ACTION REQUEST: DEMARCHE GOJ ON HUMAN RIGHTS CASE

C O N F I D E N T I A L STATE 095503 SENSITIVE SIPDIS E.O. 12958: DECL: 09/14/2019 TAGS: PHUM PREF PREL KIRF JO SUBJECT: ACTION REQUEST: DEMARCHE GOJ ON HUMAN RIGHTS CASE REF: HARRIES-BARGHOUT SEPTEMBER 10 E-MAIL Classified By: NEA DAS Maura Connelly for reasons 1.4 (b) and (d). ¶1. (U) This is an action request. Please see paragraph 7. SUMMARY -------------- ¶2. (SBU) On June 22, 2009, Islam Samhan, Jordanian poet and journalist for the daily newspaper Al Arab Al Yawm, was sentenced to one year in prison and fined 14,000 USD for using Quranic verses in his book of poetry. Samhan was charged with "slandering Islam" and "insulting religious sentiment" under the Penal Code. Samhan remains free on bail pending an appeal. The Department believes that royal intervention by the government of Jordan (GOJ) will help ensure that the Appellate Court respects Samhan's legal rights and due process in the case. Post is requested to raise Washington's concerns with the GOJ. End Summary. BACKGROUND -------------- ¶3. (SBU) On June 22, 2009, the court of first instance sentenced poet and journalist, Islam Samhan, 28, to one year in prison and fined him 14,000 USD (Dh 51,000) for using Quranic verses in his book of poetry, In a Slim Shadow. Samhan was charged with "slandering Islam" and "insulting religious sentiment" under the Penal Code. He was arrested on October 19, 2008 and released five days later on bail. ¶4. (SBU) Samhan,s arrest came two weeks after the Grand Mufti, Jordan's senior spiritual leader, issued a fatwa calling Samhan an "apostate" and "infidel." According to reports, the Mufti issued the fatwa only after reading an article against the poetry on the website Ammon news and after the Press and Publications Department already approved the book and the Ministry of Culture purchased fifty copies. There are also reports that the Grand Mufti may have influenced the lower court's decision. ¶5. (SBU) The Jordanian constitution guarantees freedom of expression. Writers and journalists are no longer threatened with jail sentences under the publication law, which was amended in 2007; however, they can still be imprisoned for up to three years under the penal code for material deemed slanderous to the prophets. Many nongovernmental organizations, including the Cairo-based Arabic Network for Human Rights Information, condemned the Sentence against Samhan, describing it as a "heavy-handed sentence" and an explicit "assertion of blasphemy that may lead to shedding Samhan,s blood." ¶6. (C) Samhan remains free on bail pending an appeal; however, the judiciary has just returned from a summer recess and the Appellate Court may start their hearings at any moment. The Department believes that immediate intervention by the GOJ will benefit Samhan,s case by ensuring that the Appellate Court conducts the hearings in an objective and independent manner consistent with international standards of due process. (Note: Department's concerns about reported instances of arrest and government harassment of journalists are detailed in the State Department's 2008 Jordan Country Report on Human Rights Practices and the State Department's 2009 Jordan Country Report on Religious Freedom (soon to be released),which cites Samhan,s case. End Note.) The Department anticipates demarching Jordan's Ambassador to Washington at the earliest opportunity and will raise the points listed in paragraph 7. OBJECTIVES -------------- ¶7. (U) The Department requests that Post demarche GOJ officials at appropriately senior levels regarding this specific human rights case. Department requests Post draw on the following talking points: - (U) We are aware of Islam Samhan,s arrest, prosecution, and conviction for slandering Islam and insulting religious sentiment over the use of Quranic verses in his poetry. We are further aware that Samhan,s case is currently on appeal before the Appellate Court. - (U) We appreciate and support Jordan's efforts to achieve the highest standards of freedom of speech and religion and judicial independence. We are also aware of the sensitivities inherent in such matters. - (U) We are concerned, however, about allegations that this case may have involved judicial irregularities and interference and may ultimately constitute a setback for freedom of speech and religion in Jordan. - (U) This case continues to attract widespread media attention, including in the United States, where it will likely come to the attention of key leaders in the Administration and Congress and their constituents. Samhan,s imprisonment would only further increase media attention and scrutiny of Jordan's laws and judicial system. - (U) Such negative attention is unlikely to benefit Jordan's image internationally or advance its efforts to expand development and assistance relationships, including with the United States. POINT OF CONTACT -------------- ¶8. (U) Please report GOJ response by September 17, 2009. For any additional background information contact DRL/NESCA,s Joseph Barghout at (202) 647-1025 or NEA/ELA,s Meghan Gregonis at (202) 647- 1091 or via e-mail. CLINTON