MFA, MINISTRY OF COMMUNICATIONS OBJECT TO MEPI

C O N F I D E N T I A L RABAT 000507 SIPDIS SIPDIS DEPARTMENT FOR NEA/MAG, DRL, NEA/PI E.O. 12958: DECL: 03/21/2016 TAGS: MO KMPI KPAO PHUM PREL SUBJECT: MFA, MINISTRY OF COMMUNICATIONS OBJECT TO MEPI MEDIA RFA REF: RABAT 468 Classified By: CLASSIFIED BY DCM WAYNE J. BUSH FOR REASONS 1.4 (B) AND (D). ¶1. (C) Summary: Minister-Delegate for Foreign Affairs Fassi Fihri and Communications Minister Benabdallah told Ambassador Riley March 20 that media outlets accepting MEPI grants or other foreign funding would constitute a violation of Moroccan law, punishable by fines and imprisonment. They emphasized that while the GOM supports MEPI, it is illegal in Morocco for publications to receive direct subsidies from foreign sources, but hastened to add that the prohibition does not apply to the types of training and invitational travel opportunities that the U.S. has provided to journalists for many years. Ambassador Riley explained the objectives of the MEPI initiative and assured the GOM that any applications from Morocco for the regional MEPI program would be carefully evaluated to ensure that proposals funded do not violate local law. End Summary. ¶2. (C) Ambassador Riley met with Minister-Delegate for Foreign Affairs Taieb Fassi Fihri and Minister of Communications Mohamed Benabdallah March 20 at Fassi Fihri,s request. The DCM accompanied the Ambassador, and MFA Americas Director Abdallah Tazi was also present. Fassi Fihri said that the King had asked that he and Benabdallah meet with the Ambassador to discuss reports that the U.S. sought to provide direct subsidies to newspapers and media outlets in the Middle East/North Africa region, including Morocco, because the independent press needs support to compete with government-owned press. Fassi Fihri said that he was surprised by the press reports because he had not previously seen the MEPI program offer direct subsidies to the media, although Morocco and the U.S. had worked closely together to create the Foundation for the Future which would provide support to NGOs. He asked for consultation between the USG and GOM before MEPI-funded programs of this nature are announced to the public. ¶3. (C) The Ambassador replied that the U.S. did not intend to provide direct subsidies to Moroccan media, and observed that the U.S. has long provided training and other types of assistance, including exchange visits to the United States, to Moroccan journalists. He provided Benabdallah and Fassi Fihri copies of the MEPI Request for Applications for grant assistance. The Ambassador and DCM reviewed the details and objectives of the RFA. The DCM noted that a March 14 briefing on the request for proposals provided by a representative of the regional MEPI office in Tunis had generated a strong positive response from Moroccan media representatives present, although the representative of the Moroccan press union has voiced negative views (reftel). ¶4. (C) Fassi Fihri again emphasized the importance of consultation on MEPI initiatives in Morocco. He said that he understood the U.S. goal of strengthening independent media in places where the media is controlled by the government. In Morocco, however, the press is essentially political, Fassi Fihri said, with many publications controlled by political parties. (Comment: implicit in Fassi Fihri,s remark was the suggestion that U.S. grants to such publications would be viewed as a subsidy to the associated political party.) Morocco supports MEPI, Fassi Fihri underlined, and "we are partners in this process. We want to see how to ensure the maximum possibility of success to initiatives like this." ¶5. (C) Benabdallah then cited the legal concern raised by journalists in the March 14 MEPI workshop, pointing out that it is a violation of Moroccan law, punishable by fine and imprisonment, for owners of Moroccan media to accept direct or indirect support from foreign government or non-government sources. Benabdallah pointed out, as he has in the past, that the government intends to reform the press law to eliminate any prison sentences for press law violations, but for now the law remains in force. ¶6. (C) Benabdallah described the current GOM practice of providing subsidies to newspapers in Morocco. The subsidies go to independent newspapers as well as those allied with political parties to support press development, without any political conditionalities or connotations. He said that the subsidies, restricted in the past to certain publications, are now being generalized and granted to fund projects that will help modernize and restructure press operations. The GOM has a budget of 50 million dirhams (about $5 million) for this program, Benabdallah said. He said that the grant awards are determined by a committee composed of five government representatives and five press representatives. ¶7. (C) Ambassador Riley noted that the U.S. has long provided exchange visits and other training opportunities to Moroccan journalists. "No problem," Benabdallah replied, pointing out that training did not involve the receipt of funds. Benabdallah said that training, including the provision of travel expenses, was allowable whether provided in Morocco or abroad. Benabdallah observed that the premise of the MEPI program is that independent press in the region is disadvantaged. In Morocco, he said, that is a false premise, since subsidies go to state-owned as well as independent press. Benabdallah summarized that both the legal and political constraints he and Fassi Fihri had described impact the proposed MEPI grant program. ¶8. (C) The new press law, Benabdallah said, will create a National Press Council - an independent organ to manage development of the press in Morocco as well as ethical standards. In the future, it would be possible for the U.S. government to work directly with this organization, which would not be an arm of the government. Both the journalist syndicate and media owners have asked that aid be provided via a public organization, and not directly to media outlets, he said. The national press council will have 15 members - five representatives of media owners, five of the journalists, syndicate, and five civil society members. The DCM noted that resources will be available this year for grants to the media. He asked Benabdallah when the legislation was likely to be passed and the new national press council formed. Benabdallah replied, "If the council sees the light of day this year, fine; if not it will be next year." ¶9. (C) Fassi Fihri again emphasized that the U.S. should not interpret the meeting as a negative reaction to MEPI, but rather as an explanation of Moroccan constraints. He expressed his view that the U.S. will receive a number of grant proposals from Moroccan media outlets, and hoped that the Moroccan government would not be in the embarrassing position of having to intervene in enforcing current law. "How can we avoid that?" he asked. ¶10. (C) Ambassador Riley assured Fassi Fihri that proposals are not automatically accepted as proposed, and are subject to discussion and negotiation with the applicant. He emphasized that the funds available were for use throughout the region, not solely in Morocco. He said that the U.S. would closely evaluate proposals received and make sure that any activity we fund does not violate Moroccan law through a careful dialogue with the applicants. ¶11. (C) Comment: This meeting highlights the challenge of addressing freedom of expression in Morocco. Benabdallah has talked for many months about the proposed press reform legislation, but has made little visible progress toward finalizing the legislation and submitting it to parliament. Support to the prospective National Press Council is a component of the Mission,s plan to support democratic reform in Morocco, but progress has been stalled by the delay in moving the legislation forward. We should take advantage of high level dialogue - including Fassi Fihri,s forthcoming meetings in Washington on the Western Sahara - to emphasize the importance the U.S. attaches to freedom of expression and the advantages to moving forward on Morocco,s long-promised press reform and decriminalization of libel. End comment. ****************************************** Visit Embassy Rabat's Classified Website; http://www.state.sgov.gov/p/nea/rabat ****************************************** Riley