Identifier
Created
Classification
Origin
09RABAT587
2009-07-09 16:57:00
CONFIDENTIAL
Embassy Rabat
Cable title:  

VERDICT IN QADHAFI DEFAMATION CASES PUTS GOM IN

Tags:  PHUM PREL KDEM KPAO EAID KMPI LY MO 
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VZCZCXRO9851
PP RUEHROV
DE RUEHRB #0587/01 1901657
ZNY CCCCC ZZH
P 091657Z JUL 09
FM AMEMBASSY RABAT
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 0386
INFO RUEHXK/ARAB ISRAELI COLLECTIVE
RUEHTRO/AMEMBASSY TRIPOLI 0430
C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 RABAT 000587 

SIPDIS

STATE FOR DRL/NESCA, NEA/PPD, NEA/MAG AND NEA/PI
LONDON, PARIS AND DUBAI FOR MEDIA HUBS

E.O. 12958: DECL: 07/09/2019
TAGS: PHUM PREL KDEM KPAO EAID KMPI LY MO
SUBJECT: VERDICT IN QADHAFI DEFAMATION CASES PUTS GOM IN
BIND

RABAT 00000587 001.4 OF 002


Classified By: CDA Robert P. Jackson for reasons 1.4 (b) and (d).

-------
Summary
-------

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 RABAT 000587

SIPDIS

STATE FOR DRL/NESCA, NEA/PPD, NEA/MAG AND NEA/PI
LONDON, PARIS AND DUBAI FOR MEDIA HUBS

E.O. 12958: DECL: 07/09/2019
TAGS: PHUM PREL KDEM KPAO EAID KMPI LY MO
SUBJECT: VERDICT IN QADHAFI DEFAMATION CASES PUTS GOM IN
BIND

RABAT 00000587 001.4 OF 002


Classified By: CDA Robert P. Jackson for reasons 1.4 (b) and (d).

--------------
Summary
--------------


1. (C) On June 27, a Casablanca court found three Moroccan
newspapers guilty of "publicly harming" Libyan leader Muamar
Qadhafi and "injuring his dignity," levying whopping fines.
Newspaper editorialists and the press union have condemned
the decision, accusing the Moroccan Government of complicity
with Qadhafi in stifling freedom of speech. A senior MFA
official denied any Government of Morocco (GOM) interference
in the case, and stated that the GOM would not pursue libel
cases against newspapers, even when warranted. He
acknowledged that the Libyan Government had exerted pressure
on the GOM. He expressed frustration with the lax ethics of
the newspapers involved, as well as with the fact that the
GOM was being criticized by the Libyans for an overly free
media, and by press watchdogs and the local media for
insufficient press freedom. End Summary.

--------------
The Case
--------------


2. (U) The case stems from critical articles and editorials
published by three independent dailies -) "Al-Massae,"
"Al-Jarida Al-Aoula," and "Al-Ahdath Al-Maghrebiya" )- in
2008 and early 2009 about Qadhafi and his counterparts in
Mauritania, Algeria and Tunisia. Defense lawyers for the
newspapers argued that the complaint against the three
newspapers was not in accordance with Moroccan law, which
bars media from harming the reputation of heads of state and
foreign ministers. The defense argued that Qadhafi was not a
head of state, as his official title is "Guide of the
Revolution." The defense lawyers walked out of the courtroom
in protest when the judge rejected this argument. The court
found the three newspapers guilty, fining them each MAD one
million (about USD 125,000). The court also ordered the
directors of the three newspapers, as well as two

journalists, to pay damages of MAD 10,000 (about USD 1,250)
each.

--------------
Widespread Condemnation of Judgment
--------------


3. (U) The Committee for the Protection of Journalists
issued a press release on June 29, condemning the decision.
"We are dismayed that Morocco's judiciary has chosen to
punish journalists who express views that do not conform to
those of the political leadership," said Mohamed Abdel Dayem,
CPJ program coordinator for the Middle East and North Africa.
"This ruling should be overturned on appeal. The exorbitant
amount in damages indicates that the courts are being used
again to settle political scores with critical journalists
and to put critical publications out of business." This was
echoed by Younes M'jahed, President of the Moroccan Press
Union (SNPM),who stated that "the heavy fines inflicted on
national press organs constitute a real catastrophe and are
unacceptable."


4. (U) Moroccan newspaper editorial pages have also been
(unusually) unanimous in their condemnation of the decision.
Khalil Hachemi Idrissi, Director of independent daily
Aujourd'hui le Maroc and President of the Moroccan Federation
of Publishers, wrote in a June 29 editorial, "The
condemnation by Qadhafi, through the Moroccan justice, of
three Moroccan dailies is a way for him to export into our
country his anti-democratic, freedom-killing model. The
height (of injustice) is that the Moroccan State let it
happened. What,s more, it facilitated the situation for
him, as an accomplice to the sinful judgment ..."
Abdelmounaim Dilami, Director of Eco Medias Group, wrote in
business-oriented daily L'Economiste, "(This) willingness to
cause the disappearance of the press by imposing damages,
pushing it to (financial) ruin, is a crime against Moroccan
society as a whole."

--------------
MFA: Between a Rock and a Hard Place
--------------


5. (C) In a July 8 meeting with MFA Communications Director
Karim Medrak, IO Ranz informally raised USG concern about the
verdict, which contributed to a growing sense of Moroccan
backsliding in the area of press freedom. Medrak (please

RABAT 00000587 002.4 OF 002


protect) categorically denied that any branch of the GOM --
he mentioned specifically the Foreign, Interior and Justice
Ministries -- had interfered in any way in the verdict. That
said, he candidly acknowledged that the GOM had come under
substantial pressure from the Libyan Government, which
refused to believe that the GOM could not simply convoke the
offending newspapers and order them to stop their criticism
of Qadhafi. Indeed, when the MFA told the Libyans that the
Moroccan press did not operate that way, that the papers were
free to write what they wanted, the Libyans responded that no
Arab press was free from government control, and interpreted
this as indicating that the GOM endorsed the articles in
question.


6. (C) Medrak, who recently returned from eight years at the
Moroccan Mission to the UN in New York and who has often
expressed his strong support for the U.S. and its values,
stated his personal belief that the verdict was wrong.
However, he lambasted the very loose ethical standards of
many Moroccan newspapers. He cited in particular
"Al-Massae," which a week earlier had published an article
about single female Moroccan ambassadors posted abroad, all
but calling them prostitutes. Several of the ambassadors who
were named in the article wanted to sue "Al-Massae" for
libel, but the MFA ordered them to stand down. Medrak held
this up as an example of the GOM's strategic decision to
ignore libelous behavior in the Moroccan press. The Libyan
Government, however, had every right to sue under Moroccan
law, and the GOM was in no position to interfere.


7. (C) Medrak indicated that the GOM could not afford to
anger Libya by speaking out against the verdict. He
mentioned that, one week before the verdict, the Libyan
Government had banned foreigners from playing on the Libyan
national soccer team. Ninety percent of the foreigners on
the team, Medrak stated, were Moroccan; their contracts were
not renewed, and they had to return home. When asked if the
GOM had interpreted this as a signal, Medrak replied,"We
don't know." He concluded that he hoped this issue would be
favorably resolved in the appeals process.

--------------
Comment
--------------


8. (C) At the heart of Morocco,s gradual democratic reform
process has been its extension of de facto freedom of the
press. This case appears to have been handled differently
from previous libel cases, which were all given to a single
Rabat judge, who the GOM asserts has expertise in libel law.
If it stands on appeal, it would be an egregious impingement
on press freedom and freedom of expression. This incident
also seems to underscore the continued fear that Qadhafi
inspires, even if he has ceased resorting to more blunt and
brutal methods of persuasion. We will continue to monitor
the case through the appeals process. Should it not be
favorably resolved in response to domestic pressure, we will
raise it with the GOM again in a more formal way. End
Comment.


9. (U) Tripoli - minimize considered.


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Jackson