REPORT ON RECENT ARREST OF JOURNALIST

C O N F I D E N T I A L DJIBOUTI 000835

SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: DECL: 06/17/2014
TAGS: PHUM PGOV SCUL DJ
SUBJECT: REPORT ON RECENT ARREST OF JOURNALIST

REF: DJIBOUTI 822

Classified By: Pol/Econ Erinn C. Reed for reasons 1.4 (b) and (d).


1. (C) On 8 June, Houssein Ahmed Farah, journalist for the
opposition newspaper Le Renouveau and brother to famed
opposition leader Daher Ahmed Farah - jailed several times in
2003 for political reasons, was arrested after he failed to
stop for the First Lady of Djibouti's convoy traveling
towards the Presidency. Farah was on his return from
covering the protests in the Arhiba neighborhood (reftel)
when he encountered the First Lady's convoy. Farah, in court
appearances, indicated that he did not see the convoy coming
and was distracted by passengers, which caused him to
continue into the intersection and the path of the convoy.
Farah then reportedly immediately reversed and removed
himself from the path of the convoy as ordered. The arrest
was said to have been ordered by the First Lady, Kadra
Mahamoud, after she arrived at the Presidency. Farah was
charged with "endangering the First Lady's convoy" and was
detained at the Police Station until his arraignment on 12
June. The judge in the case gave Farah "detention
provisoire" (temporary detention pending a trial) and sent
him to Gabode prison. Farah's case was given expedited
treatment and his trial took place 17 June. Farah was found
not guilty and released.


2. (C) Comment: Farah's arrest was reported in
allAfrica.com's June 15th publication, which called it
"arbitrary" and claimed he was held in solitary confinement
in very poor conditions. Post cannot confirm this portion of
the report. The opposition papers in Djibouti also reported
the arrest as arbitrary and repression of freedom of the
press. Pol/Econ discussed the trial and arrest with Jean
Paul Noel, President of the Djiboutian League of Human
Rights. Noel admitted that it was strange that Farah was
held in "detention provisoire," as it is not usual for a
charge of this nature. However, Noel said he would not be
writing this up as an arbitrary arrest, because it is not
entirely clear that it was arbitrary. Post believes that
Farah's arrest may have been slightly politically motivated
because of the relation to Daher Ahmed Farah, but does not
believe it is related to his status a reporter who covered
the Arhiba demonstrations. End Comment.
RAGSDALE