DEMARCHE DELIVERED: ADVANCING THE DEMOCRACY AGENDA

C O N F I D E N T I A L RABAT 001731 SIPDIS SIPDIS S/SO PLS TRANSMIT TO COMMUNITY OF DEMOCRACIES COLLECTIVE COMMUNITY OF DEMOCRACIES OBSERVERS COLLECTIVE STATE FOR G, DRL/FO, DRL/MLGA, AND NEA/MAG E.O. 12958: DECL: 11/09/2017 TAGS: PHUM KDEM PREL UNGA MO SUBJECT: DEMARCHE DELIVERED: ADVANCING THE DEMOCRACY AGENDA AT THE 4TH COMMUNITY OF DEMOCRACIES MINISTERIAL IN BAMAKO, MALI, NOVEMBER 14-17, 2007 REF: REF: STATE 151024 Classified By: DCM Robert P. Jackson for reasons 1.4 (b) and (d). ¶1. (C) Summary: On November 8, Charge delivered reftel demarche to the GOM MFA General Director of Bilateral Relations Youssef Amrani. Amrani said the GOM, and he personally, remained very supportive of the Community of Democracies (CD). However, he was concerned about any panel discussions linking Islam and democracy, not wanting Islam to be singled out. Amrani insisted that "religion" be used instead of "Islam" to avoid controversy. Amrani agreed with the Charge on the importance of NGOs, the complimentary nature of religion and democracy, and the need for the CD to work more closely with the UN. The GOM intends to provide a panel discussion on international election observers at the meeting. End summary. ¶2. (C) On November 8, Charge delivered reftel demarche concerning the advancement of democracy agenda at the 4th Community of Democracies Ministerial being held in Bamako, Mali (November 14-17) to the GOM Ministry of Foreign Affairs General Director Youssef Amrani. Charge inquired about the makeup of the Moroccan delegation and underscored the two main strengths the U.S. recognized that Morocco would bring to the Ministerial: concrete proposals to promote democracy and support to non-governmental organizations (NGOs). Charge also underscored the complementarities of religion and democracy and tabled the idea of having the CD work more closely with the United Nations (UN). The Charge then passed Amrani a non-paper covering all the reftel points. ¶3. (C) Amrani commented on the strong working relationship between the GOM and the U.S. Government and his desire to see that relationship flourish. Amrani said that he would attend the meeting in Bamako and that a Minister would as well. Amrani said that the GOM was considering a "best practices" panel discussion on international election observers, underscoring Morocco's positive experience with such observers in recent parliamentary elections. Amrani said that he agreed with the U.S. emphasis on inclusion of NGOs in CD discussions, citing Morocco's past work in this area and expressing the need for more. While underscoring the importance of NGOs in the democracy process, Amrani added that there is a need to insure that NGOs are credible and representative of multiple constituencies and regions. ¶4. (C) Amrani agreed with the Charge's points about the complementary nature of religion and democracy and its place in CD discussions. However, adding a strong word of caution, Amrani said that any panel discussion on this topic must not include "Islam" in the title. He underscored that any singling out of Islam vice other faiths (e.g., "The Compatibility of Islam and Democracy") would be counterproductive and interpreted by some as unduly biased, or even insulting, to Muslims. He recommended the use of "religion" in this context (e.g., "The Compatibility of Democracy and Religion") as it would refer to all religions equally. Amrani fully concurred with increased dialogue between the CD and the UN. ¶5. (C) Comment: Amrani is personally vested in the CD, having participated before. We believe Morocco will be anxious to showcase its region-leading democratic reforms, such as the recent transparent parliamentary elections. However, it will gloss over problems such as the low rate of participation in the election. We can understand his apprehensions about singling out the Islam-democracy link, and credit his advocacy of a broader approach. ***************************************** Visit Embassy Rabat's Classified Website; http://www.state.sgov.gov/p/nea/rabat ***************************************** Jackson