust police presence. UNAMID
police are optimistic that the imminent arrival of Nepalese and
Indonesian FPUs (reftel) will enable them to build up their capacity
and therefore keep the trust of IDPs, which will be essential to the
success of their mission.
FERNANDEZ
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