LABWANI ATTENDS FORMAL HEARING; FAMILY AND LAWYERS

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 DAMASCUS 002214 SIPDIS SIPDIS PARIS FOR ZEYA, LONDON FOR TSOU E.O. 12958: DECL: 05/11/2016 TAGS: PHUM PGOV SY SUBJECT: LABWANI ATTENDS FORMAL HEARING; FAMILY AND LAWYERS REQUEST USG, EUROPEAN SUPPORT REF: DAMASCUS 2166 Classified By: Charge d'Affaires Stephen A. Seche for reasons 1.4(b)/(d ) ¶1. (C) SUMMARY: Jailed opposition activist Kamal Labwani appeared before the presiding judge in his case on May 11 for an initial hearing, with the opening trial date to be announced in the upcoming days. Labwani faces charges of advocating the invasion of Syria by a foreign power and spreading disinformation, with sentencing ranging from 23 years in prison to the death penalty, should an invasion occur. Labwani's lawyers are already predicting a guilty verdict. Labwani's lawyers and family members requested that the USG make a public statement regarding the general crackdown on civil society and mention Labwani's case as an example. Labwani's supporters have yet to develop a coherent public relations campaign to increase international attention to the case, a symptom of a greater strategic weakness within Syrian civil society and the fear of potential SARG reprisals for speaking out in public. END SUMMARY. ¶2. (C) Jailed opposition activist Kamal Labwani appeared in a Damascus criminal court May 11 to face charges by the Syrian government connected to his visit to Europe and the U.S. in November 2005. Labwani was formally charged with one count of urging a foreign government to invade Syria, which carries a sentence of 20 years to life in prison, with a death sentence should an invasion indeed take place. He was also charged with one count of spreading false information, which carries a sentence of three to five years. The chief officiating judge subjected Labwani to one and one half hours of questioning in the presence of his lawyers. Family members, lawyers representing various human rights organizations, and Poloff were not allowed to enter the proceedings. No other diplomatic representatives attended. The opening trial date is expected to be announced by the presiding judge within the next several days. ¶3. (C) Defense lawyers noted that because the trial will be held in criminal court (vice security court),it should, in theory, be open to the public and press, but that the SARG could decide to close the chambers. According to defense team member Anwar al-Bunni, a panel of three judges will preside over the case. Noting that one judge, an ethnic Assyrian, is sympathetic to civil society's cause, Bunni predicted that the case will result in the judges finding Labwani guilty in a two-to-one decision, as was the case in the 2001 convictions of Damascus Spring activists Riad Seif and Mamoun al-Homsi. ¶4. (C) Both the Labwani family and the defense team urged the USG to make public statements on the crackdown on Syrian civil society in general and to include Labwani as one of several specific examples of political persecution. Defense lawyers Muhanned al-Hasani and Bunni added that such efforts should be conducted in tandem with European statements, and noted that they plan to lobby the Austrian and UK Embassies to make statements on Labwani's behalf. The Labwani family also noted that they have been in touch with Labwani's European contacts who will be lobbying their respective European Parliament members. In an earlier meeting on May 9, the Labwani family noted that they had not met with European embassies since Labwani's arrest in November, but are considering doing so again. They have also been in contact with a number of Amnesty International local chapters in Europe, but not with its international headquarters. Now that the trial is set to begin in earnest, the Labwani family requested USG help in mobilizing international and regional media coverage of the event, asserting that USG representatives had promised Labwani help during his October 2005 visit to the U.S. However, the Labwani family is leery of making too many public statements themselves, fearing reprisals from security forces. ¶5. (C) COMMENT: While defense lawyers only had about 12 hours notice of Labwani's hearing, the sparse attendance by civil society activists and diplomatic community (Poloff was the only diplomat in attendance) indicate that Labwani's case continues to receive less attention and support than the cases of other activists facing prosecution like those of Haithem al-Maleh and Hassan Abdulazeem. Similarly, while ad hoc measures like single interviews by activists and attorneys take place or occasional Arabic language press releases continue to appear, it seems that neither local human rights organizations nor the Labwani family have developed a strong, coherent public relations strategy to DAMASCUS 00002214 002 OF 002 engage international interest in this potential death penalty case. This missing strategy further demonstrates the relative weakness of Syrian civil society and its lack of organizational savvy, as well as a genuine fear of reprisal from SARG authorities for pushing too hard publicly. END COMMENT. SECHE