Identifier
Created
Classification
Origin
09RABAT300
2009-04-07 19:06:00
UNCLASSIFIED//FOR OFFICIAL USE ONLY
Embassy Rabat
Cable title:  

SCENESETTER FOR CODEL LYNCH

Tags:  OREP EFIN PGOV PREL KDEM MO 
pdf how-to read a cable
VZCZCXRO1928
PP RUEHTRO
DE RUEHRB #0300/01 0971906
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
P 071906Z APR 09
FM AMEMBASSY RABAT
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 9955
INFO RUCNMGH/MAGHREB COLLECTIVE
RUEHNE/AMEMBASSY NEW DELHI 0113
RUEHTV/AMEMBASSY TEL AVIV 3568
RUEHDE/AMCONSUL DUBAI 0160
RUEHIT/AMCONSUL ISTANBUL 0093
RUEHJM/AMCONSUL JERUSALEM 1978
RUEHBI/AMCONSUL MUMBAI 0017
UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 04 RABAT 000300 

SIPDIS
SENSITIVE

STATE FOR H, NEA/RA AND NEA/MAG
NEW DELHI AND MUMBAI PLEASE PASS TO LYNCH DELEGATION

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: OREP EFIN PGOV PREL KDEM MO
SUBJECT: SCENESETTER FOR CODEL LYNCH

REF: A. STATE 029978 (NOTAL)

B. RABAT 0280 (NOTAL)

RABAT 00000300 001.2 OF 004


UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 04 RABAT 000300

SIPDIS
SENSITIVE

STATE FOR H, NEA/RA AND NEA/MAG
NEW DELHI AND MUMBAI PLEASE PASS TO LYNCH DELEGATION

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: OREP EFIN PGOV PREL KDEM MO
SUBJECT: SCENESETTER FOR CODEL LYNCH

REF: A. STATE 029978 (NOTAL)

B. RABAT 0280 (NOTAL)

RABAT 00000300 001.2 OF 004



1. (SBU) Summary: Representative Lynch, we warmly welcome
you and your delegation to Morocco. The Kingdom of Morocco,
one of our strongest allies in the Broader Middle East and
North Africa (BMENA),is a country "on the move", in the
throes, albeit unevenly, of change and reform. Morocco has
undertaken recent steps to strengthen its abilities to combat
terrorist financing and money laundering. Economic growth
has averaged about five percent per year and investment,
tourism and remittances have boomed in recent years, although
the global financial crisis threatens these important sources
of income. Slums are coming down, and according to official
statistics, so is unemployment. Freedom of the press has
expanded to a level not seen here ever before and beyond the
rest of the region, but there are still some restrictions,
and those who challenge them can suffer heavy fines, libel
judgments and more rarely, jail. Political freedoms have
grown as well, although they remain constrained by a system
with roots going back hundreds of years. Neither the
Parliament nor the 33 political parties with seats in it have
much power. Most voters stayed away from the last
parliamentary election, in 2007, which saw the first
international observation ever, largely achieved and funded
by the U.S. The Government recently agreed with political
parties on reserving for female candidates approximately
3,000 seats (12 percent) of local council positions up for
election in June, an effort we are supporting through
candidate training. Additional reforms could lead to
democracy, but, with stability a priority, it could take
decades. Morocco's top priority in foreign relations is
pursuing international support for its claims to Western
Sahara. End Summary.

--------------
Money Laundering and Terrorist Financing
--------------

2. (SBU) In 2008, Morocco implemented elements of a
comprehensive anti-money laundering (AML) bill passed in May
2007 that provides the legal basis for monitoring,
investigating, and prosecuting illegal financial activities.

The new law allows for freezing suspect accounts and permits
the prosecution of terrorist finance related crimes. The law
also calls for the establishment of a Financial Intelligence
Unit (FIU),which is currently in the early stages of
developing its structure and recruiting personnel. In fact,
the formal announcement of its creation is tentatively
scheduled for April 10, the day of your visit. U.S. and EU
technical assistance programs are already providing Moroccan
police, customs, central bank, and other government financial
officials with training to recognize money laundering
methodologies, and the U.S. Department of the Treasury Office
of Technical Assistance has recently sent a letter to the
Government of Morocco (GOM) inviting proposals for further
collaboration.


3. (SBU) Cash-based, informal transactions and remittances
from abroad fuel Morocco's informal sector. The monetary
authorities in Morocco are the Ministry of Economy and
Finance and the central bank (Bank Al Maghreb),which
monitors and regulates the banking system. A key aspect of
the AML legislation is an increase in responsibility for all
entities, both public and private, to report suspect fund
transfers. Although it will likely take years for the AML
legislation and FIU to have an appreciable effect toward
curbing money laundering in Morocco, both are seen as
positive developments.


4. (SBU) Morocco has a relatively effective system for
disseminating U.S. Government and UN Security Council
Resolution terrorist freeze lists to its financial sector and
legal authorities. Morocco has provided timely reports
requested by the UN Sanctions Committee and, as a result, has
frozen some terrorist-related accounts. In January, Morocco
co-hosted with the U.S. Treasury a Targeted Economic
Sanctions Workshop for North African countries to promote the
implementation of economic sanctions regimes and awareness of
the UN 1267 sanctions processes. Morocco is a party to the
UN International Convention for the Suppression of Financing
of Terrorism, and the UN Convention against Transnational
Organized Crime. Morocco is a charter member of the Middle

RABAT 00000300 002.2 OF 004


East and North Africa Financial Action Task Force (MENAFATF)
that was inaugurated in Bahrain in November 2004, which
continues to push for regional transparency and regulatory
reforms of the financial sector.

--------------
Economics, Trade and Assistance
--------------


5. (SBU) The economy is relatively healthy, although marred
by disparities in wealth. Growth is expected to be above
five percent this year, despite the global economic slowdown,
thanks to anticipated bumper harvests. Moroccan authorities
are concerned, however, about the risk of more serious
impacts on important export, tourism, and remittance earnings
if the global recession continues. Since implementation of
the U.S.-Morocco Free Trade Agreement (FTA) on January 1,
2006, bilateral commerce has more than doubled. U.S. firms
are increasing their investment in Morocco, seeing new
markets develop as a result of the FTA. USAID, the
Department of Commerce's Commercial Law Development Program
and the U.S. Trade and Development Agency (USTDA) conduct
technical assistance projects to assist Morocco to create an
open trading environment and fully develop its potential.
However, significant export growth to U.S. and other markets
will also depend on Morocco's ability to capture a larger
share of "value added" in its export products. Targeted
assistance programs from USAID, USTDA and the Middle East
Partnership Initiative (MEPI) aim at improving Morocco's
ability to produce and market its exports in key sectors.


6. (SBU) We are focusing our bilateral assistance to Morocco
on youth and women, targeting four prorities: economic
growth, counterterrorism, demoracy and governance, and
supporting quality educaion. U.S. assistance includes
projects under th Millennium Challenge Account (MCA),USAID
and MPI. In 2007,the U.S. and Morocco signed a five-yer,
USD 697.5 million MCA Compact to reduce poverty and increase
economic growth. The five-year clock started ticking on
September 15, 2008, with the Entry into Force of the Compact.
The MCA will support five major projects selected for their
potential to increase productivity and improve employment in
high potential ectors of Morocco's economy: Fruit Tree
Productvity, Small Scale Fisheries, Crafts, Financial
Srvices, and Enterprise Support.


7. (SBU) In Octber, Morocco signed an Advanced Status
Agreementwith the European Union, which could give Morocco
complete free market access to the European Econoic Area
when finally implemented. It also provies for greater
coordination on other issues. Morcco also participates in
French President Sarkoz's nascent Mediterranean Union.

--------------
Governanceand Human Rights
--------------


8. (SBU) Prime Minister Abas El Fassi's government, formed
after the Septeber 2007 legislative elections, is built on a
miority parliamentary coalition. The government, filed
with young technocrats from within and outsie El Fassi,s
Istiqlal (Independence) party, has erformed better than many
expected, and looks capble of a full term despite its
minority status. Internal democracy is growing within
political prties. A political formation founded by Fouad
Ali El Himma, an intimate of the King, has evolved into a new
Party of Authenticity and Modernity (PAM) by grouping
together several smaller parties. It has now constituted the
largest political bloc in Parliament and could lead should
the current coalition falter. We currently see no prospect
for a significant shift in Morocco's foreign and security
policies. However, neither Parliament nor the Prime Minister
has much say in these issues, which are managed by the Throne
directly with concerned ministries.


9. (SBU) Morocco's political parties and the bicameral
parliament are weak and structurally hamstrung from taking
legislative initiatives or strongly articulating dissent.
The Parliament provides no effective check on the monarchy or
government. Changing the Constitution would be necessary to
change the power imbalance and institute formal democracy,
but both Parliament and parties will likely have to improve

RABAT 00000300 003.2 OF 004


their capacity and performance first. Nonetheless, both
parties and Parliament have made some technical improvements,
largely thanks to U.S.-funded programs from the National
Democratic Institute (NDI) and the State University of New
York (SUNY),which have modestly improved the body's
administrative capacity. These include establishment of a
budget analysis office, a verbatim transcription service, and
a consistent forum for training and debate among
parliamentary members and staff.


10. (SBU) Although the September 2007 parliamentary
elections were the most transparent in the country's history,
record low participation, i.e., 37 percent of registered
voters, reflects the lack of voter confidence in the
institution. MEPI financed NDI to run the first ever
international voting observation. In January, the Government
of Morocco reached an agreement with political parties to
reserve 12 percent of the seats in June,s local and
municipal council elections, approximately 3,000 elected
positions, for female candidates. The Mission is supporting
a MEPI-funded joint NDI and International Republican
Institute (IRI) project to train women to effectively run for
office to take advantage of the opportunity.


11. (SBU) King Mohammed VI has embarked on an ambitious and
continuous program of human rights reforms that includes the
Arab world's first truth commission, a revised family code
and growing governmental transparency and accountability.
Last year some incidents of concern related to freedoms of
expression and press occurred. Although Morocco is a leader
of reform in the region, the reforms are still not deeply
rooted in law or the Constitution and could be rolled back.
Continued support and encouragement from partners like the
United States and Europe are essential.


12. (SBU) The Moroccan Constitution provides for the freedom
to practice one's religion, although Islam is the official
state religion. The Government of Morocco prohibits the
distribution of non-Muslim religious materials, and bans all
non-Sunni Islamic proselytizing, but tolerates several small
religious minorities. It also occasionally restricts Islamic
organizations whose activities have exceeded the bounds of
"acceptable religious practice" and become political in
nature. Morocco is protective of the tiny remnant of its
once substantial Jewish minority.

-------------- --
Counterterrorism and Counter-Narcotics Programs
-------------- --


13. (SBU) Because of its increasingly tourism-dependent
economy, Morocco remains economically vulnerable to the
effects of terrorism. The Government of Morocco's
implementation of a comprehensive counterterrorism strategy
emphasizing vigilant security measures,
counter-radicalization policies, and robust international
cooperation has been largely successful in containing the
threat to date. The threat emanates especially from small
grassroots radical Islamic cells, which have shown some
capacity to cause attacks, but there have been no successful
suicide bombings since the ones outside the U.S. Consulate
General and the private American Language Center in
Casablanca in April 2007. During 2008, the security forces
dismantled six terrorist and foreign fighter cells and began
prosecutions of 100 suspected terrorists.


14. (SBU) Under the King, who as "Commander of the Faithful"
leads Moroccan Muslims and Jews, Morocco has standardized
religious doctrine, consolidated control over religious
schools, and sent specially trained imams to Europe to preach
moderate messages to the Moroccan diaspora. The vast
majority of Morocco's population rejects Salafist and
Wahhabist approaches to Islam and does not support terrorist
groups.


15. (SBU) The Government of Morocco has achieved significant
reductions in cannabis and cannabis resin production in
recent years, although it remains Europe's primary supplier.
Little, if any, is exported to the U.S.

--------------
Military Modernization and Peacekeeping

RABAT 00000300 004.2 OF 004


--------------


16. (SBU) The Moroccan Royal Armed Forces are modernizing
but remain burdened by corruption, inefficient bureaucracy,
and political marginalization. The U.S. enjoys a robust
military relationship, as evidenced by increased
U.S.-Moroccan military training exercises and Morocco's
purchase of sophisticated weapons from the U.S., to include
24 F-16s (a counter to an earlier Algerian purchase of
advanced aircraft from Russia),24 T-6 trainer aircraft and
up to 200 M1A1 Abrams tanks. These purchases point to a
likely future reform of military doctrine, along with greater
prospects for positive engagement with the U.S.


17. (SBU) The Government of Morocco has robust experience in
the realm of peacekeeping operations dating back to the
1960s. It has signed on to Operation Active Endeavor and is
contributing to peacekeeping operations in Kosovo, under NATO
leadership. Morocco also partnered with NATO in peacekeeping
operations in Bosnia and with the United Nations in Angola,
Cambodia, Haiti and Somalia. Current UN deployments are in
the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Cote d'Ivoire. The
Government of Morocco has expressed interest in expanding its
peacekeeping capacity.

--------------
Algeria and Western Sahara
--------------


18. (SBU) The Moroccan relationship with Algeria is
difficult, and the border between the two countries was
closed by Algeria in 1994 and remains closed. While the King
and other government officials have publicly proposed opening
the border and upgrading bilateral relations between the two
countries, their entreaties have been repeatedly rebuffed.
The Government of Algeria has linked progress on the border
to "all issues," particularly the Western Sahara.


19. (SBU) Moroccan foreign policy is dominated by defending
and seeking international recognition of its sovereignty
claims over Western Sahara. The issue remains the most
visible source of tension with Algeria, which has
historically supported the Polisario's quest for independence
by way of a UN-sponsored referendum. The issue led Morocco
to leave the African Union and has been an obstacle to
regional integration through the Arab Maghreb Union. In
April 2007, Morocco proposed a new autonomy plan for Western
Sahara, and a series of UN-sponsored negotiations with the
Polisario began in Manhasset, New York. The Moroccan
proposal, deemed "serious and credible" by the U.S., would
provide Sahrawis, the indigenous people of Western Sahara,
autonomy in administering local affairs while respecting
Moroccan sovereignty over the territory. There have been
four rounds of talks but none since March 2008. After the
April 2008 renewal of the mandate of the UN peacekeeping
mission, the U.S. announced it considered independence for
the territory "not realistic." Following the controversial
lapsing of the contract of the former UN Secretary General's
Personal Envoy, the UN selected retired U.S. Ambassador Chris
Ross to be the new Personal Envoy.


20. (SBU) Western Sahara experienced gross violations of
human rights from 1975 until the end of King Hassan II,s
regime in 1999, and repression intensified after the
short-lived Sahrawi "intifada" of 2005. Since late 2006,
Morocco has slowly improved the human rights situation in the
territories. Arbitrary arrests have sharply diminished, and
physical abuse by security forces had all but disappeared
until early 2009. Even dissenters now can travel freely.
They cannot, however, publish or speak publicly in support of
independence, or a vote on self-determination. In 2008, some
known abusers were transferred, further easing the situation.


*****************************************
Visit Embassy Rabat's Classified Website;
http://www.intelink.sgov.gov/wiki/Portal:Moro cco
*****************************************

Jackson