VZCZCXRO1830
OO RUEHLH RUEHPW
DE RUEHLH #0024/01 0430203
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
O 120203Z FEB 10
FM AMCONSUL LAHORE
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC IMMEDIATE 4317
INFO RUEHIL/AMEMBASSY ISLAMABAD IMMEDIATE 5015
RUEHBUL/AMEMBASSY KABUL IMMEDIATE 0547
RUEHLO/AMEMBASSY LONDON PRIORITY 0245
RUEHNE/AMEMBASSY NEW DELHI PRIORITY 0927
RUEHKP/AMCONSUL KARACHI PRIORITY 2210
RUEHPW/AMCONSUL PESHAWAR PRIORITY 1888
RHMFISS/CDR USCENTCOM MACDILL AFB FL
RUEAIIA/CIA WASHINGTON DC
RHEHAAA/NSC WASHINGTON DC
RUMICEA/USCENTCOM INTEL CEN MACDILL AFB FL
RUEKJCS/SECDEF WASHDC
RUEHLH/AMCONSUL LAHORE 5485

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 LAHORE 000024 
 
SENSITIVE 
SIPDIS 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: PGOV PHUM KWMN PK
SUBJECT: WINDS OF CHANGE FOR MUKHTAR MAI 
 
REF: LAHORE 014 
 
¶1.  (SBU)  Summary.  Samson Salamat, manager for Mukhtar Mai 
Women's Welfare Organization (MMWWO), has disclosed a rift 
between Mukhtar Mai, her husband, and organization management. 
Salamat, worried about the power Mai may give to her husband, 
has chosen to leave MMWWO in March.  The loss of this 
professional manager may cause the organization to degenerate to 
its previous state:  an organization with no cohesive leadership 
and limited financial accountability being run as an extension 
of Mukhtar Mai's personal vision.  End Summary. 
 
- - - 
Interference from Mai's Husband 
- - - 
 
¶2.  (SBU)  Samson Salamat sought a private meeting with PolOff 
on January 26 to discuss his future with MMWWO.  He told PolOff 
that Mukhtar's husband had demanded a "key role" in the 
organization.  He viewed this as a way to assume control of 
MMWWO.  Mai's husband, according to Salamat, has been pressuring 
Mai for a position in the organization since their marriage. 
Mai has recently increased pressure on MMWWO leadership to 
include her husband in MMWWO's operations.  Salamat fears Mai's 
husband is only seeking inclusion for his personal gain.  Note: 
Mai married Nasir Abbas Gabol, a police constable from 
Muzzafargarh district, Punjab Province in March 2009.  Mai, his 
second (concurrent) wife, agreed to the marriage after Gabol 
threatened to divorce his first wife.  End note. 
 
- - - 
Mai's Vision for the Organization 
- - - 
 
¶3.  (SBU)  According to Salamat, Mai cannot differentiate 
between MMWWO's organizational interests and her personal 
interests.  Mai does not understand how the organization should 
work, the proper role of the Board of Directors and other 
stakeholders, and she oversteps her bounds at times.  She does 
not see a conflict in creating a position for her husband, 
despite his lack of relevant experience.  Wilson Lee, Program 
Officer, National Endowment of Democracy (NED), echoed these 
same sentiments in a separate meeting with PolOff on January 13. 
 He told PolOff that NED suspended its grant for six months in 
the initial stages of MMWWO development due to concerns about 
Mai treating MMWWO as her personal property. 
 
- - - 
Manager to Leave the Organization 
- - - 
 
¶4.  (SBU)  Salamat, MMWWO manager for 18 months, said he would 
leave MMWWO in March due to Mai's husband's interference in 
MMWWO operations.  When Salamat joined the organization, he 
committed to staying for a year.  Now he fears that Mai and her 
husband may discard the fiscal accounting system and 
institutional infrastructure established with a grant from 
International Rescue Committee (IRC), reftel.  He was also 
concerned that Mai would move funds designated for the resource 
center to pay for school operations.  Lee from NED confirmed 
that this has been a problem in the past and, they worked with 
MMWWO to explain accounting procedures.  Despite his 
apprehension, Salamat had submitted a 60,000 USD proposal to 
PolOff to continue operations at Mukhtar Mai Girls Schools for 
one more year. 
 
- - - 
IRC Visit to Meerwala 
- - - 
 
¶5.  (SBU)  Following a six-day visit to MMWWO in Meerwala, 
Kristin Kim Bart, GBV Program Officer for IRC, confirmed 
Salamat's story in a February 9 meeting with PolOff.  Bart 
disclosed that Mai was pressuring resource center workers to do 
personal favors for her and her husband's family.  Board members 
had tried to dissolve the management committee, and to fire 
Salamat, in an effort to consolidate power for Mai.  Bart 
conducted a series of meetings with resource center workers, 
members of the Board of Directors, and the management committee 
to resolve the conflict among them.  At the end of her meetings, 
everyone agreed to remain with the organization until June.  In 
that time, IRC would work with MMWWO to clarify the role of each 
 
LAHORE 00000024  002 OF 002 
 
 
member of the organization.  Bart told PolOff that IRC would 
consider withholding funds from MMWWO if its board members did 
not uphold the constitution, which outlines power sharing and 
management of the organization.  Suspending funds may provide 
Mai the tools that she needs to stand up to her family and fight 
for the organization.  Mai is ready to fight for her school, but 
Bart is unsure if she has the strength or desire to stand up to 
her family to keep MMWWO operational. 
 
- - - 
Comment:  MMWWO Must Stand on Its Own 
- - - 
 
¶6.  (SBU)  Since its inception, MMWWO has struggled to sustain 
its mission of women's empowerment, which depends on but cannot 
be subservient to Mukhtar Mai's personal celebrity.  Mai's 
attempt to promote her husband within MMWWO illustrates her 
inability to differentiate between her personal interests and 
those of the organization.  Salamat was central in turning 
around MMWWO and making it function like an institution, not 
just one woman's vision-turned-hobby.  His pending departure 
from the organization will create a void and will again make 
internal control issues significant challenges to the success 
and sustainability of MMWWO.   Additional USG funding for MMWWO 
should not be considered unless and until its leaders 
demonstrate that they can survive without constant oversight, 
and retaining Salamat or finding another professional manager 
will be key to that. 
CONROY