VZCZCXYZ0027
RR RUEHWEB

DE RUEHGB #0449/01 0501355
ZNR UUUUU ZZH(CCY-ADX26B7E9-WSC7771-468)
R 191355Z FEB 10
FM AMEMBASSY BAGHDAD
TO SECSTATE WASHDC 6722

UNCLAS BAGHDAD 000449 
 
C O R R E C T E D   C O P Y (ADDED TAGS) 
 
SIPDIS 
 
NEA/I PASS TO S/GWI 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: PGOV SOCI KDEM
SUBJECT: EPRT EAST-BAGHDAD: LEGAL ASSISTANCE CENTER 
ADDRESSES WOMEN,S ISSUES IN SOUTHEASTERN BAGHDAD 
 
This is an ePRT Baghdad East cable. 
 
¶1.  (U) SUMMARY:  Zafraniyyah is a sometimes violent, mixed 
semi-rural/urban area on the outskirts of the city, squeezed 
between the Diyala and the Tigris rivers in south Eastern 
Baghdad.  In an effort to develop indigenous civil society 
organizations, ePRT East-Baghdad and the Brigade focused on 
women's needs as an important step.  Through Quick Response 
Funds (QRF), a local Non-Governmental Organization (NGO) 
opened a Women's Center that now provides no-cost legal and 
medical assistance to residents. More than 100 women visited 
the center in its first full month of operation, and noted 
that key concerns for Zafraniyah residents are displacement, 
lost and damaged property, access to child rearing 
assistance, and domestic violence. END SUMMARY. 
 
---------- 
BACKGROUND 
---------- 
 
¶2.  (U) Zafraniyyah is a sometimes violent, mixed 
semi-rural/urban area on the outskirts of Baghdad squeezed 
between the Diyala and the Tigris rivers.  The population is 
predominantly Shi'a, with a Sunni presence.  Zafarniyyah is a 
case study of post-2003 Iraq, having seen a significant 
amount of sectarian violence after 2003, and during the 2007 
surge.  Its largest mosque, with a huge green dome that 
overlooks a main highway into town, was once Sunni.  In the 
past 90 days, more than 40 security incidents have been 
recorded by U.S. forces.  In conjunction with its military 
partners, the ePRT sought projects in this area that might 
help the growth of a civil society that provide alternatives 
to violence. 
 
¶3.  (U) Toward this end, the ePRT provided approximately USD 
83,000 in Quick Response Funds (QRF)to Shatha Naji.  Naji is 
co-founder of the Women for Peace organization, an 
independent, non-governmental organization (NGO), established 
in 2003.  It focuses on improving women's independence and 
propagating the principles of peace while increasing women's 
awareness about their role in society. 
 
¶4.  (U) The NGO grantee opened the al-Zafraniyyah Women's 
Support Center to the public on December 22, 2009.  The 
Center is open six days a week and is funded through July 31, 
¶2010.  The low economic status of the women (many of whom are 
widows) in the area precludes charging a fee for services. 
 
---------------- 
CENTER RESOURCES 
---------------- 
 
¶5.  (U) A social worker is on-site five days a week.  She is 
available for one-on-one counseling sessions, and she also 
meets with groups of five or six women to discuss shared 
problems.  In addition, she leads lectures and workshops for 
approximately 20 women at a time.  Her counseling sessions 
address issues such as displacement, lost and damaged 
property, child rearing and domestic violence. 
 
¶6.  (U) Two lawyers spend a total of four days a week at the 
center and are on-call other days.  They offer free legal 
advice and will present cases to local councils or courts.  A 
legal assistant helps women collect documentation for claims 
and provides other administrative support. The lawyers also 
organize workshops on the United Nation's Convention on the 
Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination (CEDAW) and the 
legal rights of Iraqi women.  The legal help is proving 
popular; a January 14 legal rights workshop attracted 63 
women. 
 
¶7.  (U) A medical doctor comes twice a week to see patients 
and provide referrals for follow-up care at local hospitals 
as necessary.  She also teaches a first-aid and leads health 
workshops.  A recent session covered breast cancer awareness, 
basic first-aid, infections and hygiene. 
 
Q 
------------------- 
A DAY AT THE CENTER 
------------------- 
 
¶8.  (U) The ePRT's implementing partner provided a report of 
a typical day at the Center: 
 
¶9.  (U) About 26 women attended a session on breast cancer 
awareness.  Most of those present were from low-income 
families without a fixed monthly income.  The women included 
widows, divorcees, married housewives, students and 
Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs).  Some women brought 
their children with them. 
 
¶10.  (U) A female doctor began with a question and answer 
session where some participants spoke about members of their 
families who were victims of breast cancer.  At the end of 
the session, the doctor examined women by request.  The exams 
were not limited to cancer screening.  The doctor referred 
some women who may need treatment to hospitals, and provided 
medicine to others on the spot.  Leaflets about breast cancer 
were distributed among the participants, and the session 
concluded when the grantee spoke to the participants and 
emphasized the necessity of passing on information they 
learned at the sessions to their families and relatives.  She 
said it was part of their new empowered role now that they 
had visited the Center. 
 
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LEGAL CLINIC 
------------ 
 
¶11.  (U) In this typical week the clinic addressed 12 cases 
for local women.  The cases primarily involved obtaining 
social benefits from the government, and the transference of 
pensions from deceased relatives (typically husbands killed 
in post-2003 violence) to the client.  One woman sought help 
obtaining a divorce, and another sought legitimization of her 
four children from an unregistered relationship with the 
deceased father; her goal is to receive citizenship papers 
for her children to enable them to attend school.  A final 
case involved a woman fired from her job due to political 
affiliations who sought relief from the Ministry of Industry. 
 
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CHALLENGES 
---------- 
 
¶12.  (U) More than 100 women have visited the 
centrally-located Center in its first month.  However, 
concerns about the area's security situation have dampened 
even wider attendance.  The ePRT is encouraging the efforts 
of three community liaisons paid for in the grant to 
publicize the center's services and activities.  They 
distribute brochures at public places, such as hospitals, 
schools and council halls.  As peers and fellow residents of 
the neighborhood, they should prove trustworthy guides to the 
resources the Center offers. 
 
 
 
FORD