Identifier
Created
Classification
Origin
08BAGHDAD2993
2008-09-16 14:39:00
SECRET
Embassy Baghdad
Cable title:  

SADR CITY UPDATE: BOSS SHAMA,S RETURN

Tags:  PGOV PTER PINR IZ 
pdf how-to read a cable
VZCZCXRO3996
PP RUEHBC RUEHDE RUEHIHL RUEHKUK
DE RUEHGB #2993/01 2601439
ZNY SSSSS ZZH
P 161439Z SEP 08
FM AMEMBASSY BAGHDAD
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 9452
INFO RUCNRAQ/IRAQ COLLECTIVE PRIORITY
S E C R E T SECTION 01 OF 02 BAGHDAD 002993 

SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: DECL: 09/16/2018
TAGS: PGOV PTER PINR IZ
SUBJECT: SADR CITY UPDATE: BOSS SHAMA,S RETURN

Classified By: Baghdad EPRT-3 Leader Theodore Andrews for reasons 1.4 (
b) and (d).

This is an Baghdad EPRT-3 reporting cable.
S E C R E T SECTION 01 OF 02 BAGHDAD 002993

SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: DECL: 09/16/2018
TAGS: PGOV PTER PINR IZ
SUBJECT: SADR CITY UPDATE: BOSS SHAMA,S RETURN

Classified By: Baghdad EPRT-3 Leader Theodore Andrews for reasons 1.4 (
b) and (d).

This is an Baghdad EPRT-3 reporting cable.

1. (S) SUMMARY: Hassan Shama, the Sadr City politician
wounded in the June 24 blast that killed several EPRT members
and U.S. military personnel, returned to work on August 12
and, after a small public wrangle, resumed his role as
District Council (DC) chairman. Since then, Shama has moved
aggressively to consolidate his authority, notably by
securing the ouster of several DC members, by asserting the
alleged legal right of Sadr City Neighborhood Councils (NC)
to set fuel prices, and by gaining the leadership of the
district,s tribal sheikhs. To ensure that Shama does not
become our sole conduit into Sadr City, the EPRT is moving to
balance engagements with him by strengthening links with
others on the council and in the community. END SUMMARY.
--------------
Background ) the Birth of a Boss
--------------

2. (C) Hassan Shama is originally from Midalawi, Diyala
Province. He is a Kurdish Shia and, as such, certainly did
not enjoy easy entree into the ranks of Sadr City,s elite.
Prior to his appointment to the DC, Mr. Shama was a
moderately successful internet cafe owner without any formal
education beyond high school. According to several founding
DC members, Hassan Shama did have one advantage that helped
him climb the ranks of power: his perceived positive
relationship with coalition forces (CF) since 2003. He was,
in those days, one of the few Sadr City residents willing to
engage with CF and USG.

3. (C) Shama has not been reluctant to use the threat of
violence to gain increased power and wealth. Several members
of the District Council claim, for example, that he in effect
"sold" several computers provided last year by the EPRT to
the DC members for whom they were destined. Similarly, when
a group of DC members went to the U.S. on an IV trip, Shama
is said to have demanded ) and received ) a fee for
securing passports for them. Albeit without any evidence,
some sources in Sadr City allege Shama has used his
connections with the CF to secure unspecified contracts for
friends and procure political support from other DC members.
It is unclear how close Mr. Shama is to JAM, but most

observers in Sadr City believe he (like most other prominent
leaders) has some sort of link, otherwise he would not have
been able to survive for so long.
--------------
Consolidating Political Power
--------------

4. (C) Following the June 24 explosion, Shama retreated from
the limelight, but still held court from his bed at the U.S.
military hospital in the IZ. He began making noises about a
return to the political world in late July. He made clear
then that Ali Sueidi, who became acting chairman in late
June, should plan on giving up the position, preferably
without making a fuss. This demand did not pass without
protest from Suedi,s supporters. They refused to give way
without a vote, which the DC members agreed to hold at a
special session on August 10. The special session resulted
in a 19-16 victory for Shama, an occurrence that several
council members attributed both to Shama,s political muscle
and to genuine sympathy for a man who had survived an
assassination attempt. Whatever, the reason, the defeat left
Sueidi out in the cold. Suedi now holds the position of DC
member without portfolio.

5. (S) Supporters of Aly Sueidi remain under siege from
Hassan Shama. On September 2 at the weekly DC meeting,
Hassan Shama ordered the dismissal of the Energy (Fuel)
Committee chairman, Ali Shabib Aweed and his deputy after a
dispute over fuel distribution schemes. (They retained their
seats on the Council.) The dispute began when Mr. Shama
suggested that the DC devolve control over local fuel
distribution to NC chairmen. Mr. Aweed and other Aly Sueidi
supporters argued that the DC should retain control over fuel
distribution, a scenario that would consolidate fuel
purchases at a reduced cost and minimize the potential for
fuel theft. Shama's plan to empower NC chairmen with the
authority to set prices and control distribution would place
these community leaders in his debt, in the process shifting
power away from the DC. To justify the change, Shama's
supporters claimed that the existing fuel committee chair was
involved in corrupt practices. True or not, the Aweed and
his deputy did not hang around to dispute the matter. When
Shama suggested that they go, they got up and left, freeing
two spots for Shama to fill with loyalists.
-------------- --------------
Attempts at Empire Building with the Sheikhs and the USG
-------------- --------------

6. (S) Shama has not neglected other levers of power in Sadr
City. On September 1, Shama convened a meeting of prominent
sheikhs, a group that included both the "fake" sheikhs
appointed by Saddam Hussein and the legitimate ones.
Intended to establish a new Sheikh's council for the

BAGHDAD 00002993 002 OF 002


district, Shama served as chair. The result not surprisingly
was favorable to Shama's interests ) a new group of local
power-brokers loyal to Hassan Shama. Shama has made noises
that this new body should absorb an existing Sheikh's council
supported by CF and the Iraqi Army.

7. (S) Shama is interested in involving the CF in his bid to
crowd out other powers in the area. Drawing on local
frustration about a lack of influence with the process of
designing and implementing development projects, Shama has
approached USG personnel at JSS-Sadr City with the idea of
forming a new working group which would review and approve
all USG essential service projects in Sadr City. This
working group would include Shama, Abdulmajeed Hameed Hassan
(Administration Committee Chair) and CF representatives.
According to Abdulmajeed, this working group would exclude
the Beladiyahs. If constructed as Mr. Shama has outlined,
this working group could direct all projects in Sadr City,
providing another funnel for resources to Shama supporters.
Joint Security Station (JSS) -Sadr is not supportive of this
working group concept. CF have not formally replied.
--------------
Future USG Engagements with Hassan Shama
--------------

8. (S) Comment: Shama will not win any awards as a
Jeffersonian democrat. At the same time, he is not going
away anytime soon. He will be a force in the district, and
able to influence any number of activities or forces of
importance to the USG. Accordingly, barring the development
of significant information against Shama's already stained
reputation, we have little choice but to work with him. This
inevitably will bolster his position. To counter this trend,
the EPRT will work to ensure that Shama does not become the
sole conduit for USG influence in Sadr City. We will
continue to work with alternate centers of political gravity
within the DC, a group that includes Ali Sueidi and
potentially Nadam Naeem, one of only two women on the Sadr
City DC. Our efforts will focus also on strengthening the
district's nascent civil society ) sheikhs, business
leaders, and professionals and on fostering a more
independent media. End Comment.

CROCKER