LONE SUNNI OPPOSITION MP UPBEAT ON LEVEL OF

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 03 MANAMA 000375 SIPDIS SIPDIS E.O. 12958: DECL: 04/18/2017 TAGS: PGOV PREL PHUM BA POL SUBJECT: LONE SUNNI OPPOSITION MP UPBEAT ON LEVEL OF COLLABORATION IN PARLIAMENT Classified By: DCM Susan L. Ziadeh for reasons 1.4 (b) and (d). -------------- Summary -------------- ¶1. (C) In an April 17 meeting with Poloff, Independent MP Dr. Abdul Aziz Abul, the only Sunni member of the opposition in the elected Council of Representatives (COR),was optimistic about real collaboration between parliamentary members and blocs. He was also optimistic about increased numbers of Shia being hired by the Ministry of Interior and the positive ways the Minister was working with leaders in the Shia community to address concerns about aggressive police tactics. Abul expressed disappointment for a missed opportunity for Al Wifaq to address a long-term grievance about compensation to families of individuals killed in the unrest of the 1990's. He said that Al Wifaq is concerned about frustrated and emotional youth who have been carrying on low-level agitation but who do not listen to the Shia community's religious and political leaders. COR oppositionists continue to oppose a royal decree to establish a commission responsible for complete oversight of the over $10 billion Qatar-Bahrain causeway. End summary. ¶2. (C) In a meeting with Poloff April 17, Independent MP Dr. Abdul Aziz Abul, who is the chair of the Finance and Economic Affairs Committee and sole Sunni member of the elected COR who is allied with Al Wifaq's 17 MPs in the opposition, expressed much optimism about cooperation between parliamentary blocs and the work accomplished in the first four months of the new parliament. Abul spoke of his effort to focus initially on issues for which there can be cooperation with MPs of other blocs, and said that later he will raise more difficult issues, such as constitutional amendments and election district reform. He spends more time than he would like on constituent services, such as housing and employment matters, and pointed to the need for a staff budget to hire someone to follow up on cases. (Note: Al Wifaq MP Jawad Fairooz confirmed in a separate meeting that other parliamentary blocs had realized after beginning to work together that Al Wifaq MPs were not "monsters" but were rational, reasonable individuals who shared mutual concerns.) -------------- Politics of Compromise...Almost -------------- ¶3. (C) In discussing the need for greater cooperation in the chamber, Abul described a proposal introduced by COR Speaker Khalifa Al Dhahrani at the end of the day's legislative session on April 10, calling for government compensation to owners of property that was damaged during the unrest in the 1990's. The proposal sparked an angry reaction by Al Wifaq MP Mohamed Al Maza'al, who demanded that compensation for people who were killed or tortured, nearly all of whom were Shia, should be the focus of any proposal for compensation. (Note: There were 40-some people who died in the 1990's unrest. The Shia community has long called for compensation for victims. Sunni proposals for compensation typically have focused on property damage that resulted from vandalism caused by Shia rioters.) According to Abul, Al Maza'al's emotional reaction quickly polarized the discussion, spoiling the opportunity for a win-win outcome for a long-standing, difficult issue. ¶4. (C) When Al Dhahrani unexpectedly introduced the proposal, Abul said he had spoken with first deputy speaker and head of Al Asala (Salafi) bloc Ghanim Al Buainain, and asked for his thoughts on the proposal. Having told Abul previously that Al Asala was not opposed to helping Al Wifaq realize some of its long-term demands, Al Buainain said that MPs should vote to approve the proposal first, and then have committee members introduce amendments that would include compensation for human losses. Al Buainain had said that Al Asala was open to supporting some compensation for these losses, and other blocs had expressed varying degrees of support. Abul regretted that the blocs had not been given a heads up that this proposal would be coming, so that they could have strategized before the session. As he discussed the matter with fellow MPs from Al Wifaq after the session, Abul said they realized that they had miscalculated and squandered an opportunity. -------------- Shias in the Security Forces -------------- ¶5. (C) Abul told Poloff that he is encouraged by meetings with and statements by Minister of Interior General Shaikh MANAMA 00000375 002 OF 003 Rashid Bin Abdullah Al Khalifa, particularly regarding the hiring of Shia. Abul said he believes that the Ministry has now institutionalized an unbiased process to evaluate all applicants, give them a series of physical and written tests, and for those who pass, place them on a list for hiring. Abul said that there has been a steady, albeit slow, stream of Shia being hired by the Ministry of Interior. There still is an apparent glass ceiling preventing Shia from being commissioned as officers, but Abul pointed out that the director of the Undersecretary's office was a Shia with the rank of captain. The Minister has shown flexibility in recognizing the grievances of the Shia community about aggressive police tactics and is willing to address these concerns. In response to Poloff's question about the heavy police presence during Formula One (F1) activities April 13-15, Abul said that this period was an exception, as the government did not want to allow protests that could mar the F1 event. Regarding the Ministry of Defense, Abul said that Minister General Shaikh Khalifa Bin Ahmed Al Khalifa continues to adhere to his policy of not hiring Shia. -------------- Al Wifaq and Haq -------------- ¶6. (C) Abul said that Al Wifaq was concerned about recent street protests by Shia youth because efforts to reason with the youths had not been effective, reflecting badly on Al Wifaq. The majority of these youth are between the ages of 14 and 19 and do not listen to religious or community leaders, including Shaikh Isa Qassim and Shaikh Ali Salman, MP and the head of Al Wifaq. Abul said that Haq Movement leader Hasan Mushaima had so far been unresponsive to requests from Shaikh Isa Qassim to get the youth to stop. Abul saw only very small numbers of Shia defecting from Al Wifaq to join the Haq camp and said that Al Wifaq still has time to produce results from the parliamentary process before larger segments of the Shia community become disenchanted. -------------- Objection to Royal Decrees -------------- ¶7. (C) Abul said that members of the opposition in the COR continue to maintain their objection to Law by Royal Decree number 80 of 2006, which authorizes the establishment of a commission to manage the construction of, and later the running of, a causeway between Bahrain and Qatar. His opposition to the decree is that the size of the project (current projections are BD 4 billion ($10.6 billion) and will likely rise) warrants the inclusion of increased oversight of the project, including by the COR. Abul said that he and others in the opposition support the causeway in principle, but the large sums of money involved may be vulnerable to corruption if the project lacks a sufficient level of oversight. The COR has asked that a cabinet minister be appointed as liaison between the causeway commission and the COR, and the GOB proposed Minister of Finance Shaikh Ahmed Bin Mohammed Al Khalifa to play this role, likely a suitable outcome, in Abul's view. -------------- Good to Be Working from Inside -------------- ¶8. (C) Reflecting on the parliament, Abul concluded that it was absolutely the right decision for the opposition to work within the system rather than continue its boycott. The boycott sent a message at the time (in 2002),but now he and Al Wifaq were able to see ways that they can make a real difference. Abul admitted that he had become more moderate in his rhetoric and had focused on working together with other MPs to accomplish common goals. He also commented on the way that Al Wifaq had matured over the last few months. The bloc decided not to push hard right away on sensitive issues, such as election district imbalances, but to "hold the stick from the middle" (an Arabic proverb) and build a productive working foundation with other blocs. -------------- Low Caliber of Al Wifaq MPs -------------- ¶9. (C) Abul told Poloff that it was unfortunate that so few of Al Wifaq's MPs were qualified to serve in the COR. Only four or five were competent enough in English to be able to consult research on political and social issues in order to educate themselves about matters they faced in parliamentary discussions. Abul said that he regularly consults studies conducted in the U.S., the U.K., Australia, and Canada, to MANAMA 00000375 003 OF 003 inform his policy stance on issues of concern. He said that there was little research available in Arabic on matters taken up in parliament, and that those MPs who were limited to Arabic materials were at a disadvantage to others who were comfortable in English. -------------- Comment -------------- ¶10. (C) Abul's views of parliament's work are among the most optimistic and encouraging that post has heard. He strongly believes that if the government offered carrots instead of sticks to the opposition, it would find a more positive reaction from the community at large. This represents a 180-degree swing from his previous views, when he was a committed boycotter and head of the opposition Constitutional Conference, which championed amending the 2002 Constitution. It remains to be seen whether his optimism can hold as the COR gets deeper into the business of legislation, with many issues cutting along sectarian lines. ********************************************* ******** Visit Embassy Manama's Classified Website: http://www.state.sgov.gov/p/nea/manama/ ********************************************* ******** MONROE