Identifier
Created
Classification
Origin
09KHARTOUM796
2009-06-29 13:30:00
UNCLASSIFIED//FOR OFFICIAL USE ONLY
Embassy Khartoum
Cable title:
MEDIA REACTION: COVERAGE OF VERDICTS AND SENTENCING
how-toVZCZCXRO1400 OO RUEHBC RUEHDE RUEHDH RUEHGI RUEHKUK RUEHMA RUEHROV RUEHTRO DE RUEHKH #0796 1801330 ZNR UUUUU ZZH O 291330Z JUN 09 FM AMEMBASSY KHARTOUM TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC IMMEDIATE 4010 INFO RUCNFUR/DARFUR COLLECTIVE RUEHGG/UN SECURITY COUNCIL COLLECTIVE RUEHEE/ARAB LEAGUE COLLECTIVE RHMFISS/CJTF HOA
UNCLAS KHARTOUM 000796
DEPT FOR SE GRATION, S/USSES, AF A/S CARSON, AF/C, AF/PDPA
IIP/G/AF, PA/PRS/RRU-AF
NSC FOR MGAVIN
DEPT PLS PASS USAID FOR AFR/SUDAN
ADDIS ABABA ALSO FOR USAU
SENSITIVE
SIPDIS
E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: PGOV PREL KPKO SOCI ASEC KPAO OIIP AU SU
SUBJECT: MEDIA REACTION: COVERAGE OF VERDICTS AND SENTENCING
UNCLAS KHARTOUM 000796
DEPT FOR SE GRATION, S/USSES, AF A/S CARSON, AF/C, AF/PDPA
IIP/G/AF, PA/PRS/RRU-AF
NSC FOR MGAVIN
DEPT PLS PASS USAID FOR AFR/SUDAN
ADDIS ABABA ALSO FOR USAU
SENSITIVE
SIPDIS
E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: PGOV PREL KPKO SOCI ASEC KPAO OIIP AU SU
SUBJECT: MEDIA REACTION: COVERAGE OF VERDICTS AND SENTENCING
1. (U) SUMMARY: The state-influenced Khartoum press corps provided
detailed, factual coverage of the June 24 courtroom verdicts and
sentencing of the five men accused of the January 1, 2008 murders of
two U.S. Embassy employees. Notable by their absence was the dearth
of editorials and op-eds on this subject. END SUMMARY.
2. (U) Most of Khartoum's newspapers echoed the official line of the
state-run Sudanese Media Center, whose matter-of-fact headline on
June 25 proclaimed that the "Court Issues Death Sentence Against
Four Convicts and Imprisonment of the Fifth One in the Granville
Assassination Case." Some media, including the pro-government
"Al-Intibaha" and "Akhir Lahza" newspapers, took note of the fact
that the U.S. had reacted with official pronouncements on the
verdicts and sentencing, with front-page headlines such as "America
Hails Death Sentence Handed Down on the Defendants of the Granville
Trial" and "U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton Lauds Death
Sentence for Granville's Assassinators."
3. (U) Many newspapers chose to run a picture of the four men
sentenced to death exiting the court on June 24 with their hands
held high, shouting "God is Great!" The picture (available online
at http://tinyurl.com/n5jzd8) ran without commentary, with a factual
run-down of the events at the trial.
4. (U) Only "Al-Khartoum," a relatively independent newspaper, had
anything close to a commentary on the sentencing. A columnist
wrote that "if death sentences do not serve the purpose of deterring
others, they are meaningless" and that "Granville's case will not be
the last in Sudan."
5. (SBU) COMMENT: The dearth of commentary could be due to renewed
hopes of improved relations with the United States and the close
timing of the trial verdict with the Comprehensive Peace Agreement
forum in Washington. It is possible that for this reason Khartoum's
notorious censors struck all opinion reporting from media,
especially that critical of the verdict and sentencing of the men
convicted of the murders of USAID Khartoum's John Granville and his
driver Abdelrahman Abbas Rahama. END COMMENT.
WHITEHEAD
DEPT FOR SE GRATION, S/USSES, AF A/S CARSON, AF/C, AF/PDPA
IIP/G/AF, PA/PRS/RRU-AF
NSC FOR MGAVIN
DEPT PLS PASS USAID FOR AFR/SUDAN
ADDIS ABABA ALSO FOR USAU
SENSITIVE
SIPDIS
E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: PGOV PREL KPKO SOCI ASEC KPAO OIIP AU SU
SUBJECT: MEDIA REACTION: COVERAGE OF VERDICTS AND SENTENCING
1. (U) SUMMARY: The state-influenced Khartoum press corps provided
detailed, factual coverage of the June 24 courtroom verdicts and
sentencing of the five men accused of the January 1, 2008 murders of
two U.S. Embassy employees. Notable by their absence was the dearth
of editorials and op-eds on this subject. END SUMMARY.
2. (U) Most of Khartoum's newspapers echoed the official line of the
state-run Sudanese Media Center, whose matter-of-fact headline on
June 25 proclaimed that the "Court Issues Death Sentence Against
Four Convicts and Imprisonment of the Fifth One in the Granville
Assassination Case." Some media, including the pro-government
"Al-Intibaha" and "Akhir Lahza" newspapers, took note of the fact
that the U.S. had reacted with official pronouncements on the
verdicts and sentencing, with front-page headlines such as "America
Hails Death Sentence Handed Down on the Defendants of the Granville
Trial" and "U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton Lauds Death
Sentence for Granville's Assassinators."
3. (U) Many newspapers chose to run a picture of the four men
sentenced to death exiting the court on June 24 with their hands
held high, shouting "God is Great!" The picture (available online
at http://tinyurl.com/n5jzd8) ran without commentary, with a factual
run-down of the events at the trial.
4. (U) Only "Al-Khartoum," a relatively independent newspaper, had
anything close to a commentary on the sentencing. A columnist
wrote that "if death sentences do not serve the purpose of deterring
others, they are meaningless" and that "Granville's case will not be
the last in Sudan."
5. (SBU) COMMENT: The dearth of commentary could be due to renewed
hopes of improved relations with the United States and the close
timing of the trial verdict with the Comprehensive Peace Agreement
forum in Washington. It is possible that for this reason Khartoum's
notorious censors struck all opinion reporting from media,
especially that critical of the verdict and sentencing of the men
convicted of the murders of USAID Khartoum's John Granville and his
driver Abdelrahman Abbas Rahama. END COMMENT.
WHITEHEAD