PRIME MINISTER GILANI OUTLINES GOP PLANS ON THE

C O N F I D E N T I A L ISLAMABAD 002288


E.O. 12958: DECL: 09/20/2019
TAGS: PGOV PK PTER PREL SNAR PINS PREF AMGT PHUM

SUBJECT: PRIME MINISTER GILANI OUTLINES GOP PLANS ON THE
FUTURE FIGHT AGAINST EXTREMISM, IDPS, CHANGES TO THE
ANTI-TERRORISM LAWS AND BILATERAL RELATIONS

Classified By: Anne W. Patterson, Reasons 1.4 (b),(d)


1. (C) Summary: In an hour-long meeting September 18,
Prime Minister Gilani said the Malakand campaign against
extremist groups is 70 percent completed. He emphasized the
need to undertake reconstruction and rehabilitation in the
region, not only to help the population there but also to
convince the population in other conflict-affected areas that
the government will take care of their needs once the
extremist threat is removed. He noted that the government is
currently holding some 2,500 detainees and anticipated the
number would grow to over 5,000. He emphasized that the
government is committed to ensuring that the detainees would
not suffer from inhumane treatment. Changes to the
Anti-Terrorism Act (ATA) will resolve issues related to
Extra-Judicial Killings, he maintained. In response to a
request from the government, the Ambassador advised Gilani
that we are ready to assist the government address the
detainee issue and have a prison expert due to visit Pakistan
after the Eid. Gilani welcomed U.S. support, but cautioned
that we should not have a high profile on these programs for
fear of triggering more public controversy.


2. (C) On other issues, the Ambassador briefed Gilani on
the Embassy,s plan to acquire additional land for the
planned construction project. The proposal is currently in
the Prime Minister,s office for approval. He undertook to
discuss the issue with the Foreign Minister and give the
request full consideration. The Ambassador also highlighted
the importance of the government,s implementation of its
commitments to the International Monetary Fund on the
electricity tariff. She previewed the upcoming Friends of
Democratic Pakistan summit in New York and noted that the
World Bank will roll-out the much anticipated Border Trust
Fund at the meeting. End Summary

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Winning the Fight Against Extremism
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3. (C) Welcoming the Ambassador and the DCM on September
18, an obviously well-prepared Prime Minister Gilani launched
quickly into an extended monologue on the government,s
handling of the challenge in Malakand and the way forward.
He stressed that the battle for hearts and minds remains key
to securing the government,s victory over extremism,
observing that the government will not win the trust of the
populations in other conflict-affected areas if it does not
satisfy the needs of the people of Malakand. For now, Gilani
assessed that the government had achieved seventy percent of
its objectives in Malakand and is pressing forward on the
remaining thirty percent. He noted his efforts to maintain
political solidarity in the fight against extremism there,
including bringing Punjab Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif
(PML-N) on his first visit to Mingora. The success of the
effort was reflected in the huge and emotional outpouring by
the people of the area on Pakistan,s Independence Day,
August 14.


4. (C) Gilani also reviewed his government,s efforts to
ensure that civilians, military, and law enforcement
personnel were compensated fairly and equitably for their
losses. The government has committed Rs. 24 billion (USD 300
million) for reconstruction and rehabilitation in the region.
They have provided Rs. 25,000 (USD 312) cash payments to
nearly 270,000 families. The government has also raised
salaries for police, Frontier Corps, and Frontier
Constabulary, Gilani maintained, while instituting risk
allowances (i.e., combat pay) for military personnel and
Rangers. The government has placed Rs. 500 million (USD 6.25
million) in a special fund to compensate military personnel
killed or wounded in action or their families.


5. (C) While Malakand rehabilitation is the priority,
Gilani is looking forward to next steps. The army is
building a cantonment in Malakand and will remain there. The
Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) is in disarray after the
death of Baitullah Mehsud and the government has the
opportunity to press them harder. Gilani is looking for the
start of military operations in the FATA, but acknowledged
that this will bring a new wave of IDPs. He also noted that
the military has exhausted seventy percent of its materiel
and is desperate for re-supply. The Ambassador urged that
the government work with UN agencies and others urgently to
ensure that supplies for IDP relief are available in DI Khan,
where the outflow of displaced families from Waziristan is
expected to hit most heavily. She also noted that we are
ordering some USD 385 million in equipment for the army with
funds from the FY09 supplemental. Gilani suggested that he,
the Ambassador and Chief of Army Staff meet after the Eid to
discuss the army's requirements.

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Detainees
--------------


6. (C) Some 2,500 militants have surrendered or been
captured and are currently in detention, Gilani noted. He
anticipated that the number would soon rise above 5,000, as
extremist groups are broken up, their leadership is captured
or eliminated, and the changing seasons leaves the militants
with nowhere to go and nothing to sustain themselves through
the harsh mountain winter. The challenge now is to find
someplace to accommodate the prisoners. The government is
anxious to avoid charges that the prisoners are being treated
inhumanely, but they cannot be released if it would mean they
would return to the fight. The government needs to build a
maximum security prison to house the prisoners. The
Ambassador advised Gilani that we are prepared to assist the
government with the detainee issue and, in fact, we have an
expert on prisons traveling to Pakistan to discuss these
issues after the Eid. We had already received requests for
assistance from others in the government. Gilani welcomed
U.S. support, but advised that the United States not play a
high-profile role in the detention issue as this may trigger
a new round of public controversy concerning U.S. activities
in Pakistan. The Ambassador suggested that we might be able
to work through the UN Office of Drugs and Crime (UNODC),
which has also expressed a readiness to be helpful on the
issue.


7. (C) Gilani raised the government,s plan to revise the
Anti-Terrorism Act (ATA),noting that they had been in
discussion with the judiciary to consider how to ensure that
the detained militants would not be able to turn to the
courts for relief. The press has reported the possibility of
extra-judicial killings, the Ambassador pointed out, and we
are also hearing reports about mass graves, retribution, and
score settling. Gilani did not challenge the Ambassador,s
comments. He expressed his belief that the proposed reforms
to the ATA will eliminate the problem of extra-judicial
killings. The Ambassador suggested that it would be a
positive development to get a respected outside interlocutor,
like Asma Jehangir of the Human Rights Committee of Pakistan
(HRCP),to be a part of the process to ensure that the
concerns about detainee treatment are appropriately handled.

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Embassy Expansion
--------------


8. (SBU) Turning to bilateral issues, the Ambassador
briefed the Prime Minister on the Embassy,s request to lease
some eighteen acres of land adjacent to the existing Embassy
property. She described the basic site plan and noted that
the nearly USD 1 billion project would pump large amounts of
money into the local economy and create many new jobs for
Pakistanis. The Prime Minister commented that the media and
opposition political groups have been &playing to the
gallery8 over the project. Ambassador believed we had a
&deal8 with the landlord, the Capital Development
Authority. DCM added that we expected treatment identical to
any other embassy, of which there were many, acquiring
additional land on the enclave. Gilani undertook to review
the request when it reaches his desk and to discuss it with
the Foreign Minister. (N.B.: Foreign Minister Qureshi
advised the Ambassador a week earlier that the file was with
the Prime Minister and that we should raise it with him
directly. This should also be raised with President Zardari
during his visit to the U.S.)
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Economic Issues
--------------


9. (SBU) In response to the Ambassador,s comment regarding
the need to address the electricity tariff issue per the IMF
Stand-by Arrangement, Gilani appealed for U.S. support to the
energy sector. He reaffirmed that the GOP will implement its
agreement with the IMF and outlined a three-step process to
address energy shortfalls: short-term ) rental power plants;
medium-term ) enhancing existing capacity; long-term )
develop new hydel capacity. The people are impatient,
however, and have rioted over power supplies. It is
critical, Gilani concluded, that the energy problems be
resolved and Pakistan,s industrial and agricultural sectors
be protected.


10. (SBU) Finally, the Ambassador advised the Prime
Minister that the World Bank will announce the start-up of
the Border Trust Fund as part of the FODP Summit, Sept. 24.
This will provide a good foundation, especially for smaller
donors to support development in the FATA, NWFP, and
Baluchistan. Gilani welcomed the news and said that he has
been working with the coalition partners, MQM and ANP, to
address structural issues in Baluchistan. He has also
touched on the subject with the opposition PML-N.
PATTERSON