EMBASSY GABON'S OUTREACH FOR THE PRESIDENT'S

UNCLAS LIBREVILLE 000269 SIPDIS E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: KDEM KPAO PGOV PREL SUBJECT: EMBASSY GABON'S OUTREACH FOR THE PRESIDENT'S MESSAGE TO THE MUSLIM WORLD REF: SECSTATE 055334 ¶1. (U) In response to REFTEL, post hosted twelve local religious leaders at the Ambassador,s residence to watch the speech delivered at Cairo University on June 4. Reactions to the speech were uniformly positive. Post specifically targeted religious leaders, with the majority being influential Muslim leaders. Additionally, a Catholic priest and a Protestant minister attended the viewing. After the speech the Ambassador welcomed comments. The most senior Imam (a former participant in the international visitor program) led the discussion by noting how &effective8 the President was in emphasizing the commonalities among Islam, Christianity, and Judaism. The priest in attendance echoed those thoughts, noting that &President Obama is unifying people across countries and faiths.8 Other comments by Muslim attendees focused on their respect for the President,s use of text from the Qu,ran and his frankness in discussing the challenges that face Israel and the Palestinians. ¶2. (U) Embassy Gabon presented French and Arabic translations of the speech to local Mosques and Muslim leaders in advance of Friday prayers. Some of the attendees of the viewing told the Ambassador that they were eager to use the speech in their discussions with the local Muslim community. Translations were also sent to other embassies in Libreville and governmental leaders. The Embassy released a press statement notifying the Gabonese of the speech and its importance, and publicized the link on the internet site with the speech in French. -------------- Comment -------------- ¶3. (SBU) Gabon is predominantly a Catholic country. While President Bongo is Muslim (as is his son, the defense minister),Gabon,s Muslim population is less than 12%, and much of that population is expatriate West Africans working in Gabon. With Islam being a small minority of the Gabonese population, it is not surprising that attendees of the viewing focused on the President,s messages of cooperation, peace and commonality between faiths. President Obama is very popular in Gabon, and reactions to his speech suggest his popularity remains high. REDDICK