VZCZCXRO6089
RR RUEHBC RUEHDA RUEHDE RUEHIHL RUEHKUK RUEHMOS
DE RUEHGB #0793/01 0711631
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
R 121631Z MAR 06
FM AMEMBASSY BAGHDAD
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC 3230
INFO RUEKJCS/SECDEF WASHDC
RHEHNSC/WHITE HOUSE NSC WASHDC
RUCNRAQ/IRAQ COLLECTIVE

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 BAGHDAD 000793 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SIPDIS 
 
E.O.  12958:N/A 
TAGS: PGOV ECON MOPS PREL IZ
SUBJECT: IRAQ PRTS WEEKLY ROUNDUP FOR 24 FEB-2 MAR 
 
 
¶1. INTRODUCTION.  The Provincial Reconstruction Teams 
(PRTs) report weekly their activities and progress 
towards helping the provincial governments achieve self- 
governance capability.  The following paragraphs 
summarize their activities in several areas for the 
period 24 February - 2 March.  Ninawa started a 
training program for police investigators designed by 
three investigative judges.  The Kirkuk PRT reached out 
to Sunni Arabs in several different meetings. 
International Police Liaison Officers in Kirkuk 
described a program aimed at improving communications 
between the citizens from all ethnicities and the 
police.  Security concerns in Ninawa Province make 
scheduling appointments difficult and limit the 
interaction of PRT members with provincial leaders.  In 
Kirkuk, TAL Article 58 debate is causing an ethnic 
split among Provincial Council members. Babil sub- 
district complained of not receiving enough 
reconstruction attention.  END INTRODUCTION. 
 
--------------- 
NINAWA PROVINCE 
--------------- 
 
¶2. GOVERNANCE AND ECONOMIC.  A new Provincial Council 
(PC) Code was drafted and is being circulated for 
comment.  An initial review of this code indicates that 
it maintains many of the decentralized reforms favored 
by the Coalition.  The Director of the Statistics 
Department in Mosul, a sub-division of the Ministry of 
Planning, promised to provide social and economic 
statistic data to the PRT, although he cautioned that 
files prior to 2003 were lost in post-war looting. 
 
¶3. RULE OF LAW.  The PRT met with 14 judges to discuss 
their progress in establishing a training program for 
police investigators.  The program, Basic Principles in 
Criminal Justice, was designed by three investigative 
judges with assistance from the PRT.  The course began 
on February 27, and approximately 45 police 
investigators attended both meetings.  The course 
includes four blocks of instruction:  1) criminal 
procedure; 2) penal code; 3) lawful interrogation 
techniques; and 4) human rights.  The Provincial Chief 
of Police (PCOP) sent 15 investigators to the course, a 
sign of strong interest from the police. 
 
¶4. In ongoing discussions, the PRT encouraged insurgent 
trials in Ninawa Province rather than transfer them to 
Baghdad.  One issue of contention is the jurisdiction 
of the provincial courts.  In the past, the chief judge 
argued that it does not have legal jurisdiction while 
investigative judges believe they do. The PRT is 
helping to de-conflict the issue and chart a strategy 
for trying insurgent suspects locally. 
 
¶5. SECURITY.  Ninawa Province saw a spike in attacks in 
response to the Golden Mosque attack.  The majority 
were secular in nature between Sunnis and Shiites. 
Recently, there was an increased shift towards using 
buried improvised explosive devices (IEDs) against 
Coalition Force vehicles.  Security restrictions have 
limited PRT members travel to provincial offices.  All 
movements are confidential, resulting in PRT personnel 
arriving at unannounced times and without appointments. 
These restrictions severely limit PRT efficiency in 
dealing with provincial government officials. 
 
¶6. INFRASTRUCTURE AND RECONSTRUCTION.  Iraqi officials 
identified a landfill location but have not yet 
received final approvals.  The PRT is researching the 
environmental impact of this project, as well as 
modernization of the Mosul Slaughter Factory. 
 
-------------- 
TAMIM PROVINCE 
-------------- 
 
¶7. POLITICAL.   The Kirkuk PRT held meetings with 
several Arab groups during the reporting period. 
Discussions focused on formation of the national 
government, continuing integration of Sunni Arabs in 
the political process, and the need for enhanced 
security in the areas populated by Sunni Arabs.  In a 
separate meeting with a PRT member, an Iraqi Republican 
Gathering (IRG) leader discussed Arab Sunni dynamics in 
the province.  He said his party is based on a 
nationalistic rather than religious goal for Iraq.  The 
party is focused primarily on galvanizing local Sunnis 
to become involved in the political process.  He 
claimed the IRG efforts were responsible for the large 
 
BAGHDAD 00000793  002 OF 002 
 
 
Sunni Arab voter turnout in the December 2005 national 
elections.  He credited the relatively calm response in 
northern Iraq to the mosque bombing in Samara to a 
meeting attended by all major groups on February 27. 
After the attack, the IRG sent memos to the Badr 
Organization and the Sadrists denouncing the terrorist 
act.  Sunni Arabs expressed their support to the Shia 
Arabs and even wanted to participate in peaceful 
demonstrations. 
 
¶8. PC representatives for the Iraqi Turcoman Front 
(ITF) told a PRT member that the Transitional 
Administrative Law (TAL) Article 58 is pitting Kurdish 
PC members against other members.  This conflict arose 
during a PC debate on TAL Article 58 which covers the 
return of Kurds displaced in Ta'mim during the previous 
regime.  The discussion exposed the ethnic fault lines 
in the province and culminated in the Arab and Turkmen 
members staging a walkout.  Kurdish members advocated 
the preferential distribution of land for housing, 
construction loans, and special programs for hiring 
internally displaced persons (IDPs).  The Turkmen and 
Arab groups disagreed with this proposal. 
 
¶9. RULE OF LAW.  The supervisor for the International 
Police Liaison Officers (IPLO) told the Rule of Law 
Coordinator that a community policing program has 
begun.  Iraqi Police from different ethnicities lead 
several IPLOs on dismounted patrols.  They engage 
homeowners and shopkeepers in a non-confrontational 
setting to query their concerns and foster improved 
relations between the citizens and police. 
 
¶10. INFRASTRUCTURE AND RECONSTRUCTION.  The average 
government-supplied electricity during the past month 
per day was four hours.  Kirkuk PRT members are 
coordinating delivery of 18 emergency and fire-fighting 
vehicles to Iraqi Civil Defense personnel in four 
northern Iraq provinces. 
 
-------------- 
BABIL PROVINCE 
-------------- 
 
¶11. RULE OF LAW.  The Iraqi Bar Association is 
conducting a nation-wide election for its council 
members.  The previous council was disbanded by the 
national government due to Ba'ath Party influence 
within the association.  Many lawyers expressed concern 
that these ousted Ba'athists will conspire to derail 
the council election.  Much of the concern stems from 
these ousted members' invitation, along with the Arab 
Lawyer Union and the Jordan Bar Association, to meet 
recently with the Syrian President. 
 
¶12. RECONSTRUCTION.  Representatives from Al Kifl sub- 
district voiced concern that their communities have not 
received a "fair share" of reconstruction funding.  It 
is a concern the PRT has heard from many Babylonians in 
the past.  PRT members reminded the representatives 
that project prioritization and funding is an Iraqi 
decision.  In another reconstruction issue, the 
Ministry of Finance gave the Babil PC a deadline of 
March 2 for submission of their project list for the 
$100+ million in reconstruction and development funds. 
The tight timeline precluded an inclusive and 
transparent process for project submission and could 
result in minimal gains in development of governance 
capacity. 
 
KHALILZAD