RRT ERBIL: DISSENSION IN PUK POLIBURO

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 BAGHDAD 003516 SIPDIS E.O. 12958: DECL: 11/30/2018 TAGS: PGOV PREL KDEM PINR IZ SUBJECT: RRT ERBIL: DISSENSION IN PUK POLIBURO Classified By: Regional Coordinator Lucy Tamlyn for reasons 1.4 (b) and (d) This is an Erbil Regional Reconstruction Team (RRT) cable. ¶1. (C) Summary. Four distinguished PUK members living abroad fiercely condemned the party's leadership for its corruption, its violation of democratic principles, and its mismanagement of government affairs. The group,s stated goal is not to create a new party, but rather to further the cause of reform within the PUK. Stung by their criticism, President Talabani mustered a narrow 6-4 majority within the PUK Politburo to expel them from the party. The four members of the Politburo who voted against Talabani argued in committee against the expulsion on procedural grounds, but they are in fact deeply sympathetic with the call for serious reform of the PUK, a sign of a growing split within the ranks of the PUK over issues like anti-corruption, transparency, and procedural democracy. End Summary. PUK Dissidents in UK Vehemently Condemn PUK Leadership -------------- -------------- ¶2. (U) On October 7, a group of four UK-based Iraqi Kurds strongly condemned PUK leaders in a public statement entitled, &Declaration of the Formation of Movement for Democratic Change,8 usually referred to by its Kurdish acronym * RAG. The members of RAG asserted that their goal is not to establish an independent party or organization, but rather to forge a loyal opposition within the PUK, one that would give voice to the rank and file of the party membership as well as to the Kurdish population at large. ¶3. (SBU) According to the declaration, the PUK acts like a &near totalitarian regime8 that weakens and subverts the democratic process by interfering with the executive, legislative, and judicial branches, and reduces key government bodies to impotence. It blamed the PUK for failing to provide the public with essential services, while the government undermined economic stability through its interventions in the marketplace. In addition, the declaration accused the PUK of violating human rights, stifling debate, and creating a climate of fear and intimidation. The declaration, more than 1,400 words in the translation available on the RAG,s English language website, is summarized by one key sentence buried in the middle: &The social, political and economic climate that has evolved under the rule of the current Kurdish leadership is a climate of unethical politics, murky economics, lawlessness and corruption in which a small filthily-rich powerful elite lives in total contrast to the vast majority of the people living in poverty, exclusion and destitute (sic).8 ¶4. (SBU) The four PUK dissidents are all highly educated individuals with distinguished records in the party and the Peshmerga. For example, one of the four, Shorsh Haji Resool, was trained in Iraq as a civil engineer, then joined the PUK in 1976 and was a Peshmerga for 11 years. He then worked for Human Rights Watch, researching the issue of genocide in Iraq under Saddam. Over the years, he has published a number of books and articles about the Anfal campaign, Kirkuk, Kurdish nationalism, and Kurdish national security. He is currently working as a senior lecturer at London,s Lambeth College and a researcher at the University of Exeter,s Institute of Arab and Islamic Studies while finishing up his doctorate at Exeter. Talabani Wins Narrow Politburo Vote to Expel PUK Dissidents -------------- -------------- ¶5. (C) The declaration precipitated a swift reaction. Within three days, the PUK Politburo voted 6 to 4 in favor of President Talabani,s motion to expel the dissidents. Voting in favor were Talabani, Kamal Fuad, Fuad Masum, Mala Bakhtiar, Arsalan Bayiz, and Imad Ahmad. The four who voted against expulsion were Omar Said Ali (Director of the PUK Organization Committee),Osman Haji Mahmoud (PUK Minister of the Interior),Jalal Jawhar (responsible for Kirkuk),and Mustafa Said Qadir (Deputy Minister for Perhmerga Affairs, and the person in charge of the day-to-day operations of the PUK Pershmerga). Iraqi Deputy Prime Minister Barham Salih and KRG Vice President Kosrat Rasul, who are also members of the PUK Politburo, were not present for the vote. ¶6. (C) RRTOff discussed the Politburo meeting with three of the Politburo members who voted against expulsion: Omer Said Ali, Jalal Jawhar, and Mustafa Said Qadir. (The fourth member who voted against Talabani, Osman Haji Mahmoud, had planned to join his colleagues for this conversation, but was called away to another meeting.) Omer Said Ali said that the four dissenting Poliburo members told Talabani that he was BAGHDAD 00003516 002 OF 002 being hasty and arbitrary, and argued that they did not have the right to expel members from the PUK without strict adherence to PUK by-laws. Party rules required, they argued, a full and complete investigation of the charges against the dissidents, which had not been done. The subject of any such investigation, moreover, had to be considered innocent until proven guilty. ¶7. (C) Omer Said Ali then admitted to RRTOff that this was not the only reason that he and his three colleagues voted against expulsion. They, in fact, sympathized with the dissenters. The dissenters, he said, were only mentioning what was on everybody,s mind and, by public raising these issues, were contributing to a necessary dialogue. Moreover, many senior PUK members agreed with this view. Omer Said Ali and his associates only found fault with the dissenters for claiming that all PUK leaders were illegitimate and for demanding that they step down. But then he added that in point of fact the dissenters, claim had an element of truth. The last PUK Congress, held in 2001, called for a party congress to take place every two years, with each congress electing a new slate of leaders. However, no PUK party congress has been held since 2001. Comment -------------- ¶8. (C) The declaration took dead aim at the PUK,s top leadership in a series of direct attacks that were certain to provoke a strong response from Jalal Talabani and his allies. Concerned by the growing criticism and a potential threat to their control of the party, Talabani and his allies moved quickly to expel the RAG dissidents in an attempt to keep the PUK membership in line. The closely divided vote in the Politburo reveals a split over the issue of reform within the party, and is a sign of the tension that exists between the more western-oriented members of the PUK (including many who live in the diaspora) and the PUK old guard. It is worth pointing out that, as is typical of the PUK, this debate took place in public * as compared to the more secretive, internally disciplined, &dissent-free8 KDP. Although Omer Said Ali acknowledged that some party members merely mouth the words of reform without really believing in it, many members, in line with public opinion, fervently desire reform but are afraid to speak out because their entire livelihood is bound up with their position in the PUK. End Comment. CROCKER