WikiLeaks: Washington Places the Great Lakes Region Under High Surveillance

A diplomatic telegram published by WikiLeaks on Sunday details confidential inquiries made by the U.S. government to its diplomats in the Great Lakes region. Washington called for biometric data collection (DNA, iris scans, etc.) concerning regional leaders, as well as very detailed information on armies and rebel groups in the region.

The list of sensitive information sought by Washington about Burundi, the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) and Rwanda seems infinite. In a 10-page document published by WikiLeaks on Sunday, the U.S. administration detailed in April 2009 all sensitive information, as it deemed appropriate, on the region. The document is classified as “State Secret” and “Noforn,” which means “No Foreigners.”

According to American diplomacy, the two key issues that stand out are mineral resources and genocidal legacy issues.

Pursuant to the National Humint Collection Directive (Humint meaning Human Intelligence) issued by the U.S. Department of State, headed by Hillary Clinton, a wealth of information is requested of American officials in the field.

“Informal biographic reporting via email and other means is vital to the community’s collection efforts,” explains the text in the introduction to motivate the troops.

All the Way Up to Leaders’ DNA

Officers are asked to gather all possible information on “persons linked to the African Great Lakes. … numbers of telephones, cell phones; compendia of contact information such as telephone directories (in compact disc or electronic format if available and e-mail listings, … credit card account numbers; frequent flyer account numbers, work schedules and other relevant biographical information.”

In the section on Leadership Dynamics, the demands go even further. Officers are asked to learn more about the “health, opinions toward the U.S., … ethnicity [tribal and/or clan]” of key figures in the emerging or “political, military, intelligence, opposition, ethnic, religious and business leaders.”

“… Data should include fingerprints, facial images, DNA and iris scans” of these people. We wonder what techniques were used to collect this information, including DNA and iris scans, without their knowledge…

Rwanda Is a Central Concern

The telegram also requested information on relations between countries in the region, “especially” between “Kigali and Kinshasa, and Kampala and Kinshasa.”

Rwanda is particularly present in the cable. Kigali is thanked for its responses to U.S. services. (The text at this point refers to another cable not yet released by WikiLeaks.) But Washington also wants information on participation in human rights violations, such as extrajudicial killing by the Rwandan Patriotic Front (RPF, President Paul Kagame’s party) as well as paramilitary forces, local police or Tutsi civilians against Hutus.

U.S. diplomacy also wants to learn more about “divisions within President Kagame’s inner circle.”

Particularly focused on ethnic data, the secretary of state wants to know what role it plays in decision making in the army, in terrorist groups or even with refugees.

She also wants to obtain very precise information about the armed forces: “[d]etails on military facilities, such as airfields and army camps, and on military equipment, including numbers, operational status, and procurement/refurbishment activity.”

Enemies and Rivals

On the subject of the military, officers are asked to provide details on relations of countries in the region with other foreign countries, “especially China, Libya, Sudan, North Korea, Iran, Russia, Ukraine, Belarus and other former Soviet bloc countries.”

This concern over rivals or enemies in the region is reflected at other levels. The U.S. is thus interested in Beijing’s “details of trade, aid and investment activities,” especially in the mining sector, as well as Beijing’s assistance in the development of telecommunications systems and the regional governments’ perceptions of this assistance.

France and Iran’s activities in the region are also closely examined.

In the mining sector, the U.S. wants to know “the number and location of mines, production statistics and revenue generated” from diamonds, copper, cobalt and uranium, which are under surveillance.

Washington also seeks the extent to which “ethnic, tribal, religious and regional fragmentation could serve to attract international terrorist groups” and what the governments’ views are towards them.

More surprisingly, the U.S. wants to know the feelings of the governments of the region toward “genetically modified food and propagation of G.M. crops.” A country’s economy is never completely detached from its intelligence objectives…