VZCZCXRO5754
PP RUEHBC RUEHDE RUEHIHL RUEHKUK
DE RUEHGB #1404/01 1261838
ZNY SSSSS ZZH
P 051838Z MAY 08
FM AMEMBASSY BAGHDAD
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 7201
INFO RUCNRAQ/IRAQ COLLECTIVE PRIORITY

S E C R E T SECTION 01 OF 02 BAGHDAD 001404 
 
SIPDIS 
 
E.O. 12958: DECL: 05/05/2018 
TAGS: PHUM PJUS IZ
SUBJECT: MOHR VISITS CAMP CROPPER 
 
Classified By: Acting PolCouns Ellen Germain for reasons 1.4 (b) and (d 
) 
 
¶1. (S)  SUMMARY:  Minister of Human Rights Wijdan Salim noted 
improvements in detainee operations during her May 1 
inspection of Camp Cropper, but stressed that releases should 
be expedited.  She offered her ministry's help in 
facilitating releases by contacting and bringing families to 
the detention facility to meet relatives upon release. 
Wijdan toured the juvenile, adult, women,s, and visitation 
facilities with Admiral Wright and General Hipwell of Task 
Force 134 and PolOff.  She and her team, who remained at the 
facility for two days to continue inspections, interviewed 
detainees without restrictions.  Her top concerns were 
detainees whose releases were delayed due to transportation 
limitations and the inability of many families to visit, but 
she was pleased with the juvenile education program and the 
Task Force 134 partnerships with the Ministry of Youth and 
Sports and Ministry of Education.  The team will give Post a 
copy of their report on Cropper and will discuss how to 
implement their recommendations.  Wijdan will attend a 
release ceremony on May 26 at Cropper and will help bring 
families to receive their relatives.  END SUMMARY. 
 
CONCERNS: DELAYS IN RELEASES, VISITATION PROGRAM 
 
¶2. (S)  Minister of Human Rights Wijdan Salim's top concern 
during her May 1 inspection of Camp Cropper, the MNF-I 
detention facility that houses about 3600 detainees, was the 
delay in releases.  She and her team of three from the 
Ministry of Human Rights (MoHR) interviewed several detainees 
who had been approved for release but were still waiting to 
be released after several days.  (Note:  Since detainees 
released from MNF-I detention facilities must be returned to 
their place of capture before release, they have to rely on 
military transportation methods, which are sometimes 
unavailable due to weather or other obligations.  End Note.) 
After hearing the opinions of the detainees, Wijdan 
recommended that the detainees be released wherever they 
chose.  She offered MoHR help in contacting families and 
helping to bring them to the gates to meet the detainees upon 
release, which would help ensure their safety.  She also said 
the GOI would be able to help with transferring detainees to 
safe areas upon release through an existing GOI program. 
 
¶3. (S)  Camp Cropper and Camp Bucca are open to delegations 
of the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) and 
the MoHR, as the representative for the GOI.  These 
delegations visit regularly, and provide candid evaluations 
of the facilities that are incorporated into operating 
procedures, wherever possible.  Wijdan questioned each 
detainee, male, female, and juvenile, about whether and how 
often their families are able to visit them.  While many 
answered that their families do visit through the extensive 
visitation program, some responded that it is difficult for 
their families to get to Cropper, or they do not have close 
relatives who are able to visit.  Wijdan recommended 
establishing a program at Cropper similar to the one at Camp 
Bucca, which is funded by the ICRC and helps families visit 
relatives in Bucca.  She also questioned why only immediate 
family members can visit detainees even if the detainee has 
no immediate family or wants to see other people.  Her 
recommendation was to allow each detainee to make a list of 
six people they would allow to visit.  She also recommended 
that families and detainees be allowed to touch each other 
instead of being separated by glass. 
 
IMPROVEMENTS: JUVENILE EDUCATION AND PROGRAMS 
 
¶4. (S)  Since Wijdan's last visit to Cropper, she said she 
noted vast improvement in the juvenile programs, particularly 
with regard to the educational opportunities.  She visited 
classrooms, religious group discussions, and detention areas, 
and spoke freely to the juveniles.  They informed her they 
were being treated well and had many educational and social 
opportunities.  Many juveniles agreed that conditions had 
improved.  Wijdan was pleased that the Ministries of 
Education and Youth and Sports had signed agreements with 
Task Force 134, which runs MNF-I detention facilities, on 
juvenile detention operations.  Juveniles can now earn 
government education credit upon completion of coursework at 
Cropper.  Wijdan noted the attentiveness of the juveniles 
during classes and the competence of the teachers, one of 
whom she recognized as the head of a Kurdish human rights 
NGO.  The Ministry of Youth and Sports is helping to 
establish sports and team games for juvenile detainees; 
sports were clearly the favorite activities of the juveniles 
questioned by Wijdan. 
 
¶5. (S)  Minister Wijdan was also pleased with the programs 
available for adult and female detainees.  Adult male 
detainees can participate in education classes; to date, over 
10,600 detainees have attended the classes.  Adult males can 
 
BAGHDAD 00001404  002 OF 002 
 
 
also voluntarily participate in a work program, which allows 
them to send money home to their families.  The 14 women in 
detention receive daily classes in education, religion, and 
other topics such as business and entrepreneurship.  Wijdan 
talked to each female detainee and found that while they were 
well taken care of, many said their families were not able to 
visit them and wanted assistance with that problem. 
 
¶6. (S)  COMMENT:  Minister Wijdan's overall positive 
assessment of Camp Cropper supports the increased efforts and 
funding that have gone to improve detention operations.  Task 
Force 134 said that her recommendations for reducing the 
delays in releases and improving the visitation system would 
be taken into account, and we will work with her ministry to 
further improve detention operations.  Her team will produce 
an internal report for the Prime Minister and USG on Cropper, 
assessing the facility and offering recommendations.  We will 
continue to engage with Wijdan on detention issues, and also 
encourage the ministry to recommend duplicating our detention 
operations in GOI detention facilities. 
CROCKER