This record is a partial extract of the original cable. The full text of the original cable is not available.

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 03 KABUL 005268 
 
SIPDIS 
 
DEPARTMENT FOR SA/FO, SA/A, S/CR, EUR/RPM 
NSC FOR AMEND AND HARRIMAN 
OSD FOR BREZEZINSKI 
REL NATO/AUST/NZ/ISAF 
CENTCOM FOR CG CFC-A, CG CJTF-76 
 
SENSITIVE 
 
E.O. 12958 N/A 
TAGS: PGOV EAID ECON PHUM SOCI AF
SUBJECT: PRT/BAMYAN: GOVERNMENT TAKES FIRST STEPS TOWARDS 
ACCOUNTABILITY WITH DEVELOPMENT CONFERENCE 
 
¶1. (SBU) SUMMARY: Bamyan Provincial authorities may be 
unelected but they appear to grasp the idea that their 
legitimacy derives from the people.  The Governor's office 
organized and hosted a PRT-funded two-day conference 
outlining ongoing development activity in Bamyan. 
Participants appreciated the conference and its information, 
although they challenged officials' claims of infrastructure 
and justice sector improvements.  No one disputed the Chief 
of Police's unrealistically upbeat assessment of Bamyan's 
security environment.  The Governor hopes to hold this 
conference semi-annually, both to inform the people about 
activity in the Province, and to goad lagging public 
officials into becoming more responsive.  Based on post- 
conference activity by local officials, it appears the 
Governor will get her wish.  END SUMMARY. 
 
Who, When, Where, and Why 
------------------------- 
 
¶2.  (SBU) Governor Habiba Sarabi hosted a two-day conference 
in Bamyan December 12 and 13, which was funded by the UK's 
Department for International Development (DFID) through an 
MOU with the PRT.  She invited participants from all seven 
districts, the Provincial Council, the press, international 
and non-governmental organizations, and the PRT to discuss 
activities in the Province during the last year.  As Sarabi 
explained in her opening remarks, "people believe, 
incorrectly, that we are doing nothing, that the 
international community is doing nothing for the people of 
Bamyan.  This conference will help dispel that myth." 
 
¶3.  (SBU) Over 200 participants sat through two days of 
marathon sessions in an unheated hall at Bamyan University 
(the only venue large enough to hold this many people) 
discussing progress in eight fields: infrastructure, gender, 
education, health, agriculture, refugees/returnees, 
security, and law and justice.  Department directors from 
Rural Reconstruction and Development, Women's Affairs, 
Health, Agriculture, and Refugees and Returnees delivered 
PowerPoint presentations (prepared with considerable donor 
assistance) to the participants explaining: 1) 
accomplishments in the last year; 2) what gaps persist in 
that sector's efforts; and 3) what the government hopes to 
accomplish in the next six months.  The Chief of Police, the 
Director of the NDS, and the Chief Prosecutor also discussed 
their own actions in the last year. 
 
Participants Happy, but not with Infrastructure, Justice 
--------------------------------------------- ------------ 
 
¶4.  (SBU) Participants expressed general satisfaction with 
both the idea of the conference and with the information 
received.  A Tajik mullah from conservative Khamard District 
excitedly told the audience that "we (Tajiks in Saighan and 
Khamard Districts) did not belong in Bamyan until today."  A 
participant from Waras District told us he could use this 
information to rebut exaggerated claims by former commanders 
and anti-government mullahs in his village.  "This will 
boost everything we do, even DIAG," he told us. 
 
¶5.  (SBU) Participants did not treat every presenter with 
kid gloves, however.  Participants outlined a litany of 
program needs, and angrily related example after example of 
infrastructure projects that had been mismanaged both by the 
Government and by donors.  "People are tired of false 
promises," explained one man from Yakawlang.  (COMMENT: 
Shura leaders frequently choose to interpret PRT comments 
that we will "see what we can do" as the same thing as "we 
promise to do."  That deliberate misinterpretation 
exacerbates people's perceptions of infrastructure 
development. END COMMENT) 
 
¶6.  (SBU) Participants likewise had few kind words for the 
Chief Prosecutor Azizullah Hadafmand or his office.  "How 
can people be safe if no one arrested ever goes to jail? 
Where is the justice in that?" one man asked.  The Chief 
Prosecutor's claim that his office is under-staffed and 
under-funded rang hollow with the conference participants. 
"If you did your job better, you might find your resources 
could increase," said the Panjab District sub-Governor.  One 
Provincial Council member expressed his outrage that one 
person had been in custody for over three years, and still 
no charge filed against him.  "This is against the law and 
the conscience of the people," he fumed. 
 
ANP Corruption the Elephant in the Room 
---------------------------------------- 
 
¶7.  (SBU) Chief of Police Wahadat's presentation was perhaps 
the most striking of the conference.  Wahadat painted a 
fantastic picture of security and stability in the Province, 
claiming no armed groups operate in Bamyan. "If you want to 
be safe in Afghanistan, move to Bamyan," he said.  He went 
further, saying that crime is practically non-existent, 
directly contradicting his own words from the previous week. 
 
¶8.  (SBU) Surprisingly, no one was willing to challenge that 
image.  Even Governor Sarabi, who publicly has confronted 
Wahadat, his Deputy Abdul Malik, and some of the sub- 
district Chiefs of Police about corruption, chose to ignore 
the opening his remarks provided, and instead asked what the 
ANP was doing to mop up "pornography" in the bazaar. 
(COMMENT: We are unclear to what she may be referring.  It 
is possible that pornographic materials are sold behind 
closed doors, but we believe it more likely that this refers 
to the several shops selling Bollywood DVDs. END COMMENT.) 
 
Follow-Up (Mostly) an Encouraging Sign 
--------------------------------------- 
 
¶9.  (SBU) Governor Sarabi had two goals in hosting the 
development conference:  1) she wanted the Bamyan people to 
understand how much activity is going on in the Province; 
and 2) she hoped to provoke less-active government offices 
into action.  It appears to be working, to some degree.  The 
Communications department has its own PowerPoint 
presentation ready, which it will distribute throughout the 
districts, and plans to open a satellite office in Panjab. 
Agriculture Director Engineer Tahir is considering 
conducting his own one day seminar outlining agricultural 
activities, because "we are doing more than we can talk 
about in a 90 minute presentation."  The Pilgrimage 
Department plans to make a presentation on Bamyan residents 
who travel to Mecca this year. 
 
¶10.  (SBU) Not every office understood the conference's 
underlying message, however.  The Deputy Governor complained 
in subsequent meetings that the Conference "wasted" two 
days.  "What good is it for people to get together to talk?" 
he said.  The Education Director complained that he did not 
receive a "thank you" letter from the Governor, like others 
did.  Rather than conducting more program activities, the 
Director of the Information and Culture Department wants 
someone to create a brochure for his agency so "we will look 
better" next time. 
 
Comment:  A Promising First Step 
---------------------------------- 
 
¶11.  (SBU) The Governor's two-day conference yielded some 
positive results and was a qualified success, and both PRT 
and EmbOffs will explore the possibility of funding similar 
conferences in the future.  The event was the first chance 
for most of the participants to learn about activity 
Province-wide, an important measure in our effort to win 
over hearts and minds.  Moreover, through vigorous question 
and answer sessions, the conference introduced a nascent 
element of accountability into actions by department 
directors, who legally are beholden only to Kabul. 
 
¶12.  (SBU) Still, participants and officials' reluctance to 
challenge the COP shows how far his shadow continues to 
extend, and how much work remains to be done, at least in 
the security and justice sectors.  So long as ANP and Chief 
Prosecutor corruption remains this prevalent, no amount of 
public awareness can bolster local trust in the security 
organs. 
 
NEUMANN