UNDER SECRETARY GLASSMAN'S VISIT TO MOROCCO

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 05 RABAT 001143 SIPDIS SENSITIVE STATE FOR R, S/P, S/CT, NEA/PPD AND NEA/MAG E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: PTER PHUM KISL KPAO KIRF MO SUBJECT: UNDER SECRETARY GLASSMAN'S VISIT TO MOROCCO ¶1. (SBU) SUMMARY: During his November 20-22 visit to Morocco, Under Secretary of State for Public Diplomacy and Public Affairs James Glassman conducted a variety of activities focused on providing support and productive alternatives to young people vulnerable to radicalization. The visit succeeded in conveying U.S. concerns about extremist violence in a way that generated thoughtful discourse with government officials on ways forward. In separate meetings, Moroccan Minister of Endowments and Islamic Affairs Ahmed Taufiq and the head of the "Mohammedia League of the Ulemas," Dr. Mohammed Al Abbadi, discussed religion, foreign policy, youth extremism and public diplomacy with U/S Glassman. The Minister stressed the importance of the concept of justice in Islam, and emphasized the role of U.S. foreign policy in shaping opinion. Dr. Al Abbadi engaged readily with the Under Secretary in a discussion of the power of ideas, historic "paradigm wars" in both the West and the Muslim world, and the efforts of the 'Mohammedia League' to interpret Islam for the modern era. The Under Secretary invited Dr. Al Abbadi to participate in an upcoming conference to launch the new publication "Problems of Extremism," and Al Abbadi accepted. ¶2. (U) During his Morocco stop, the Under Secretary also visited the impoverished Casablanca neighborhood where the English Access Microscholarship Program ("Access") began, and met with some of the original Access students and teachers. He also visited a Dar Chebab (youth center) to see how Peace Corps and Public Diplomacy are collaborating on youth outreach. Through representational events, Under Secretary Glassman heard from Moroccan leaders in local government, non-governmental organizations, and media, who welcomed the Under Secretary's clarification of key elements of U.S. policy in the region. Press coverage focused on the site visits, and highlighted the Under Secretary's praise of Moroccan civic and human rights reforms. End summary. ¶3. (SBU) Minister of Endowments and Islamic Affairs Ahmed Toufiq, a professor of African history, writer and novelist, welcomed the visit of U/S Glassman as an opportunity "to hear his views and ask some questions." The U/S explained his interest in helping prevent young people from going down the path of extremism and violence, and his hope that the U.S. and Morocco can expand cooperation in this area, as the two countries have been cooperating for over 200 years. He asked to learn more about what the Ministry is doing, in this area that is so important to both countries. -------------- - Minister: Integrating Religion and Development -------------- - ¶4. (SBU) According to Minister Toufiq, the events of September 11, 2001 and the May 16, 2003 bombings in Casablanca spurred an effort by the Government of Morocco to integrate religious affairs in the overall process of Moroccan development. He cited concerns about the "stability of the community, and a lagging-behind in the evolution of the religious mindset," and mentioned television as another source of confusion. In his view, extremism results from several factors, including perceptions of injustice between states, for which he sees the U.S. as partly responsible, and the turning over of religious affairs to certain groups. He said Morocco is trying to maintain the customs of its religious heritage in political life, parliament, and society. Moroccans do not consider that terrorism or violence should be a solution to injustice; yet there is a kind of Islamic fever or "flu" that is prevalent. He asserted that Morocco is a Muslim country, guided by Islamic law (Shari'a),but that the new integrative approach will make Morocco a model, in which there is no separation of state and religion, yet one is not allowed to "spoil" the other. In order to do achieve this, the Ministry wants to improve the social status of imams, and is training 1,600 religious scholars to spread out across the country to conduct training seminars for imams. ¶5. (SBU) The U/S asked about the influence of RABAT 00001143 002 OF 005 private religious schools, and the Minister agreed that some of these private establishments have been teaching that Morocco isn't following Islam properly. On the other hand, for the vast majority of students trained in the state system, the modern schools were not meeting the students' religious needs. The Minister explained that some people try to talk about "Moroccan Islam," but Morocco does not have any special Islam but rather has a particular political context, which is the view that Islamic guidance can adapt to the development of the society. ¶6. (SBU) The Minister said that "everyone is trying to exploit religion" and that therefore maintaining a kind of neutrality doesn't help political leaders [in grappling with the problem of religious extremism and its causes]. The Minister sees religion as the unifying or "gathering" element, with the King as Commander of the Faithful, the reference point. He noted that it was the King who mediated differences of religious opinion in order to put the new, liberal family code (Moudawana) in place. -------------- U.S. Policy vs. Perceptions -------------- ¶7. (SBU) The U/S expressed concern about misperceptions of American society and western intentions that create problems beyond just differences of opinion on U.S. policy. The Minister agreed that efforts to show the U.S. more positively will help. Moroccans tend to see the U.S. as a pinnacle of freedom, but at the same time, they do not know much about the U.S. When he visited the U.S., he himself found Americans to be much more like Moroccans, for example in their family life, than he expected. ¶8. (SBU) He opined, however, that the U.S. has not done enough to explain U.S. policy on Israel, for example U.S. Security Council vetoes. Everyone agrees that Israel has a right to exist, he said, but there is no reason for Israel to oppress Palestinians and violate agreements. And, therefore, U.S. efforts to talk about values and principles alone will not be very effective when they are muddied by reality, i.e., by U.S. support for injustice. In response, the U/S Glassman noted that U.S. support for the Palestinian Authority and the Palestinian people is not well-enough understood, and mentioned that the U.S. is providing USD 700 million this year in support to the Palestinian people. He also described opening a new U.S.-funded youth center in the West Bank during this trip to the region. The Minister responded that helping people was not sufficient. The U.S. needed to address the root problems. ¶9. (SBU) When the U/S asked if the Minister felt it was important for religious scholars to visit the U.S., Minister Taufiq circled back to his earlier point about American policy. Speaking as an ordinary person, he said, the U.S. needs to show leadership towards a political solution [to the Arab-Israeli conflict] that is just and fair. Exchanges are fine, and people will come away with a better impression, but it is not enough. The U.S. is the only country with the power to bring peace. He added that Morocco suffers somewhat from its traditional alliance with the U.S. In reponse, U/S Glassman pointed out that the U.S. gets criticism from around the globe for pursuing a solution the world wants, i.e., the two-state solution. He reiterated that misperception of U.S. values and intentions is an issue. The Minister politely disagreed, saying that Moroccans always thought of the U.S. as different and better than, for example, France on the issue of religious freedom and tolerance. Lately, however, with the slanders against Islam that are increasingly current in U.S. society and media, the U.S. image here is becoming more negative. ¶10. (SBU) After listening to the Under Secretary's description of a terrorist retraining/re-education program that he visited in Saudi Arabia, the Minister asserted that the situation in Morocco is RABAT 00001143 003 OF 005 completely different. The Government of Morocco is not opening a dialogue with terrorists, and does not believe this problem is a matter of religion. It is a matter of criminal acts. Morocco does not want to acknowledge that any ideology could justify such acts, he said. Listening to the U/S's comments about his visit to Colombia, the Minister emphatically agreed that religion does not imply radicalization. -------------- - Scholars Promote Reinterpretation and Outreach -------------- - ¶11. (SBU) The meeting with Dr. Ahmed Al Abbadi, Secretary General of the Mohammedia League of the Ulemas, a scholar of Comparative Religion and Islamic Thought who has taught at the University of Chicago and is a former Fulbright Fellow at DePaul University, had a different tone. Prior to his current position, Abbadi was Director of Islamic Affairs at the Ministry of Endowments and Islamic Affairs. He welcomed U/S Glassman and explained that the work of the Mohammedia League is to re- explore, intellectually, the 1400-year legacy of Islam. The League is working to re-clarify the main themes of Islam, in terms of jurisprudence, laws of interpretation, and how to deal with the texts. The League is involved with issues concerning women, and works closely with Moroccan women to find modern approaches that are nevertheless rooted in Moroccan tradition. The League has a research center and is working on funding and building a think tank. It publishes books and other materials. ¶12. (SBU) The U/S asked if Abbadi felt there had been a kind of vacuum in the past that extremist thinkers moved in and filled. Al Abbadi agreed that this had happened but noted that the pace of change in modern life is so quick that it would have been impossible for Muslim societies to anticipate and design a system for the younger generation without trying to control their thinking, which is wrong and not even possible. He agreed that Islam is adaptable, but said that, like the West, the Muslim World has experienced "paradigmatic wars." He said Islam today is struggling with two main paradigms, one that sees religion and its laws as designed to create a good society on earth in which people can live a happy life and another that sees them as a mechanism enabling the religious faithful to reach heaven. ¶13. (SBU) To explain why extremist views are currently popular, he described overlapping "wounds" that affect Muslim society today, starting with the collapse of the Ottoman empire and historic regional conflicts, and moving through western double standards, the Iraqi-Afghani "cocktail" of conflicts, and wealth disparity. All these overlapping items need to be addressed and fixed, he said. We need both reconciliation and equity. ¶14. (SBU) On the subject of Saudi King Abdallah's interfaith dialogue initiative, Al Abbadi described it as a wonderful first step. People can say it's exploitative, but there are many ways to perceive such dialogues, ranging from the most negative (studying "the other" to undermine him) to the most positive (for mutual recognition, "to enjoy the wisdom of the other.?" Unfortunately, he noted, the budgets in both Morocco and the U.S. that support this kind of dialogue are "skinny." We need chairs in our universities to do serious studies, not just look at exotic topics. In terms of curricula, he said, we need to see Americans represented in Moroccan and Saudi textbooks, as we ourselves would like to be seen represented in American texts. ¶15. (SBU) Under Secretary Glassman and Dr. Al Abbadi discussed with interest and enthusiasm various "new media" initiatives that each side is exploring. The U/S specifically mentioned the new academic journal "Problems of Extremism," modeled after old "Problems of Communism," and invited Al Abbadi to the launch conference in the first quarter of next year -- an invitation that Al Abbadi graciously accepted. ¶16. (SBU) At the end of the meeting, Al Abbadi RABAT 00001143 004 OF 005 spoke movingly about the global impact of the recent U.S. elections. Once again, he said, the U.S. showed that "yes we can," and that big things are both feasible and possible. "Is Barack Obama himself perfect, the only one who can lead America? No, of course not, that's not the point. The point is that humans are flexible and can transcend the past, which is something that America has once again demonstrated to the rest of the world." -------------- Where "Access" Was Born -------------- ¶17. (U) In Casablanca, Under Secretary Glassman visited Sidi Moumen, the impoverished suburb that was home to Morocco's May 2003 suicide bombers. While there, he met with several of the original students and teachers in the first-ever English Access Microscholarship Program ("Access"),which then-Ambassador Margaret Tutwiler put in place to help provide economically disadvantaged students with essential job skills and intercultural understanding. All spoke movingly and with enthusiasm of the difference Access had made in their own lives and in their communities. Since 2003, the program has grown to include 1,500 students currently enrolled in Morocco, and similar programs in 54 other countries around the globe. The U/S also watched a play performed by girls and boys about the social and economic pressures that can drive young people to extremist groups. The Idmaj Cultural Center is a beneficiary of support from the Casablanca-Chicago Sister Cities linkage. U/S Glassman presented the Center with an additional collection of Arabic language books and some soccer balls. -------------- PAS and Peace Corps Collaboration -------------- ¶18. (U) In Tiflet, a town of about 60,000 residents located between Rabat and Meknes, the Under Secretary visited one of the youth centers (Dar Chebabs) staffed by Peace Corps Volunteers. A husband-and-wife Peace Corps team has been helping local boys and girls with English, life skills, and afterschool clubs and activities for the past two years, and this visit turned into an occasion for the entire community to celebrate their efforts as they prepare to return to the U.S. Some of the young people (as well as both Volunteers) had participated in one of the PAS-funded Peace Corps summer camps and spoke enthusiastically of that experience. They also presented a play on the risk of AIDS, showed off the products of the journalism club, and engaged in a lively and fun Q&A with the Under Secretary. The Under Secretary presented a PAS English language teaching kit to the Dar Chebab, along with books and posters in English, Arabic, and French. ¶19. (U) Two local TV stations (semi-private 2M and government SNRT) plus Al Hurra covered U/S Glassman's visit to Sidi Moumen, highlighting comments by local residents about the positive impact of Access and other U.S.-Moroccan partnership efforts such as Sister Cities. Print media focused largely on the Tiflet stop, drawing on a Moroccan Press Agency report highlighting the Under Secretary's comment that Moroccan civic reforms in recent years have made it a pioneer in the region, notably through its new family code that exemplifies the enlargement of civic freedoms. Print media also noted the now-global "Access" English language program and its origins in Sidi Moumen, Casasblanca; the "Yes" exchange program; Peace Corps youth outreach efforts; and other U.S. public diplomacy programs. ¶20. (U) Rounding out the Under Secretary's visit were two representational events for key public diplomacy interlocutors, one hosted by Ambassador Riley in Rabat and one by Consul General Millard in Casablanca. Among others, guests included the young editor of Morocco's Islamist newspaper (and a former Fulbright fellow); the director of a major NGO that promotes education through information technology; the host of a daily radio program on Islam and RABAT 00001143 005 OF 005 women's health issues within an Islamic framework; the mayor of Sidi Moumen; the founder of a very popular arts and culture center; the producer of a hugely popular TV competition to select and train Morocco's best young soccer players; and the Secretary General of the Ministry of Youth and Sports. These influential men and women appreciated the Under Secretary's clear, nuanced, and positive discussion of U.S. foreign policy in the region, as well as his evident interest in their own efforts to engage Moroccan young people and provide them with a better and more hopeful future. ¶21. (U) U/S Glassman has cleared this cable. Riley