HUMAN RIGHTS MINISTER ON DEATH PENALTY

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 BAGHDAD 001213 SIPDIS SIPDIS E.O. 12958: DECL: 04/07/2017 TAGS: PHUM KDEM PGOV KJUS KWAC IZ SUBJECT: HUMAN RIGHTS MINISTER ON DEATH PENALTY ABOLISHMENT, HUMAN RIGHTS COMMISSION LAW, AND POLITICAL ATTACKS REF: A) 06 BAGHDAD 4510 B) BAGHDAD 1000 C) BAGHDAD 1091 D) BAGHDAD 0820 Classified By: DEPUTY POLITICAL COUNSELOR ROBERT GILCHRIST FOR REASONS 1.4 (B,D). ¶1. (C) SUMMARY: Upon returning to Iraq after a three week trip abroad, Minister of Human Rights Wijdan Salim on March 27 clarified to PolOff her announcement of GOI's intention to eliminate the death penalty (made during a March 14 UN Human Rights Council session in Geneva). She said she believes phasing out capital punishment in Iraq will take at least ten to fifteen years. Wijdan also said she is working with the Shura Council on a version of the Human Rights Commission law that differs from the draft the Council of Representatives (CoR) human rights committee introduced on March 12. Wijdan claimed that CoR Speaker Mahmoud Mashadani is attempting to discredit her because she did not agree to hire people from his party. She also said Dr. Ahmad Chalabi's conduct of prison inspections through the popular mobilization strand of the Baghdad Security Plan (BSP) duplicates work the Ministry of Human Rights (MoHR) is already doing. END SUMMARY. -------------- -------------- ABOLISHING THE DEATH PENALTY... IN 10 TO 15 YEARS -------------- -------------- ¶2. (C) On March 27, Minister of Human Rights Wijdan Salim provided PolOff details about her March 14 statement at the 4th session of the UN Human Rights Council in Geneva that the GOI intended to eliminate the death penalty in Iraq. (Note: In August 2004, the Iraqi interim government reinstated the death penalty, which the CPA had suspended. Bakhtiar Amin, Minister of Human Rights at the time, expressed reluctant support for the decision, which paved the way for Saddam Hussein's December 30, 2006 execution. End note.) Wijdan confirmed that PM Maliki had personally approved her statement. She said she believed the idea of eventually abolishing the death penalty was not controversial among the GOI leadership; however, she envisioned that it will be phased out over a 10 to 15 year period. Wijdan said that due to the current security situation the GOI would most likely maintain the death penalty for the time being as a deterrent against serious acts such as genocide and war crimes. ¶3. (C) In a separate conversation, Deputy Minister of Justice Posho Ibrahim told PolOff on March 28 that he was not aware of discussions within GOI on steps to eliminate the death penalty, nor of Wijdan's announcement in Geneva. However, he echoed Wijdan's comments, saying that he personally disagrees with the death penalty and hopes it can be eliminated, but "given the critical circumstances in Iraq, it is required" for now. -------------- HUMAN RIGHTS COMMISSION LAW -------------- ¶4. (C) Wijdan said she firmly disagreed with a draft law setting up a new High Commission on Human Rights (HCHR) recently completed by the CoR Human Rights Committee. Wijdan was particularly concerned that the new Commission -- which is mandated in the constitution -- would be given a number of duties currently reserved for her ministry. For example, in her view MoHR -- and not the Human Rights Commission -- should be responsible for preparing reports for CoR on the human rights conditions in Iraq and assessing prison conditions through inspections. She said she had not been adequately consulted on the latest draft. She is planning to submit her own version of a draft law, which she believes would ensure the integrity of the MoHR while still ensuring the independence of the new commission. ¶5. (C) The minister explained that she believes MoHR, as a government ministry, would more readily obtain cooperation from other ministries to perform certain functions than the commission might. Wijdan added that she intends to coordinate with the Minister of State for CoR Affairs Safa al-Din al-Safi to prevent the Human Rights Commission law introduced on March 12 from moving to a vote in its current form. (Note: On April 5, al-Safi was named as the new Justice Minister, replacing Hashim al-Shibli, who resigned. End note.) -------------- --- CoR SPEAKER CRITICIZES THE HUMAN RIGHTS MINISTER -------------- --- ¶6. (C) The Minister expressed her anger that CoR Speaker Mahmoud Mashadani had accused her of poor performance during BAGHDAD 00001213 002.2 OF 002 a recent debate in the CoR. He specifically alleged the she had not prevented human rights abuses stemming from BSP operations. She characterized Mashadani's comments as retribution for her firm opposition to unqualified candidates from his National Dialogue Council party, whom he had nominated to be deputy minister and directors general in her ministry (ref A). Wijdan said she interviewed the candidates Mashadani nominated and found that some were "crazy", while others lacked educational and professional backgrounds relevant to human rights. She alleged Mashadani's hostility towards her stems from his prior, frustrated aspirations of assuming the portfolio as Minister of Human Rights himself. Wijdan said she had contemplated challenging Mashadani to a televised debate to respond to his criticisms, but rejected the idea as unproductive. -------------- WIJDAN OPPOSES CHALABI-LED PRISON INSPECTIONS -------------- ¶7. (C) Wijdan also expressed opposition to the detention facility inspections that Dr. Ahmad Chalabi has initiated through a team of 17 lawyers as a part of the popular mobilization strand of the BSP (ref B and C). She said Chalabi was duplicating MoHR's work and had not coordinated with MoHR. Referencing inspections Chalabi has already conducted at some Ministry of Defense (MoD) detention facilities, Wijdan said she believes MoD officials are conspiring with him. -------------- COMMENT -------------- ¶8. (C) The Minister's stated intention to eliminate the death penalty 10-15 years down the road hardly marks a notable change in Iraqi penal justice, as the proposal would be enacted well after the current government and even its successor. Rather, the statement allowed Wijdan to make a positive, if not disingenuous, statement in Geneva before her peers. Her comments about the planned Human Rights Commission reflect her legitimate concerns that her ministry -- despite its earnest efforts and her admirable leadership -- will lose much of its weight and authority once the new commission is set up. End Comment. CROCKER