BAGHDAD EPRT: LOCAL ELECTIONS IN KARADA DISTRICT A

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 BAGHDAD 003012 SIPDIS SIPDIS E.O. 12958: DECL: 09/07/2017 TAGS: PGOV KDEM SOCI SCUL IZ SUBJECT: BAGHDAD EPRT: LOCAL ELECTIONS IN KARADA DISTRICT A MIXED SUCCESS Classified By: E-PRT Leader Eric Whitaker, Reason: Section 1.4 (b) and (d). ¶1. (U) This is a Baghdad 2 BCT E-PRT reporting cable. ¶2. (C) SUMMARY: Three neighborhood council elections took place in Baghdad's Karada district during June and July, with 13 members elected to represent Muhallahs 950, 952, 954, 956, 958, 962, 964, 966, 950, 952, 953, 954, 955, and 963. Karada's political will and administrative capacity to hold neighborhood council elections shows promise for forming local political bodies that are both representative and responsive to their communities. While two of the elections were successful ) Zafaraniya and Diyala - the third, held at JAM insistence, failed and will not be re-scheduled. While film clips for the first two elections showed what appeared to be fairly democratic processes in the administration of the balloting process, the election organizers have not provided information about nominations, campaigning, and voter mobilization. Also, as of September 8, the Provincial Council had not yet ratified the results. These neighborhood elections highlight an open question about how district councils will be composed after the provincial elections take place in 2008: through newly scheduled neighborhood-level elections; through on-going neighborhood-level elections; or another means. END SUMMARY. -------------- Five NC Elections Held to Date in Karada -------------- ¶3. (C) Engineer Mohamed Al-Rubeiy, Chair of the Karada District Council, offered E-PRT members an ongoing series of revelations regarding a series of neighborhood council (NC) elections. Although NC elections had been held in May 2003 and January 2005, three such elections took place in the last two months: on June 1 and 8, and July 13, in the neighborhoods of Zafaraniya, Diyala, and Sindebad, respectively. Al-Rubeiy stated that the elections were designed to ensure that NCs have a full complement of participating members, and that the Karada District Council can more effectively collaborate with fully staffed NCs. In order to provide representation by women, the DC appointed a female member to both the Zafaraniya and Diyala NCs. Al-Rubeiy did not provide information about the nomination process for candidates, the extent and nature of their campaigning, or means employed to ensure voter turnout. He said that the names of the nominees had been referred to the Provincial Council's Debaathification, Legal, and Integrity Committees, which require at least two months to screen the candidates. After the election, the District Council referred the winning candidates to the Provincial Council for ratification, although no response had been received as of September 8. -------------- --- Zafaraniya: 7 NC Members Elected in 3 Muhallahs -------------- --- ¶4. (C) Al-Rubeiy said that the first NC election, held on June 1 in Zafaraniya neighborhood, drew roughly 60 percent of residents, who selected 5 NC members for Muhallahs 951, 953, 955, 957, and 963. The event was widely advertised throughout the community in advance. A film clip of one polling station ) an elementary school, shown at a Karada DC meeting - portrayed an open election with minimal security presence, voters showing identity cards to obtain ballots, individuals voting in private and casting ballots by themselves, and officials opening and displaying ballots in front of multiple witnesses as the results were tallied on a large blackboard. The polling station was open from 8:00 a.m. until 3:00 p.m. Four NGOs - Justice Voice, Good Action, Muslim Youth, and Union of Islamic Council - participated in and monitored the event. -------------- -------------- Diyala: 57 Candidates File, 26 Campaign for 8 NC Seats -------------- -------------- ¶5. (C) Al-Rubeiy reported that, on June 8, roughly 60 percent of residents selected eight NC members for Muhallahs 950, 952, 954, 956, 958, 962, 964, and 966 in Diyala neighborhood. After two candidates received the same number of votes in Muhallah 952, four members of the DC interviewed them to review their background qualifications to select the candidate they believed to be better-suited for the NC. Overall, 57 candidates filed to compete in the election; of these registrants, however, only 26 campaigned. Candidates represented the Al-Daawa, Islamic, and Communist Parties, as well as the Al Badr organization. Again, a film clip of the event, shown at a Karada DC meeting, portrayed an open election with minimal security presence, voters showing BAGHDAD 00003012 002 OF 002 identity cards to obtain ballots, individuals voting in private and casting ballots by themselves, and officials opening and displaying ballots as the results were tallied on a large blackboard. Elementary schools functioned as polling stations, which were open from 10:00 a.m. ) 6:00 p.m. -------------- Sindebad: JAM-Forced Election a Flop -------------- ¶6. (C) Al-Rubeiy said that the Sindebad election involved 12 candidates for seven seats in three muhallahs. The District Council held the election even though there were no vacant seats due to Jaiysh Al-Mahdi (JAM) pressure to hold one, even if to provide a "waiting list." Of the 12 candidates, four were JAM members, according to Al-Rubeiy. As only 17 individuals voted, the election was deemed a failure, with no re-scheduling planned. -------------- -------------- Comment: What Impact Will Future Elections Have? -------------- -------------- ¶7. (C) Karada's political will and administrative capacity to hold neighborhood council elections shows promise for forming local political bodies that are both representative and responsive to their communities. If NCs in Karada and other Baghdad districts continue to hold these local elections to replace members that either do not attend meetings or reside outside the neighborhood, then these local bodies will increasingly be composed of elected rather than appointed members. Since the DC comprises NC members, the Karada DC will also gradually come to include an increasing share of formally elected members. Following provincial elections anticipated for early 2008, the question arises as to how district councils will be composed thereafter: through newly scheduled neighborhood-level elections; through on-going neighborhood-level elections; or another means. BUTENIS