VZCZCXRO5685
RR RUEHPW
DE RUEHBUL #3026/01 3251310
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
R 201310Z NOV 08
FM AMEMBASSY KABUL
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC 6185
INFO RUCNAFG/AFGHANISTAN COLLECTIVE
RUEKJCS/OSD WASHINGTON DC
RUEKJCS/JOINT STAFF WASHINGTON DC
RHMFIUU/HQ USCENTCOM MACDILL AFB FL
RHEHAAA/NATIONAL SECURITY COUNCIL WASHINGTON DC
RUEAIIA/CIA WASHINGTON DC
RHEFDIA/DIA WASHINGTON DC

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 KABUL 003026 
 
DEPARTMENT FOR SCA/FO, SCA/A, EUR/RPM 
STATE PASS TO AID FOR ASIA/SCAA 
NSC FOR WOOD 
OSD FOR WILKES 
CENTCOM FOR CG CSTC-A, CG CJTF-101 POLAD 
 
SENSITIVE 
SIPDIS 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
 
TAGS: PGOV SNAR AF
 
SUBJECT: URUZGAN GOVERNOR PROMISES TO TAKE ON THRIVING POPPY 
INDUSTRY 
 
¶1.  (SBU) Summary:  Uruzgan Governor Hamdam has vowed to reduce 
poppy cultivation in his province by 25 percent this season.  Hamdam 
told the Deputy Minister of Counter Narcotics he planned to create a 
comprehensive CN strategy with goals in public awareness, 
alternative livelihood and eradication.  Hamdam said local strongman 
(and former governor) Jan Mohammad Khan and the Provincial Chief of 
Police would oppose his CN plan and requested more support from the 
Dutch and United States, particularly for alternative livelihoods 
and eradication.  Given the fact that Hamdam is on notice from the 
Independent Directorate of Local Governance (IDLG) to become more 
energetic or face being replaced, it is an open question whether he 
will be up to the task of matching his encouraging words with 
actions. 
 
MCN Visit Prompts Change in Thinking 
------------------------------------ 
 
¶2.  (SBU) The September 24 visit of Deputy Minister for Counter 
Narcotics (MCN) Zafar, his team, and the Embassy's NAS Director was 
clearly the catalyst for Governor Hamdam's new focus on tackling 
poppy cultivation in his province.  According to the 2008 UN Office 
of Drug and Crime (UNODC) report, 9,929 hectares of poppy were 
cultivated in Uruzgan, the fourth largest cultivation in 
Afghanistan, following that of Helmand, Kandahar, and Farah.  Poppy 
cultivation in the province increased 7 percent over the previous 
year.  Insecurity in Uruzgan made governor-led eradication extremely 
difficult. 
 
¶3.  (SBU) During the shura organized by Hamdam, Zafar underscored 
the innumerable adverse effects of the drug trade, the commitment of 
MCN and other ministries in Kabul to provide better support for the 
provinces and the economic benefits of eradication through the 
Governor-Led Eradication Program and Good Performance Initiative. 
Zafar addressed the complaints expressed by Hamdam and tribal elders 
that MCN did not provide enough support to the provinces, but the 
Deputy Minister effectively kept the spotlight focused on the 
critical role of the Governor and provincial leaders.  Hamdam agreed 
to accelerate the completion of his tailored proposals for CN action 
in Uruzgan. 
 
Indicators of Commitment 
------------------------ 
 
¶4.  (SBU) Since the MCN visit, Hamdam has privately admitted to 
PRTOff that he has not acted aggressively on CN, but he was 
determined to "gradually get tougher."  In addition to the increased 
pressure he feels from Kabul, Hamdam has become convinced of the 
inseparable link between the ongoing insurgency and the drug trade 
in Uruzgan.  Moreover, Hamdam is keen on advancing his development 
goals for the province by gaining access to the considerable funds 
available through the Good Performance Initiative (GPI).  For these 
reasons, he has taken the following steps to reduce poppy 
production: 
 
-- Development of a CN Plan.  Hamdam tasked his IDLG-supplied 
advisor for security to coordinate the creation of a comprehensive 
CN strategy for the next four years.  The Governor aims to reduce 
poppy cultivation in Uruzgan by 25 percent in 2009, and eliminate it 
completely by 2012.  In consultation with the INL-funded Counter 
Narcotics Advisory Team (CNAT) assigned to Uruzgan, the provincial 
authorities developed the first draft of a plan that focuses on 
steps to ratchet up public awareness, alternative livelihood 
programs and law enforcement and eradication.  The plan still 
requires some fine-tuning to make it more realistic in the near term 
-- namely, it depends heavily on the immediate allocation of 
financial resources and ANSF deployments from Kabul -- but it is a 
step in the right direction. 
 
-- Information Campaign.  During a November 10 MCN-sponsored 
workshop on eradication for governors, Hamdam stressed that public 
awareness is the most important component of his approach to CN.  He 
explained that the rare combination of high wheat prices, low poppy 
prices, possible measures taken by the Taliban to restrict the 
production of poppy (to limit oversupply) and renewed popular 
discontent with the drug trade created a unique opportunity this 
year to steer farmers away from poppy cultivation.  Taking advantage 
 
KABUL 00003026  002 OF 002 
 
 
of INL-provided funds and ISAF/OEF transportation and security, 
Hamdam and provincial officials are repeating this message in 
numerous shuras at the provincial and district level.  On November 
25, he will host a Peace Jirga involving 1,500 tribal elders and 
religious leaders and will seek to secure greater popular support 
for greater CN efforts.  Hamdam hopes to avoid conflict with tribal 
elders and farmers during the eradication season by encouraging them 
to make the right choice now. 
 
-- Alternative Livelihood.  Although Hamdam is frustrated with the 
level of alternative livelihood assistance he has received, he is 
determined to make the best out of the situation.  The Dutch 
Embassy, through the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), is 
distributing wheat seed and fertilizer to 20,000 families throughout 
the province, and despite FAO insistence that the assistance is 
humanitarian in nature, Hamdam is spinning the assistance as an 
alternative livelihoods program.  Hamdam has instructed his Director 
of Agriculture and Director of CN to solicit greater and more 
explicit alternative livelihood support from the Netherlands, 
Australia and U.S.  Uruzgan failed to put to good use previous USAID 
alternative livelihood assistance provided earlier this year, such 
as the donation of 12,000 almond seedlings and 10 tractors, but 
USAID is currently reviewing possible alternative livelihood 
programs for the province. 
 
-- Eradication.  UNODC estimates that only 113 hectares were 
eradicated in early 2008, down from 204 hectares in 2007.  Hamdam 
promises that this season will be different.  (Hamdam claims that 
last season he had convinced farmers to self-eradicate, but UNODC 
surveyors so not verify self-eradication; thus, he believes the 
number of eradicated fields is greater than 113.)  Recognizing that 
Uruzgan will not likely receive support from the Poppy Eradication 
Force (PEF) this season, Hamdam hopes to use the tractors donated by 
USAID to eradicate the largest concentrations of poppy in all five 
districts (these have been sitting idle at his compound).  He has 
asked the U.S. Embassy to repair the tractors and equip them with 
tines for eradication.  Hamdam will attempt to hire private 
contractors to operate the tractors and will call for ANSF support 
(hopefully from Kabul) to provide force protection.  He has agreed 
to use the target eradication maps provided by the UK Embassy to 
conduct the eradication operations in early 2009.  (Comment: Without 
the provision of more Afghan security forces, Hamdam is unlikely to 
make progress on the eradication front.  End Comment.) 
 
Obstacles to Progress 
--------------------- 
 
¶5.  (SBU) Hamdam remains concerned that former governor and local 
power broker Jan Mohammad Khan (JMK) will stand in the way of a more 
robust Governor-led Eradication.  JMK's widely speculated ties to 
the drug trade and his tight grip on the Provincial Chief of Police 
provide the former governor sufficient motive and means to resist 
Hamdam's efforts.  At a minimum, JMK's large tracts of land in 
eastern Tarin Kowt are likely be overlooked during any eradication 
efforts. 
 
¶6.  (SBU) Hamdam must reinvigorate his Counter Narcotics Working 
Group (CNWG) to sustain coordinated and comprehensive action by the 
relevant departments.  Hamdam tends to conduct coordination meetings 
on an ad hoc basis, but executing his CN strategy requires regular 
and close interaction with all of the players, including the 
relevant line ministry representatives, with whom he continues to 
have rocky relations.  As for the international community, in 
addition to the Dutch CN Police attached to the PRT, the U.S. Drug 
Enforcement Administration and Australian Federal Police recently 
concluded agreements with the PRT to deploy agents to Uruzgan to 
strengthen interdiction efforts.  Hamdam needs to meet the 
international community's increased commitment to Uruzgan's CN 
efforts by dedicating more attention to the CNWG. PRTOff have 
encouraged the Governor to initiate monthly CNWG meetings.  If 
Governor Hamdam follows through on his promises of decisive action 
on counter narcotics - a definite challenge - he could go some 
distance in answering the IDLG's demand that he improve his overall 
performance or face replacement. 
 
WOOD