JOURNALISTS TO APPEAL SENTENCING OVER DANISH

UNCLAS AMMAN 004026 SIPDIS SENSITIVE SIPDIS E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: PGOV KISL KDEM JO SUBJECT: JOURNALISTS TO APPEAL SENTENCING OVER DANISH CARTOONS REF: A. AMMAN 840 ¶B. AMMAN 960 ¶1. (U) Amman's Conciliation Court on May 30 sentenced two editors to two months, imprisonment for "attacking religious sentiment" over their publication of the controversial Danish cartoons of the prophet Mohammed (reftels). Prosecutors originally charged the two, Jihad Al-Momani of the Arabic weekly Shihan and Hussein Al-Khalidi of al-Mishwar, respectively, in February 2006. ¶2. (U) The court immediately renewed the editors, bail pending their appeals. The two have been free on bail since prosecutors first lodged the charges. Media coverage -------------- ¶3. (U) There was scant coverage of the sentencing by Jordanian media outlets, and only in English. The centrist, elite English daily Jordan Times reported that if the editors, appeals fail, the court could give the editors the option of paying a fine in lieu of imprisonment (post is seeking to confirm this assessment). The Jordan Times story quotes Jihad Al-Momani as saying "I am in a state of disbelief. We had a strong case. Let's wait and see what happens in the appeal." It also quotes a leading free speech advocate, Nidal Mansour of the Jordan-based Center for Defending the Freedom of Journalists, who said that while he respected the court's ruling, he opposed putting journalists "behind bars." ¶4. (SBU) Momani informed Public Affairs officers on May 10 that other charges may be pending, but did not specify. ¶5. (SBU) Comment: In February and March, public opinion overwhelmingly supported the prosecution of the two editors, and undoubtedly would today if the case again generates significant coverage in the Arabic-language media. A few religious and civil society figures in Jordan criticized the charges against the two editors, but theirs is a minority view. ¶6. (U) The two-month prison sentences were the minimum available to the court. If the court commutes the sentences to fines, it will equate to US $3.00 per day for every day of imprisonment, or around $170.00 for two months. ¶7. (U) The cartoon episode slowed the government's effort to amend Jordan's press law in order to drop prison sentences in libel cases, even though prosecutors charged Al- Momani and Al-Khalidi under a statute technically unrelated to the libel law. The government had been planning a new push this summer to gain Parliament's approval of a liberalized press bill. The Momani/Khalidi case has been out of the news now for months, but if the latest legal developments generate extensive coverage in the media, it could again harden Parliament against press liberalization. End comment. Visit Amman's Classified Web Site at http://www.state.sgov.gov/p/nea/amman/ HALE