MOHR VISITS CAMP CROPPER

S E C R E T SECTION 01 OF 02 BAGHDAD 001404 SIPDIS E.O. 12958: DECL: 05/05/2018 TAGS: PHUM PJUS IZ SUBJECT: MOHR VISITS CAMP CROPPER Classified By: Acting PolCouns Ellen Germain for reasons 1.4 (b) and (d ) ¶1. (S) SUMMARY: Minister of Human Rights Wijdan Salim noted improvements in detainee operations during her May 1 inspection of Camp Cropper, but stressed that releases should be expedited. She offered her ministry's help in facilitating releases by contacting and bringing families to the detention facility to meet relatives upon release. Wijdan toured the juvenile, adult, women,s, and visitation facilities with Admiral Wright and General Hipwell of Task Force 134 and PolOff. She and her team, who remained at the facility for two days to continue inspections, interviewed detainees without restrictions. Her top concerns were detainees whose releases were delayed due to transportation limitations and the inability of many families to visit, but she was pleased with the juvenile education program and the Task Force 134 partnerships with the Ministry of Youth and Sports and Ministry of Education. The team will give Post a copy of their report on Cropper and will discuss how to implement their recommendations. Wijdan will attend a release ceremony on May 26 at Cropper and will help bring families to receive their relatives. END SUMMARY. CONCERNS: DELAYS IN RELEASES, VISITATION PROGRAM ¶2. (S) Minister of Human Rights Wijdan Salim's top concern during her May 1 inspection of Camp Cropper, the MNF-I detention facility that houses about 3600 detainees, was the delay in releases. She and her team of three from the Ministry of Human Rights (MoHR) interviewed several detainees who had been approved for release but were still waiting to be released after several days. (Note: Since detainees released from MNF-I detention facilities must be returned to their place of capture before release, they have to rely on military transportation methods, which are sometimes unavailable due to weather or other obligations. End Note.) After hearing the opinions of the detainees, Wijdan recommended that the detainees be released wherever they chose. She offered MoHR help in contacting families and helping to bring them to the gates to meet the detainees upon release, which would help ensure their safety. She also said the GOI would be able to help with transferring detainees to safe areas upon release through an existing GOI program. ¶3. (S) Camp Cropper and Camp Bucca are open to delegations of the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) and the MoHR, as the representative for the GOI. These delegations visit regularly, and provide candid evaluations of the facilities that are incorporated into operating procedures, wherever possible. Wijdan questioned each detainee, male, female, and juvenile, about whether and how often their families are able to visit them. While many answered that their families do visit through the extensive visitation program, some responded that it is difficult for their families to get to Cropper, or they do not have close relatives who are able to visit. Wijdan recommended establishing a program at Cropper similar to the one at Camp Bucca, which is funded by the ICRC and helps families visit relatives in Bucca. She also questioned why only immediate family members can visit detainees even if the detainee has no immediate family or wants to see other people. Her recommendation was to allow each detainee to make a list of six people they would allow to visit. She also recommended that families and detainees be allowed to touch each other instead of being separated by glass. IMPROVEMENTS: JUVENILE EDUCATION AND PROGRAMS ¶4. (S) Since Wijdan's last visit to Cropper, she said she noted vast improvement in the juvenile programs, particularly with regard to the educational opportunities. She visited classrooms, religious group discussions, and detention areas, and spoke freely to the juveniles. They informed her they were being treated well and had many educational and social opportunities. Many juveniles agreed that conditions had improved. Wijdan was pleased that the Ministries of Education and Youth and Sports had signed agreements with Task Force 134, which runs MNF-I detention facilities, on juvenile detention operations. Juveniles can now earn government education credit upon completion of coursework at Cropper. Wijdan noted the attentiveness of the juveniles during classes and the competence of the teachers, one of whom she recognized as the head of a Kurdish human rights NGO. The Ministry of Youth and Sports is helping to establish sports and team games for juvenile detainees; sports were clearly the favorite activities of the juveniles questioned by Wijdan. ¶5. (S) Minister Wijdan was also pleased with the programs available for adult and female detainees. Adult male detainees can participate in education classes; to date, over 10,600 detainees have attended the classes. Adult males can BAGHDAD 00001404 002 OF 002 also voluntarily participate in a work program, which allows them to send money home to their families. The 14 women in detention receive daily classes in education, religion, and other topics such as business and entrepreneurship. Wijdan talked to each female detainee and found that while they were well taken care of, many said their families were not able to visit them and wanted assistance with that problem. ¶6. (S) COMMENT: Minister Wijdan's overall positive assessment of Camp Cropper supports the increased efforts and funding that have gone to improve detention operations. Task Force 134 said that her recommendations for reducing the delays in releases and improving the visitation system would be taken into account, and we will work with her ministry to further improve detention operations. Her team will produce an internal report for the Prime Minister and USG on Cropper, assessing the facility and offering recommendations. We will continue to engage with Wijdan on detention issues, and also encourage the ministry to recommend duplicating our detention operations in GOI detention facilities. CROCKER