US embassy cable - 05KABUL4953

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 KABUL 004953 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SENSITIVE 
 
DEPT FOR SA/FO AMBASSADOR QUINN, S/CT, SA/A 
NSC FOR AHARRIMAN, KAMEND 
CENTCOM FOR POLAD, CG CFC-A, CG CJTF-76 
TREASURY FOR LMCDONALD, WBALDRIDGE, APARAMESWARAN, ABAUKOL 
STATE PLEASE PASS USAID 
USAID FOR AID/ANE, AID/DCHA/DG 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: PGOV, PREL, PINR, KDEM, AF 
SUBJECT: KANDAHAR PROVINCIAL COUNCIL NOT REPRESENTATIVE 
 
 
1. (SBU) SUMMARY: The Governor of Kandahar and local NGOs 
told the Ambassador that the newly elected Provincial 
Council is not representative of the province's 
population and is being circumvented by use of the 
shura system. They believe the shuras currently are a 
better means to identify and address the needs of the 
people. Neither option provides a perfect solution, 
but Afghans will need to support, encourage, and work 
through the PCs in order to create a more democratic 
and stable society. END SUMMARY. 
 
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Unrepresentative Councils 
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2. (SBU) Ambassador Neumann met separately with Governor 
Assadullah and the leaders of local NGOs on November 
15. The governor was concerned that the Provincial 
Council is more representative of Kandahar City than 
of the outlying areas, citing that half of the council 
live in the city. The current representatives are 
bound by their tribal allegiances that leave many 
unrepresented. Local NGOs said that the Provincial 
Council is not able to discern the needs of the 
people. Instead both the governor and NGOs have turned 
to local shuras. 
 
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Shuras 
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3. (U) Gov. Assadullah told the Ambassador he had created 
his own informal council of shuras, Afghanistan's 
traditional means of representation. He regularly 
calls meetings with the shuras in order to determine 
the needs of each area. In his most recent meeting, 
the governor was presented with lists of up to 100 
projects per district; he asked the shuras to choose 
their top three needs. The governor stated that he 
intends to try and complete the top three projects for 
each area to help the people see positive change by 
giving them a greater voice. 
 
4. (U) NGOs also favor the shuras to connect to the people. 
They potentially provide a greater representation and 
also allow for local oversight of NGO operations. In 
particular, NGOs stated that the shuras fill the need 
for better representation in hard to reach regions. 
 
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Comment 
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5. (SBU) In Kandahar, the election of a Provincial Council 
does not appear to have created a representative group 
capable of unbiased advice to the governor or making 
priority decisions for the province. This is no 
particular surprise, considering they were elected 
only two months ago and have little binding legal 
power. In order to make this body more effective and 
widely accepted, additional work will be needed to 
bridge the divide with the governor and teach the 
council constituent outreach beyond tribal networks. 
The PRT can play a helpful role in these efforts. Until 
then the parallel use of traditional shuras will 
likely continue. 
 
6. (SBU) The highly perceptive Minister of Reconstruction 
and Rural Affairs agreed with the perception from 
Kandahar that the Provincial Councils are very imperfect 
representatives of provincial priorities. He suggested 
that since district elections are unlikely, groups of 
shuras might send representatives to work with 
Provincial Councils. What all these views add up to is 
that we have to think hard about an automatic assumption 
that Provincial Councils equal full provincial 
representation. END COMMENT. 
NEUMANN