HABIB SALEH SENTENCED TO THREE YEARS IN PRISON

C O N F I D E N T I A L DAMASCUS 000210

SIPDIS

PARIS FOR WALLER, LONDON FOR TSOU

E.O. 12958: DECL: 03/18/2019
TAGS: PHUM PGOV PREL SY
SUBJECT: HABIB SALEH SENTENCED TO THREE YEARS IN PRISON

REF: DAMASCUS 00165

Classified By: CDA Maura Connelly for reasons 1.4 (b) and (d)


1. (SBU) SUMMARY: Internet-dissident Habib Saleh was
sentenced to three years in prison on March 15 by the Second
Criminal Court in Damascus on the charges of weakening
national sentiment. French, Canadian, Swedish, Norwegian,
Swiss and Danish Embassy representatives were also present.
The highest level of diplomatic representation was the
Canadian Embassy's First Secretary. END SUMMARY.

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BACKGROUND
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2. (SBU) Habib Saleh was taken into detention on May 7, 2008
(not October 16, as previously reported, reftel) in Tartus
for writings deemed threateningly subversive to the country.
This was Saleh's fifth arrest since 1982 for political
activities. He was accused of "inciting civil and religious
dissent," "weakening national feeling," and "spreading false
information."


3. (C) Saleh, known for his high rhetorical style, defended
himself in the Second Criminal Court on March 1 with a
lengthy argument pre-planned with his lawyer Muhanad
al-Hasani (strictly protect),who is also head of the Syrian
Organization for Human Rights--Swasiah. In his defense,
Saleh asserted his innocence on all charges. Hasani told us
he had feared the court would penalize Saleh were he to argue
his case in a highly intellectual style, so he and Saleh
worked out the details of the defense's argument in advance
of the trial. Under Syrian law, Hasani informed us, either
the defendant or the defense counsel may argue before the bar
(but not both) during the defense phase of a trial. Though
Saleh requested to speak in his own defense, Hasani was
present before the judge throughout the trial.


4. (SBU) Speaking from a barred cage at the back of the small
courtroom, Saleh argued the charges against him remained
unsubstantiated by the court and that since he was one man,
and "only a writer," it was inconceivable he should be
accused of trying to instigate sectarian violence in Syria.
Saleh pointed out the charge was more appropriate for a group
like "al-Qaeda." The thrust of his writings, he claimed, was
to promote people's right to freedom. He asked the court
directly how he, as an Alawi, could be accused of being
sectarian when he had sold his own home and donated the money
to victims in Iraq and Palestine. The judge interrupted
Saleh throughout his defense statement, warning him against
inserting political opinions into his argument. When Saleh
finished, the judge asked whether he would plead for mercy
from the court. His lawyer, Hasani, asked the court to show
mercy, but Saleh interjected he wished not for mercy, but for
justice. He added, "if this court is truly independent, it
will find me innocent."

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THE VERDICT
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5. (SBU) In a hearing that lasted approximately five minutes
on March 15, the Second Criminal Court of Damascus sentenced
Saleh to five years in prison under articles 285 and 286 of
the Syria penal code and then immediately commuted it to
three years. Article 285 stipulates that in Syria, whoever
does anything aimed at weakening national morale, or inciting
racist or sectarian feelings during a time of war, will be
punished with imprisonment. Article 286 states that anyone
who knowingly spreads false news aimed at achieving the ends
articulated in article 285 will be punished with imprisonment.


6. (C) Swedish DCM Martina Quick (strictly protect) told us
on March 18 that the EU was considering issuing a statement
on the Saleh verdict, though this information was still very
close-hold. She asked whether the U.S. would do the same.
When we told her no formal decision had been made at this
point to do so, she expressed surprise, saying that in the
past we had been more active than the EU in issuances of this
sort. We responded that we were a bit surprised with the EU
move under consideration, as the EU approach generally veered
away from public statements on these cases. We explained
that Washington had not ruled out making a statement, but it
was weighing the timing, especially since there were other
high-profile sentencing hearings scheduled for this month and
it would be impractical to release statements after each one.


7. (C) COMMENT: Saleh's sentence was not unexpected; most
activists expected somewhere between three and five years.
We note Saleh's trial, unlike the trial of the Damascus
Declaration National Council members and the current Meshaal
Tammo hearings, was not attended by many civil society
activists. We have heard the reason for this might be
because Saleh is from outside of Damascus and does not enjoy
much of a constituency in the human rights community. Tammo
is not from Damascus either, but Kurdish solidarity
apparently produces larger crowds. We will follow-up with
our EU counterparts to find out whether they will go forward
with a statement. If the EU confirms it will issue a
statement, Post recommends a statement in which we join our
concerns on human rights to theirs. In the absence of an EU
statement, Post recommends revisiting whether a public
statement is warranted after Meshaal Tammo's sentencing on
March 25. END COMMENT.
CONNELLY