NINEWA KURDS FOCUSING ON PROVINCIAL ELECTIONS

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 MOSUL 000004 SIPDIS E.O. 12958: DECL: 1/30/2016 TAGS: PREL PINS PGOV PHUM IZ PINT SUBJECT: NINEWA KURDS FOCUSING ON PROVINCIAL ELECTIONS REF: MOSUL 216 CLASSIFIED BY: H. Carl Gettinger, Acting Team Leader, Provincial Reconstruction Team Ninewa, State. REASON: 1.4 (b),(d) -------------- SUMMARY -------------- ¶1. (C) REO Poloff met with members of the Kurdish Alliance (KA) to discuss national election results, the new government, security, and the future provincial election. PUK member Abdulbari Al-Zebari claims KA did not perform as well as they should have due to improprieties by local IECI. He said no attempt was made by local IECI to address the problem of displaced Kurds from the province and early voting for Kurdish Iraqi Army (IA) units. PUK member Ahmed Moussa believes there was a vast "sectarian conspiracy" by Arab political parties and local IECI to deprive Kurds of their vote. KA members said the future provincial election would be "most important," since it would impact who controls the Ninewa government. To address security concerns in the province, KDP member Manaf Hassan suggests additional Peshmerga and Kurdish IA be brought in to provide security in Ninewa, especially Mosul, since he claims the "lack of adequate security" contributed to lower numbers of Kurds going to the polls in December. Al-Zebari said although the new national assembly is made up of majority sectarian parties, the situation should bring secular groups together to improve their odds for the provincial election. KA members asked for USG assistance to ensure the future Ninewa provincial election is organized better and more transparent. End Summary. -------------- BACKGROUND -------------- ¶2. (SBU) REO Poloff met with members of the Kurdish Alliance (KA) in Mosul on January 29. In attendance were Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK) former Ninewa deputy director and national assembly seat winner Abdulbari Mohammed Faris Al-Zebari, PUK member and national assembly seat winner Ahmed Yousef Moussa, and new PUK Ninewa spokesman Mohyadeen Ma'roof Mohyadeen, as well as Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP) Ninewa spokesman Manaf Hassan. KDP members and national assembly seat winners Mohsen Saadoon Ahmed and Veyan Sedeeq Moustafa were unable to attend. -------------- ELECTION RESULTS IN QUESTION -------------- ¶3. (C) Al-Zebari said KA's performance during the December national election was "well below" expectation, and that the coalition should have received six to eight seats instead of four. He blames Independent Election Commission of Iraq (IECI) Ninewa director Oday Abed for "deliberate actions" against the Kurds. Al-Zebari claims Abed worked closely with Arab sectarian coalitions, such as Tawafoq Iraqi Front (#618) and Al Hewar Iraqi Front (#667),to push the vote in favor of Sunni Arabs at the expense of the Kurds. Hassan believes there might also be a link between security problems for Kurds and what he considers their "light turnout" at the polls in December. But Moussa believes there was a vast, "sectarian conspiracy" perpetrated by Sunni and Shiite political parties that preyed on voters' religious fears. He claims these parties told voters they would be "supporting Jews" if they voted for secular parties. -------------- IECI "AT FAULT" FOR KURD LOSSES -------------- ¶4. (C) Al-Zebari claims several Kurds from Ninewa were effectively "left out" of the election process. He said three to five thousand displaced Kurds -- families who left Ninewa for security reasons for Irbil and Dohuk -- and Kurdish Iraqi Army (IA) soldiers were not allowed to vote either during early voting or on election day because they were "not registered." Al-Zebari said "Kurds always follow the rules," but Abed "misinformed and misled" them procedurally. Al-Zebari said he was "frustrated and confused" that Abed "found a solution" for the displaced from Tal Afar by offering special polling sites in Sinjar, but that Abed "refused to help" other displaced peoples from Ninewa. ¶5. (C) Poloff pointed out that many Sunni Arab groups also complained to the REO for similar reasons, claiming that missing voter lists in Arab sections of Mosul were done to "benefit the Kurds" (reftel). Al-Zebari said he believes such allegations are part of a "sectarian cover-up," where Arab parties colluded with Abed to "protect" the IECI director and his actions. KA members said they are confused why Abed was "suspended" on the day of the election and yet reinstated recently. They asked for USG assistance to ensure the future provincial election is organized better and more transparent. Al-Zebari, Moussa, and Hassan suggest a new IECI director from Ninewa be appointed, and that there should be more "diversification" of headquarters staff since they believe there are too many Sunni Arabs working there. -------------- PROVINCIAL ELECTIONS "MOST IMPORTANT" -------------- ¶6. (C) Members of KA believe the provincial election will be the "most important," more so than the national election, since the future of who controls power in the province could ultimately be decided. Al-Zebari said he understands a new provincial election would bring about a "more representative" provincial government, but that Kurds and the USG "must work together" to ensure the "outcome is fair." -------------- SECURITY CONCERNS AND SUGGESTIONS -------------- ¶7. (C) Hassan believes there is a "double standard" with regards to security concerns for Kurds and Arabs. He claims Kurds are more susceptible to terrorist attacks and therefore should be allowed additional protection. Hassan suggests the Iraqi provincial and federal governments allow more Peshmerga and Kurdish IA to patrol the streets of Mosul, especially in mostly Kurd-dominated areas of the city. He believes the extra troop presence would make the city safer. Hassan could not, however, comment on Poloff's question of how other minority and Arab groups might react to the presence of more Kurdish forces on the ground in Mosul. Moussa claims Arabs have "too much control" over security in the city, and that they "manipulate the situation" to their advantage. -------------- NEW GOVERNMENT - SECULAR VERSUS SECTARIAN -------------- ¶8. (C) Moussa fears the majority "hard-line Islamists" in the new national assembly would cause problems in the government since they would work together to thwart efforts by Kurds and the USG to make Iraq more stable. He claims Sunnis are now trying to "poison the political system" by imposing their "extremist" views on the populace. Taking a more positive stance, Al-Zebari believes such divisions would work well to unite secularists, such as KA and the Iraqi National List (#731),as well as bring smaller sectarian parties, such as the Kurdistan Islamic Union (KIU) and Yezidi Movement (YM) (#668) in line with KA. He claims KIU would vote with KA on most issues, since KIU would ultimately identify themselves as "Kurds first." Al-Zebari believes secular parties need to work together to better their odds for the future provincial election. GETTINGER