PARLIAMENT REACTS TO CONVOY CRASH

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 KABUL 002473

SIPDIS

SIPDIS

DEPT FOR SCA/FO, SCA/A, S/CT, G KATE FRIEDRICH, G/IWI
DIANNE GRAHAM
NSC FOR AHARRIMAN, KAMEND
CENTCOM FOR POLAD, CG CFC-A, CG CJTF-76
TREASURY FOR LMCDONALD, WBALDRIDGE, APARAMESWARAN, ABAUKOL
STATE PLEASE PASS USAID FOR AID/ANE, AID/DCHA/DG
SAN JOSE FOR JANAE COOLEY
REL NATO/ISAF, AUS, NZ

E.O. 12958: DECL: 05/30/2016
TAGS: PGOV PREL PINR PINS AF
SUBJECT: PARLIAMENT REACTS TO CONVOY CRASH

REF: KABUL 2436

Classified By: DCM RICHARD NORLAND FOR REASONS 1.4 (B) AND (D)


1. (C) SUMMARY. Both houses of the Afghan Parliament resumed
debate on security in closed session on Tuesday, May 30.
According to MPs, the US military convoy vehicle accident of
May 29 was discussed, but debate quickly moved to larger
security issues. No statements were made calling into
question the presence of Coalition forces in Afghanistan, but
some MPs were critical of the behavior of Coalition forces.
MPs were more critical of the Afghan National Police (ANP)
response to the riots and of the perceived lack of a GOA
strategy to improve security in the country. The leadership
of both houses decided to form a joint committee to discuss
security issues and the lower house may be considering
approving a resolution on the sources of insecurity in
Afghanistan. END SUMMARY.


2. (C) In conversation with Poloffs, MP reaction to the US
convoy crash that led to rioting on May 29 ranged from
"accidents happen" to "it was a conspiracy organized by
enemies of Afghanistan." All MPs in the lower house of
Parliament (the Wolesi Jirga - WJ) were familiar with CFC-A's
and Ambassador's statements of regret (and compensation as
appropriate for the victims of US actions) about the
accident. WJ Speaker Yunus Qanooni publicized these
statements in the media and repeated them on the floor of the
Wolesi Jirga; MPs seemed satisfied with them. Advocates of a
conspiracy theory stated that Panjshiris were took advantage
of the crash to generate disarray (supported by some photos
showing protesters holding posters of Massoud),while others
mentioned Pakistani, Russian, or Iranian intervention, but
most MPs acknowledged that the protesters were made up of
organized elements, opportunists, and some people genuinely
upset about the crash. Several MPs stated that the ANP had
fired into crowds of protesters; one MPs told Polcouns that
he had heard a Humvee had opened fire on a crowd, killing
three people, but this view was in the minority.


3. (C) Parliament began the day with a prayer for those
killed and a meeting with a delegation representing the
survivors of those who were killed. Several MPs commented
that they themselves had gone out to help the injured or to
talk with protesters. Delegations from Parliament went to
the scene of the accident (Shukria Barakzai (WJ-Kabul),who
was unfamiliar with the massive size and weight of the truck
involved, commented that there was so much destruction at the
scene it was hard to believe it was an accident) and to
hospitals to comfort the wounded. A joint Meshrano
Jirga-Wolesi Jirga committee of MPs has also been formed to
investigate the facts of the accident. Several MPs plan to
travel to the districts affected in order to further calm
tensions.

Discussion Focused on Overall Security Issues
--------------


4. (C) Most MPs remained more interested in discussing
security issues in Afghanistan rather than the specifics of
the accident. May 30 was the third consecutive day that
Parliament has debated the security situation in Afghanistan.
On May 28, according to Haji Ibrahim (Qanooni's brother and
political advisor),Parliament focused on the following
points:

- There is a gap between the government and the people of
Afghanistan.
- The President has not identified priorities to improve
security in the country.
- Tribal/ethnic discrimination has skewed what should be

KABUL 00002473 002 OF 002


equal representation of the different groups that make up
Afghanistan.
- Corruption has destroyed the trust of the general public in
the government.


5. (C) Sessions on May 29 and 30 were closed to the public,
but according to reports from MPs and staff, debate on May 30
was not focused on American forces, but Coalition forces in
Afghanistan and the GOA as a whole. The criticism directed
at the Coalition was generalized ) focused on alleged
aggressive driving tactics and the inability to prevent
civilian casualties (as in last week's attack in Kandahar) -
although one MP stated that he was disappointed that ISAF did
not deliver on security in Kabul on the day of the riots.
More criticism was directed at the GOA and President Karzai
for what was labeled as the poorly-trained Afghan National
Police (ANP) and for the more general perception that the GOA
lacks a unified strategy to promote security in Afghanistan.
Other MPs used the opportunity to advocate for their own
causes ) such as support for individual warlords in the
North who they stated could provide security if they were
able to deploy their forces. MPs and senior Parliamentary
staff also lamented the fact that the riots might set back
business development plans in Afghanistan, because several
potential business visitors canceled or postponed their trips
after seeing television coverage of the riots.


6. (C) The Wolesi Jirga is reportedly working on a resolution
outlining its view of the causes of insecurity in
Afghanistan. This resolution is likely to focus extensively
on Pakistan as a source of insecurity, and may call on the US
to put more pressure on Pakistan to stop sheltering
terrorists.

Comment
--------------


7. (C) The crash itself is likely to fade from the
imagination of MPs in the next few days, but the underlying
issues MPs feel they have - the occasional clash of cultures
between Coalition military activities and traditional Afghan
society, the perceived lack of security overall, and
criticism of the Karzai government's security policy - will
remain and emerge again whenever an incident sparks outrage.
When cool heads prevail, MPs recognize the essential role
Coalition forces play in ensuring Afghanistan's security, but
in the heat of crisis, not all heads are inclined to remain
cool. The unfortunate coincidence of the convoy crash and
the civilian casualties in the Kandahar attack made the
reaction to these events more pronounced than it would
otherwise have been.


8. (C) Karzai can expect to face serious criticism of the
GOA response to the riots and on security issues in general.
Haji Ibrahim called the riots a wake up call about the state
of Afghanistan's security forces, and we can expect Qanooni
to follow suit with similar criticism. More worrisome for
the President might be the position of Jamil Karzai (cousin
to the President) who stated that this incident changed his
thinking about the government, and commented extensively to
Poloff on GOA's lack of a security strategy. Since Mission
Kabul is encouraging the GOA to take the lead on response to
the riots, this could, however, end up being an opportunity
for Karzai to demonstrate the effectiveness of his military
if the situation remains as calm as it was all day May 30.
END COMMENT.

NEUMANN