U.S./EU LUNCH ON FREEDOM OF EXPRESSION IN TUNISIA

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 TUNIS 000808

SIPDIS

SIPDIS

STATE FOR NEA/FO (GRAY),NEA/MAG (GERMAINE,LAWRENCE),
NEA/PPD (FERNANDEZ, SMITH, AGNEW),NEA/PI (MULENEX, KIRBY),
NEA/PA, NEA/IPA, I/GNA, DRL, CWG-PD
PARIS FOR ZEYA

E.O. 12958: DECL: 04/03/2016
TAGS: PREL KDEM KPAO EAID PHUM KMPI TS
SUBJECT: U.S./EU LUNCH ON FREEDOM OF EXPRESSION IN TUNISIA

REF: 05 TUNIS 1405

Classified By: Amb. William J. Hudson; reasons 1.4 (b),(d)

1.(C) On March 22, the Ambassador hosted his EU counterparts
at the latest in a series of coordination meetings between
Embassy Tunis and representatives of the EU in Tunisia. At
our suggestion, the topic of the luncheon meeting was
"freedom of expression in Tunisia." The conversation revealed
that, while there was broad consensus that such liberty was
conspicuously absent in the country, there was little
agreement on how best to support the cause of a free press in
Tunisia. The EU Delegation Head agreed with the Ambassador
that a free press is the only way to maintain social progress
and that, absent a free flow of information, Tunisia's social
and economic stability was at risk. The most forward-leaning
of the group was the Dutch ambassador, who urged a strong
stance with the GOT on freedom of the press. The most
conservative reaction was from the ambassador from Austria
(currently serving as the President of the EU) who claimed
that the press was free except for certain "taboo issues."
This view was reinforced by the French representative who
argued that Tunisia enjoys some of the most liberal news
coverage of societal issues in the Arab world. In a private
conversation following the lunch, the EU Delegation Head
agreed to consider an Embassy proposal to co-host a media
event on the occasion of World Press Freedom Day, May 3,

2006. End Summary.

US/EU Ambassadors speak
--------------

2.(C) On March 22, the Ambassador hosted a lunch for the EU
ambassadors in Tunisia. This meeting was the latest in a
series of coordination meetings between the Embassy and the
EU that often focus on a specific subject. At our
suggestion, the topic for this meeting was "freedom of
expression in Tunisia." In his opening remarks, the
Ambassador noted that US support for liberty of expression in
Tunisia was based on our belief that a free press was a basic
cornerstone for any democracy. The Ambassador also explained
that, in our view, a free flow of information was necessary
for future social, political, and economic development in
Tunisia, and that the US and EU shared a common interest in
such development. The Ambassador then detailed the USG's
two-pronged strategy for advancing freedom of the press in
Tunisia, namely direct and frank dialogue with the GOT at the
same time that we support and engage with Tunisian
journalists. The Ambassador noted that we were committed to
such an approach but it appeared that the GOT was unconvinced
of the need to move forward in this regard.

3.(C) EU Delegation Head, Ambassador Marc Pierini, began his
intervention with an update on a 2.25 million euros program
for journalists that the EU was sponsoring in Tunisia.
(Reftel) Pierini noted that the program, aimed at providing
training to Tunisian journalists both locally and in training
centers in Europe, was perfect on paper but rather
disappointing in practice. He explained that the African
Center for the Perfection of Journalists and Communicators
(CAPJC),the Tunisian partner in the program, was subject to
intense GOT behind-the-scenes influence. Pierini noted that,
since the Tunisian Ministry of Interior was playing an active
role in "clearing" the names of those journalists that wished
to participate in the program, many Tunisian journalists were
shying away from the program. As a result, the main
beneficiaries of the money were those employed by the GOT.
Pierini argued that Tunisian youth had little faith in the
local media, and that it would be necessary to look to the
longer term for change. He agreed with the Ambassador that a
free press in the country was needed for the maintenance of
social progress as well as for future growth.

Broad agreement that problems exist
--------------
4.(C) Other ambassadors agreed that the situation of the
press in Tunisia was troubling. The Spanish ambassador
argued that "the essential truth" was that there was "no
freedom of expression or freedom of the press in Tunisia."
The Dutch ambassador, who is a writer with important insight
into the literary scene in Tunisia, agreed that there were
serious problems in Tunisia surrounding freedom of expression
and the publication of books. The French representative
referred to a "world of lies" in Tunisia where nothing is
clear and where everybody is watching Al Jazeera for the news
since it is the only credible news outlet in the eyes of most
Tunisians. The German ambassador noted that there appeared

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to be a lack of political will on the part of the GOT to
resolve this issue and believed that, as a result, the
Tunisian society was becoming more radicalized and
nationalistic.

5.(C) The ambassador of Austria (currently serving as
President of the EU) maintained that the situation of the
press was "not so bad." He stated that he did not believe
that there was "no freedom of the press," but rather "taboo
issues." While the French representative privately dismissed
the Austrian ambassador's comments as uninformed due to the
fact that he had not been in Tunisia long enough to
understand the situation, he publicly stated that he believed
the Tunisian press was notably free in its coverage of social
issues.

No consensus on how to proceed
--------------
6.(C) There was wide disagreement on how best to further
freedom of expression in Tunisia. The Italian ambassador
believed that training was the way to go and discussed
Italian initiatives in this regard. The Dutch ambassador
rejected this approach noting that "Tunisian journalists are
tired of being trained." and argued that "we go wrong when we
don't target the government." She went on to detail her own
discussions with the GOT on the issue of press freedom, but
cautioned that the West should not allow itself "to be used
by the opposition." The EU Delegation Head advocated a
long-term strategy without specifying necessary action in
this regard. The Austrian ambassador agreed that training
was useful, but should be accompanied by political action, if
necessary. The German ambassador argued that "we cannot hope
for a step-by-step opening of the system" and that we "should
be more energetic," but he also refrained from providing
examples of possible action. The Spanish ambassador stated
that "it is good to try to find loopholes" to support
journalists, while the Swedish ambassador simply urged a
"step-by-step" process.

EU to Consider Co-Sponsoring a Media Event with US Embassy
-------------- --------------
7.(C) After the lunch, US Embassy staff approached Ambassador
Pierini to seek support for EU co-sponsorship of a conference
in Tunis on "Press Freedom and Media Responsibility" on the
occasion of the May 3 World Press Freedom Day. Pierini
expressed his interest in such a joint program and asked for
further information. On April 4, the Embassy forwarded a
proposal for their consideration.

Comment
--------------
8.(C) Embassy officials have made clear to European
counterparts our belief that a coordinated approach on the
issue of freedom of the press is key to convincing the GOT of
the need for reform. While it would appear that there is
broad sympathy for the plight of journalists and a Tunisian
society starved for unbiased information, it is clear that
the EU itself is not united on how best to address this
problem. The relative failure of the very expensive EU media
training program for Tunisia may serve as a wake-up call to
the EU membership of just how difficult the situation is for
local journalists. We will continue to engage in sustained
dialogue on this issue with our European partners in Tunisia
to find ways to cooperate in advancing freedom of expression
in this country.
HUDSON