PRT NINEWA: SHIKHAN AND MAKHMUR DISTRICTS ALMOST

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 BAGHDAD 004364 SIPDIS SIPDIS E.O. 12958: DECL: 11/26/2016 TAGS: PGOV PREL PINR IZ SUBJECT: PRT NINEWA: SHIKHAN AND MAKHMUR DISTRICTS ALMOST IN THE KRG Classified By: Ninewa PRT Leader James Knight: 1.4 (B) and (D). This is a Ninewa Provincial Reconstruction Team (PRT) message. -------------- Summary -------------- ¶1. (C) The Mayor of Shikhan District of Ninewa Province indicates the district would vote to join Dahuk Province and thus the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) in a referendum to resolve its status as a 'disputed territory' if given the opportunity. The Shikhan Mayor notes that the District is currently supported logistically and financially by Dahuk province, even though his district is within Ninewa province boundaries. Three Sub-District Mayors of Makhmur District also indicate that Makhmur would vote to join Erbil Province of the KRG. Both districts were previously within provinces that are now part of the KRG. ¶2. (SBU) The Shikhan Mayor noted that internally-displaced persons (IDPs) in the District have increased over the last three months; there now are more than 700 IDP families (about 4200 individuals) in Shikhan, many of which are Sunni Arabs from Baghdad and Mosul. There are only about 25 IDP families in Makhmur (apart from residents at the Makhmur UN refugee camp). End summary. -------------- Shikhan wants to be back in Dahuk . . . -------------- ¶3. (C) PRT IPAO PRT Governance Chief LCDR and other PRT representatives met Mayor of Shikhan District Dr. Khari Na'amo 2 November in Ayn Sifna village, Shikhan District. PRT representatives were joined by 403d Civil Affairs Battalion staff working in Shikhan. A Vice Chair of Ninewa's Provincial Council, Ali Ameen, also joined the meeting shortly after it began. ¶4. (C) Na'amo -- himself appointed by Kurdish authorities in 2003 -- commented that Shikhan district would vote to join the KRG's Dahuk Province if given an opportunity to do so. Na'amo added that he believes Ninewa's Sunni Arab majority already views Shikhan as non-Arab, and Dahuk Province supports Shikhan more than Ninewa Province. ¶5. (C) When asked what type of support the Province has not provided, Na'amo cited lack of assistance from Ninewa service Ministry Director Generals. In contrast, Dahuk Province supplements the salary that Ninewa provides for Shikhan's municipal workers by 150,000 
Iraqi dinars (about USD 100-) per month, increasing the total monthly pay of a Shikhan municipal worker to 195,000 Iraqi dinars (about USD 130-). He also indicated that computers and Internet services in his office had been provided and installed by Dahuk province. -------------- . . . and Makhmur wants to be back in Erbil -------------- ¶6. (C) PRT IPAO, Governance Officer and other U.S. military officers met Makhmur District Mayor Abdul Barazanji and mayors of Makhmur's three sub-districts in Makhmur village 9 November. When asked how they came to office, all three noted that they were appointed by Kurdish authorities in April 2003. Although the District and Sub-Districts do not have councils established by elections, they have informal, consensually- appointed advisory councils. ¶7. (C) When pressed on the probable outcome of a disputed territories referendum under Article 140 of the revised Iraq Constitution, Barazanji declined to comment. However, his three Sub-District Mayors unanimously agreed that Makhmur would vote to join Erbil Province, noting that Makhmur province has historically been part of Erbil. The mayors emphasized support provided by Erbil, in contrast to lack of support from Ninewa. They concluded by noting that the citizens of Makhmur prefer the BAGHDAD 00004364 002.2 OF 002 prosperity of Erbil to the security challenges of Ninewa. They also noted that Ninewa Provincial reconstruction projects are now underway in their Sub-Districts, but these efforts are the first of their kind. ¶8. (C) Barzan Saidkak, Mayor of Qarach Sub- District, observed that about half the potential eligible voters in Makhmur district have Public Distribution System (PDS) ration cards issued by Erbil Province. When advised by PRT officials that would make those individuals ineligible to vote, he insisted that the IECI does not have a problem with the situation and that it is difficult for people to travel to Mosul to change their PDS location. -------------- Internally-Displaced Persons (IDPs) -------------- ¶9. (SBU) Shikhan Mayor Na'amo underscored a recent increase in the number of IDP families in his district. He speculates that the increase is due to continuing security problems in Mosul. He indicated that most of the more than 700 IDP families in al- Shikhan district are Kurds, but that the number of Christian families is increasing. Na'amo said that most of the families have arrived from Mosul or Baghdad. ¶10. (SBU) In Makhmur, each Sub-District mayor appeared to know exactly how many IDPs lived in their areas. Quer Sub-District Mayor Omer reported 15 new Sunni Arab families from Mosul arrived since July 2005. The other two Sub-District Mayors reported less than five families. Barazanji noted that very few IDP families come to Makhmur; he said that IDPs prefer to settle in Erbil Province if they are fleeing Mosul or Baghdad. -------------- Comment -------------- ¶11. (C) Judging from Na'amo's comments, the fact that he is a Kurd-appointed mayor, and the large number of Kurdish flags and Peshmerga Kurdish militia visible in Ayn Sifna, it seems very likely that Shikhan will indeed vote to leave Ninewa province and join Dahuk province. Ayn Sifna shares much of the sense of security and successful economic recovery characteristic of the KRG. ¶12. (C) While Makhmur was less KRG-like, it, too, will likely vote to join Erbil province and enter the KRG. Makhmur was historically in Erbil province, also has a KRG appointed mayor, and the majority appears to support joining Erbil province. ¶13. (C) In a recent discussion with PRT Team Leader, Ninewa Vice Governor Khasro Goran (also KDP chief for Ninewa) pointed out rather defensively that officials in these districts were appointed in a joint decision with MND-N Commander MG Petraeus in 2003, as Peshmerga joined Coalition forces to secure northern Iraq. This continued anomaly enjoys tacit support from the Kurd-dominated Ninewa provincial government suggesting that the provincial government does not object to KRG initiatives because they support reintegration these districts into Kurdistan. -------------- Bio Note -------------- ¶14. (C) Dr. Khari Na'amo is a dermatologist who was a Peshmerga physician for more than 13 years prior to his KRG appointment as mayor of Shikhan. He spent six years at the University of Mosul obtaining his degrees, and recently returned from trips to Germany and Sweden. He has also spent time in Iran. Na'amo is Yezidi, but prefers to be addressed in Sorani Kurdish, indicating his possible links to the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK),though both his Arabic and English are excellent. KHALILZAD