US embassy cable - 05BAGHDAD3996

C O N F I D E N T I A L BAGHDAD 003996 
 
SIPDIS 
 
E.O. 12958: DECL: 09/25/2015 
TAGS: PGOV, PHUM, KDEM, IZ, Sunni Arab, Parliament 
SUBJECT: SUNNI DIALOGUE COUNCIL'S MASHADANI SEEKS 
AMBASSADOR'S HELP WITH CHANGES TO THE CONSTITUTION 
 
REF: A. (A) BAGHDAD 3498 
     B. (B) BAGHDAD 3753 
 
Classified By: Ambassador Khalilzad for reasons 1.4 (b) and 
(d). 
 
1. (C) Summary: At a September 24 meeting, the Ambassador 
discussed Sunni Arab reaction to the draft constitution 
with Mahmoud Mashadani, Constitution Committee and Iraqi 
Council for National Dialogue (ICND) member.  The 
Ambassador agreed to advocate for Sunni Arab-proposed 
changes to the constitution in upcoming discussions with 
Shia and Kurdish leaders if the Sunnis agree to publicly 
support the text with those changes.  End Summary. 
 
2. (C) Mashadani admitted there had been no recent 
negotiations between Sunni Arab and Shia Coalition leaders 
on the constitution.  He did say, however, that the ICND, 
Iraqi Islamic Party (IIP), and Adnan Dulaimi's General 
Conference could endorse the constitution publicly if the 
Shia agreed to the six points already agreed between these 
Sunni Arab groups and Kurdish leaders in Irbil.  (NOTE: Ref 
b describes the Irbil meeting.  The changes concern (a) 
text of the preamble; (b) use of two languages, Arabic and 
Kurdish; (c) Article 7 text on banned entities; (d) 
language on the National Assembly studying options on 
forming regions; (e) language on amendment procedures; and 
(f) language on Iraq's unity.  END NOTE.) 
 
4.  (C)  The Ambassador stated that if Sunni Arab leaders - 
- including Adnan Dulaimi, Tariq al-Hashimi, and Saleh 
Mutlak -- sign a letter to this effect, he would press for 
Shia agreement.  Mashadani also pressed for inclusion of 
additional language on Iraqi unity in Section 1 (Basic 
Principles): "Iraq is a single country that is fully 
sovereign; its citizens are all Iraqis, and this 
Constitution is the guarantor of its unity." 
 
5. (C) Mashadani intimated that the ICND can convince 
hesitant Sunni Arabs, even some former Ba'athists, to vote 
in favor of the constitution if there is Shia agreement to 
the six points.  The obstacles, he claimed, are Zarqawi and 
Iranian intelligence.  Mashadani requested U.S. support to 
ensure a peaceful election period. The main Sunni fear, he 
asserted, is not federalism but rather a weak Iraqi 
government that falls under clerics' control.  Mashadani 
asked to meet with former high-ranking Ba'ath Party member 
Fadil Ibraheem al-Mashadani, whom he said is currently in 
Coalition custody.  The Ambassador said he would raise this 
request with MNF-I. 
 
6. (C) The Ambassador assured Mashadani that full 
participation for all Iraqis is a major U.S. goal.  Many of 
the problems the Sunni Arabs now face, he reminded 
Mashadani, result from their January boycott of the 
elections.  The Ambassador added that the U.S. is 
coordinating security logistics with Iraqi Army and Iraqi 
Police forces during the election period.  He further 
explained that Embassy officials are continuing discussions 
with the Independent Election Commission of Iraq (IECI) to 
provide an adequate number of polling stations. 
 
7. (C) The Ambassador emphasized that Iraq's success 
depends primarily on political efforts.  For example, the 
Ambassador suggested using an anti-federalism platform in a 
united Arab bloc for the December elections rather than 
urging people to vote against the constitution in October. 
 
8. (C) On the subject of his September 20 arrest, Mashadani 
said that he had never been shown a judge's order or 
warrant.  He said that the raid on his neighborhood could 
have been "disastrous" had it not been for the presence of 
a U.S. military officer monitoring the Iraqi police.  "We 
can trust the U.S. forces," he stated.  Mashadani claimed 
to witness torture by electrocution while in the MOI 
detention center in the Baghdad neighborhood of Gureiat. 
He said that the experience helped him understand why the 
ITG has declined to appoint a new Minister of Human Rights. 
Mashadani was released September 21 and his son was 
released on September 22. 
Khalilzad