DIWANIYAH GOVERNOR AND PC CHAIR TALK

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 BAGHDAD 000817

SIPDIS

SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: DECL: 03/18/2018
TAGS: PGOV IR
SUBJECT: DIWANIYAH GOVERNOR AND PC CHAIR TALK
RECONSTRUCTION, ELECTIONS, AND SECURITY WITH PRT

Classified By: PRT Team Leader Robert Pitre for reasons 1.4 (b) and (d)
.


1. (C) Summary: PRT Team Leader, REO Hillah RSO, and PRT
Offs met with Diwaniyah Governor Khudari (ISCI) on March 9 to
discuss the overall situation in Diwaniyah province, future
engagements between the governor and PRT, the need for
economic development, and the prospect of provincial
elections. The governor mentioned overtures on possible
foreign investment, including apparent North Korean interest.
Following the meeting with the governor, PRT Team Leader and
PRToffs met with Diwaniyah Provincial Council Chairman
Khalidi (ISCI) to discuss reconstruction efforts in the
province. End Summary.

Governor Recoils at Security Sweeps
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2. (C) Khudari spoke about the improvement in overall
security in the province and his hope that continued relative
stability would allow more reconstruction activities and
engagements with the PRT and Coalition forces stationed at
Camp Echo. The governor accepted PRT Team Leader's proposal
of more frequent engagements; however, he maintained his
objections to the requests of PRT personal security detail
advance teams to search the governorate building or his
office. He said that attempts to search his office and the
Governorate Compound constituted an "affront" since, as host,
he would be responsible for the security of PRT offs meeting
him at his office. Despite the governor's agitation
surrounding PSD insistence to search his facilities, he
agreed to continue further engagements at Camp Echo.
(Comment: Khudari also readily acknowledged that if
Ambassador Crocker were to visit, he would allow the security
sweep due to the Ambassador's &elevated" status. End
Comment).

Investors from around the globe
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3. (C) Khudari reported on his recent engagement with
investors during a trip to Beirut. During his trip he met
with businessmen from Bahrain and Korea and, according to the
governor, signed agreements promising future investment in
the province. (Note: A previous report indicated that the
governor met with representatives from North Korea while in
Beirut, who promised to visit the province in the future to
assess its investment potential. End Note.) The governor
added that he has also spoken with the Polish Ambassador
about investment in Diwaniyah and that similar contact has
been initiated with embassies from countries around the
globe. While he maintained that he "did not need them," he
stressed that he &invites and would welcome8 any foreign
investors, including business interests from the United
States.

Elections
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4. (C) When asked about the prospect of provincial
elections, Khudari stated that the Iraqi parliament should
fix the problems with the provincial powers law since the
problems themselves originated in the parliament. He
appeared cautiously optimistic that parliament would &sort
out8 the problems which it had created. He also commented
that an area of concern regarding the elections is the
composition of the Iraqi High Elections Council and the
legitimacy of some council members remains unresolved. The
governor hinted that the October elections would not allow
enough time to properly formulate and execute an "agenda,"
but remained vague about whether or not he expected
provincial elections would bring about any political change
in the province.

How much money for Diwaniyah?
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5. (C) Returning to the topic of reconstruction, Khudari
addressed the need for redevelopment and job creation in
Diwaniyah province, which, reportedly, currently shoulders a
heavy unemployment rate (Comment: Verifiable figures are
difficult to obtain, but some reports place the unemployment
rate in range of 60%. End Comment). He spoke to the 128
million USD appropriated to the province by the GOI for
reconstruction efforts, but inquired about his province's
share of USD 20 billion (of unknown origin) for Iraq
reconstruction efforts. He then presented the PRT Team
Leader with one-half of a flyer (which PRT offs witnessed him
tearing in half during the meeting) that he claimed had been
distributed throughout Diwaniyah by unknown sources. The
governor stated that the Arabic language flyer claimed that

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the United States and Coalition Forces would spend over 20
million USD on schools, healthcare, and reconstruction. The
governor pointedly asked where this flyer had originated and
where the money was being spent. He added that he was not
aware of work equivalent to USD 20 million. Upon further
investigation after the meeting, PRT Team Leader obtained an
English version of the complete flyer from Polish forces
which clearly displayed the MND CS logo and the text that
"MND CS is happy that we have been helping and are still
helping our friends - the people of Diwaniyah."

Like a Breath of Fresh AIR
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6. (C) During the meeting the next day with Provincial
Council Chairman Khalidi, who was accompanied by both a local
Iraqi attorney recently hired by USAID,s Local Governance
Program in Diwaniyah and a provincial government engineer,
ongoing reconstruction projects and interaction with the PRT
were the topics covered. The chairman warmly welcomed those
present to the province and engaged with our REO Hillah USAID
representative regarding ongoing assistance from the Local
Governance Program. The chairman stated that the province
was in great need of additional reconstruction projects, but
preferred to leave the discussion about specific projects to
a future meeting between his staff and PRT officials.
Khalidi offered the assessment that Iraqis were not yet ready
to assume sole responsibility for reconstruction due to a
lack of knowledge and expertise. He also mentioned that
reconstruction efforts should not be limited to the city of
Diwaniyah since those residing throughout the countryside
also require support. In addition to his desire for "large
projects," Khalidi said that the "farmers of Diwaniyah need
machinery, fertilizer, and seed." (Comment: This statement,
believed to be an obvious reference to the Agricultural Union
initiated by the U.S. Civil Affairs unit at Camp Echo, stands
in stark contrast to the Governor's past assertions that the
union is illegal. The governor has reportedly gone so far as
to issue arrest warrants for sheikhs taking part in the union
and has used the police to attempt to arrest truck drivers
transporting fertilizer and seeds. End Comment.)

Comment
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7. (C) Comment: Despite the often close-mindedness and
chilly demeanor of the governor, future engagements with him
and his staff may initiate a more productive dialogue.
Khudari limits his interpretation of the word
"reconstruction" in Provincial Reconstruction Team to mean
mega-infrastructure projects and often mentions that
Diwaniyah has not received funds equivalent to other
provinces. PC Chairman Khalidi, by contrast, is much more
conciliatory and tries to tell us what we want to hear. End
Comment.
CROCKER