MOROCCO: (ISLAMIST) PJD LEADER DISCUSSES

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 RABAT 000549 SIPDIS SIPDIS E.O. 12958: DECL: 03/26/2017 TAGS: PGOV PTER KISL MO SUBJECT: MOROCCO: (ISLAMIST) PJD LEADER DISCUSSES ELECTIONS, GOVERNANCE, AND TERRORISM REF: A. RABAT 0225 ¶B. 06 RABAT 1883 ¶C. 06 RABAT 1621 Classified by Political Counselor Craig Karp for Reasons 1.4 (b) and (d). ¶1. (C) Summary: Abdallah Baha, Deputy Secretary-General of Morocco's (Islamist) Party of Justice and Development (PJD), complained to poloff during a mid-March meeting that the party believed the electoral system was unfairly tilted against them. He said the party nonetheless expects to do well in the September parliamentary elections and did not exclude PJD participation in a governing coalition. Baha rejected claims that the PJD would "turn back the clock" with regressive Islamist social policies. He insisted that the party's program of economic and educational reforms, and its Islamic credibility, put the PJD in a strong position to lead the fight against terrorism. Baha urged the U.S. to review its approach to the region, arguing that a timetable for withdrawal in Iraq would undermine Al-Qaeda's strength. Baha's views generally paralleled those we have heard from other PJD interlocutors (reftels). End summary. -------------- PJD Unhappy with Electoral Framework... -------------- ¶2. (C) Abdallah Baha, Deputy Secretary-General of the Islamist Justice and Development Party (PJD) received poloff at party headquarters in Rabat on March 16. Baha complained that Morocco's electoral system was deeply flawed, favoring continued "balkanization" of the political landscape (there are currently 11 different parties represented in the 325-seat lower house),and allowing money to exert undue influence on election results. Baha was particularly critical of the government's recent rearrangement of electoral districts, which raised the total number of districts from 91 to 95, and reallocated a number of seats from PJD strongholds in urban centers to rural areas where nationalist and left parties have the upper hand. There is no question that the PJD was the principal target of this initiative, he asserted. ¶3. (C) Baha pointed to the numerous bad entries in the voter registry and expressed doubt that the Interior Ministry would do a comprehensive job in cleaning up the list. (Note: The Interior Ministry has announced it will be processing corrections to the voter registry in April and May. End note.) Baha also underlined the PJD's view that the elections should be administered by an independent commission rather than the Interior Ministry, and that civil society organizations should be given every opportunity to monitor all stages of the process. "We must defend democracy against interference from private interests and contamination by political and financial corruption," he affirmed. -------------- ...But Ready to Play Ball Anyway -------------- ¶4. (C) In spite of the PJD's grievances about Morocco's "flawed" elections system, Baha was clear that the party will compete aggressively for lower house seats in the September elections, and that the party expects to do well. "If the PJD is strong, it is because other parties are weak. We are just another political party in Morocco, but (unlike the others) we are well organized, accountable, transparent." He predicted the party would take "60 to 70" of the lower house's 325 seats. This potential result did not represent the party's true strength, Baha opined, but the system as structured diffuses the popular vote and prevents any party from gaining an outright majority. -------------- To Govern or Oppose -------------- ¶5. (C) Baha repeated what we have heard from other PJD leaders on the party's position that it would leave open the option of joining a governing coalition after the next elections. Agreeing to join a government will depend on what understandings the party can establish with potential coalition partners. "But we will not join for the sake of joining," he emphasized. (Comment: Party leader Saadeddine Al-Othmani used the same phrasing at a public meeting in Casablanca in early March. In a recent media interview, Othmani allowed that if the PJD did end up joining a coalition, the Ministries they would be most interested in getting were Justice, Administrative Reform, and Education. We view this as an opening position in any potential negotiations. End comment.) RABAT 00000549 002 OF 002 -------------- Not Turning Back the Clock -------------- ¶6. (C) Baha categorically rejected charges by critics that the PJD would pursue a regressive Islamist social agenda if it came to power. "Not all of our women wear hijab (hair covering)," he asserted. (Comment: All of the women we saw at PJD headquarters (as in other PJD fora) wore hijab. End comment.) We do not believe the state should impose hijab, but we are totally against France, which banned it (from public schools). "We will never be Iran, and we will never be Saudi Arabia," that is not our approach, he asserted. ¶7. (C) Asked whether the PJD might pursue legislation to ban alcohol, Baha maintained that there is already a law on the books forbidding the sale of alcohol to Muslims, but the state has historically not enforced it. Queried about the potential impact of an alcohol ban on the tourism industry, Baha implied that the party could tolerate the presence of alcohol in a tourist context, but complained about a "requirement" that hoteliers serve alcohol in order to qualify for "star" designations. "Some Muslim investors wish to build hotels that do not serve alcohol. They should be allowed to do so." -------------- Fight Terrorism with Islamism -------------- ¶8. (C) Asked about the increasing number of Salafist terrorist cells identified and dismantled in Morocco, and the abortive March 11 terrorist attack in Casablanca, Baha said the incidents highlighted the threat of terrorism but in no way put the PJD on the defensive. "They tried and failed to attach blame to us" after the Casablanca bombings in 2003 but "the people were smarter," they know the difference between Islam and terrorism, he asserted. The PJD, with strong societal credentials as Muslims, is better positioned than most to tackle terrorism, Baha maintained. Fixing the educational system, fighting corruption, and reforming the economy were all keys to winning the struggle against terrorism in the long run, he stated. ¶9. (C) Baha closed by underlining the PJD's strong concerns about U.S. policy in the region, which he maintained were exacerbating the threat from terrorism. "The U.S. must change its policies to win the confidence of Muslims. We are in different countries but we all belong to the same 'Umma' (nation). When we see suffering in Iraq or Palestine, we feel it in Indonesia and in Morocco." The U.S. should establish a timetable for withdrawal from Iraq, Baha urged. "You must separate and isolate Al-Qaeda from the insurgency. The Iraqis will turn on Al-Qaeda once the occupation is gone," he predicted. ****************************************** Visit Embassy Rabat's Classified Website; http://www.state.sgov.gov/p/nea/rabat ****************************************** Riley