Cable Viewer

Currently released so far... 3890 / 251,287

### Articles

Brazil Sri Lanka United Kingdom Sweden Editorial United States Latin America Egypt Yemen Jordan

### Browse latest releases

2010/11 2010/12 2011/01 2011/02
2010/11/28 2010/11/29 2010/11/30
2010/12/01 2010/12/02 2010/12/03 2010/12/04 2010/12/05 2010/12/06 2010/12/07 2010/12/08 2010/12/09 2010/12/10 2010/12/11 2010/12/12 2010/12/13 2010/12/14 2010/12/15 2010/12/16 2010/12/17 2010/12/18 2010/12/19 2010/12/20 2010/12/21 2010/12/22 2010/12/23 2010/12/24 2010/12/25 2010/12/26 2010/12/27 2010/12/28 2010/12/29 2010/12/30
2011/01/01 2011/01/02 2011/01/04 2011/01/05 2011/01/07 2011/01/09 2011/01/10 2011/01/11 2011/01/12 2011/01/13 2011/01/14 2011/01/15 2011/01/16 2011/01/17 2011/01/18 2011/01/19 2011/01/20 2011/01/21 2011/01/22 2011/01/23 2011/01/24 2011/01/25 2011/01/26 2011/01/27 2011/01/28 2011/01/29 2011/01/30 2011/01/31
2011/02/01 2011/02/02 2011/02/03 2011/02/04 2011/02/05 2011/02/06 2011/02/07

### Browse by creation date

66 72 73 75 79 86 88 89 90 00 01 02 03 04 05 06 07 08 09 10
1966/12
1972/02 1972/08
1973/04
1975/03
1979/08
1986/05
1988/01
1989/12
1990/01 1990/07 1990/08
2000/06 2000/09 2000/11
2001/02 2001/03 2001/07 2001/10
2002/02 2002/03 2002/11
2003/03 2003/04 2003/05 2003/06 2003/07 2003/08 2003/09 2003/10 2003/11 2003/12
2004/01 2004/02 2004/03 2004/04 2004/05 2004/06 2004/07 2004/08 2004/09 2004/10 2004/11 2004/12
2005/01 2005/02 2005/03 2005/04 2005/05 2005/06 2005/07 2005/08 2005/09 2005/10 2005/11 2005/12
2006/01 2006/02 2006/03 2006/04 2006/05 2006/06 2006/07 2006/08 2006/09 2006/10 2006/11 2006/12
2007/01 2007/02 2007/03 2007/04 2007/05 2007/06 2007/07 2007/08 2007/09 2007/10 2007/11 2007/12
2008/01 2008/02 2008/03 2008/04 2008/05 2008/06 2008/07 2008/08 2008/09 2008/10 2008/11 2008/12
2009/01 2009/02 2009/03 2009/04 2009/05 2009/06 2009/07 2009/08 2009/09 2009/10 2009/11 2009/12
2010/01 2010/02

### Browse by origin

A B C D F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W Y Z
Embassy Athens Embassy Asuncion Embassy Astana Embassy Asmara Embassy Ashgabat Embassy Ankara Embassy Amman Embassy Algiers Embassy Addis Ababa Embassy Accra Embassy Abuja Embassy Abu Dhabi Embassy Abidjan Consulate Amsterdam American Institute Taiwan, Taipei
Embassy Bujumbura Embassy Buenos Aires Embassy Budapest Embassy Bucharest Embassy Brussels Embassy Bridgetown Embassy Bratislava Embassy Brasilia Embassy Bogota Embassy Bishkek Embassy Bern Embassy Berlin Embassy Belgrade Embassy Beirut Embassy Beijing Embassy Banjul Embassy Bangkok Embassy Bandar Seri Begawan Embassy Bamako Embassy Baku Embassy Baghdad Consulate Barcelona
Embassy Copenhagen Embassy Conakry Embassy Colombo Embassy Chisinau Embassy Caracas Embassy Canberra Embassy Cairo Consulate Curacao Consulate Casablanca Consulate Cape Town
Embassy Dushanbe Embassy Dublin Embassy Doha Embassy Djibouti Embassy Dhaka Embassy Dar Es Salaam Embassy Damascus Embassy Dakar Consulate Dubai
Embassy Freetown
Embassy Guatemala Embassy Gaborone
Embassy Harare Embassy Hanoi Consulate Hamburg
Iran RPO Dubai Embassy Islamabad Consulate Istanbul
Embassy Jakarta Consulate Jerusalem Consulate Jeddah
Embassy Kyiv Embassy Kuwait Embassy Kuala Lumpur Embassy Kinshasa Embassy Kigali Embassy Khartoum Embassy Kampala Embassy Kabul
Embassy Luxembourg Embassy Luanda Embassy London Embassy Lisbon Embassy Lima Embassy Lilongwe Embassy La Paz Consulate Lagos
Mission USNATO Embassy Muscat Embassy Moscow Embassy Montevideo Embassy Monrovia Embassy Minsk Embassy Mexico Embassy Maputo Embassy Manama Embassy Managua Embassy Madrid Consulate Munich Consulate Montreal Consulate Monterrey
Embassy New Delhi Embassy Nassau Embassy Nairobi Consulate Naples
Embassy Ouagadougou Embassy Ottawa Embassy Oslo
Embassy Pristina Embassy Pretoria Embassy Prague Embassy Port Au Prince Embassy Phnom Penh Embassy Paris Embassy Paramaribo Embassy Panama Consulate Peshawar
Embassy Quito
REO Basrah Embassy Rome Embassy Riyadh Embassy Riga Embassy Reykjavik Embassy Rangoon Embassy Rabat Consulate Rio De Janeiro Consulate Recife
Secretary of State Embassy Stockholm Embassy Sofia Embassy Skopje Embassy Singapore Embassy Seoul Embassy Sarajevo Embassy Santo Domingo Embassy Santiago Embassy Sanaa Embassy San Salvador Embassy San Jose Consulate Strasbourg Consulate Shenyang Consulate Shanghai Consulate Sao Paulo
Embassy Tunis Embassy Tripoli Embassy Tokyo Embassy The Hague Embassy Tel Aviv Embassy Tehran Embassy Tegucigalpa Embassy Tbilisi Embassy Tashkent Embassy Tallinn
USUN New York USEU Brussels US Mission Geneva US Interests Section Havana US Delegation, Secretary UNVIE Embassy Ulaanbaatar
Embassy Vilnius Embassy Vienna Embassy Vatican Consulate Vladivostok
Embassy Windhoek Embassy Wellington Embassy Warsaw
Embassy Yerevan Embassy Yaounde
Embassy Zagreb

### Browse by tag

A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z
AF AR ASEC AORC AG AEMR AJ AMGT ACOA AEC AO AE AU AFIN AX AMED ADCO AODE APER AFFAIRS AC AS AM AL ASIG ABLD ABUD AA AFU ASUP AROC ATFN AGMT ATRN
BL BR BM BE BO BH BTIO BEXP BU BIDEN BK BY BA BG BF BB BC BBSR BRUSSELS BILAT BX
CAN CVIS CH CASC CJAN CLINTON CO COUNTER CI CU CIS CA CBW CF CM CMGT CN CE CONDOLEEZZA COE CR CY CG CS CD CTM COUNTRY CLEARANCE CPAS CWC CT CKGR CB CACS COM CDG CJUS CARSON COUNTERTERRORISM CIA CACM CDB CV
DR DA DHS DOE DEA DK DJ DISENGAGEMENT DS DOD DEAX
ECON EFIN ETTC EUN ENVR EAIR ENRG ES EIND EINV EAGR ETRD ELAB EAID EPET EU ECPS EG ECA EWWT ER EINT EMIN ELTN EFIS EI EN EC EXTERNAL ECIN EINVETC ENIV EZ EINN ENGR EUR ET ESA ELECTIONS ECUN EINVEFIN ECIP EINDETRD EUC EREL
FR FAO FTAA FREEDOM FI FARC FBI FJ FMLN FINR
GG GH GM GV GT GE GR GTIP GOI GCC GAZA GZ GA GTMO
HILLARY HUMAN HO HA HYMPSK HR HU HURI HK
IR IZ ID IN IT IC IIP IS IAEA ITPHUM IV IPR IWC IQ IO ICTY ISRAELI IRAQI ICRC ICAO IMO IF ILC IEFIN INRB INTELSAT IL IA IBRD IMF ITALY ITALIAN INTERPOL IRAJ INRA INRO
JA JOSEPH JO JP JOHNNIE JUS JAMES
KCOR KCRM KDEM KPAO KISL KVPR KPAL KACT KTFN KNNP KJUS KS KN KHLS KGHG KSCA KV KZ KDEV KIPR KIRF KWMN KDRG KGIC KRAD KE KSPR KG KTIA KHIV KWBG KPRP KU KAWC KOLY KCIP KCFE KOCI KMDR KPKO KTDB KMRS KFRD KTIP KLIG KBCT KICC KMCA KGIT KSTC KUNR KPAK KNEI KSEP KPOA KFLU KNUP KNNPMNUC KOMC KAWK KO KTER KSUM KHUM KRFD KBIO KBTR KDDG KWWMN KFLO KSAF KBTS KPRV KMPI KHDP KNPP KNAR KWMM KERG KFIN KTBT KCRS KRVC KR KPWR KWAC KMIG KSEC KIFR KDEMAF KGCC KPIN KNUC KPLS KIRC KCOM
LG LY LE LH LI LU LO LOG LT
MARR MOPS MASS MCAP MO MNUC ML MTCRE MK MTRE MX MU MP MA MY MIL MDC MTCR MAR MEPI MRCRE MI MT MR MQADHAFI MD MAPS MUCN MPOS MZ MEPP MOPPS MAPP MG MASC MCC
NI NL NATO NPT NE NS NAR NO NIPP NZ NU NPG NK NSG NA NT NASA NG NGO NATIONAL
OIIP OVIP ODIP OTRA OSCE OPRC OAS OFDP OREP OPIC OPDC OEXC OECD OPCW OSCI OTR OVP OFFICIALS OSAC
PGOV PREL PTER PK PINR PHUM PARM PINS PL PBTS PARMS PREF PHSA PROP PE PO PA PM PMIL PTERE POL PF PALESTINIAN PY PGGV PNR POV PAK PAO PFOR PHALANAGE PARTY PNAT PROV PEL POLITICS PEPR PSI PINT PSOE PU POLITICAL PARTIES PBIO PECON POGOV PINL PKFK PGOF
QA
RU RS RP RIGHTS RW RICE RO ROBERT RF RFE REGION
SNAR SP SL SOCI SENV SCUL SF SN SW SA SY SMIG SHUM SR SO SZ SU SYR ST SANC SC SAN SIPRS SK SH SI STEINBERG SG
TI TU TH TT TW TIP TERRORISM TSPA TO TBIO TX TFIN TD TRGY TSPL TZ TPHY TS TK TNGD TC TR
UK UN UNSC UP UNGA UZ UY UE UNESCO UAE UNO UNEP UG US USTR UNHCR UNMIK UNDP UNHRC USAID UNCHS UNAUS USUN USEU UV
VT VE VM VZ VTPREL VN
WI WMO WTRO WTRQ WHO WWARD WB WBG WTO WA
XC XY XH XM XA XL XF XZ XW XR XG XT XD XS XK
YM YI YE
ZI ZP ZK ZF ZB ZANU ZOELLICK ZR ZU ZA

### Browse by classification

CONFIDENTIAL CONFIDENTIAL//NOFORN SECRET SECRET//NOFORN UNCLASSIFIED UNCLASSIFIED//FOR OFFICIAL USE ONLY

### Community resources

Follow us on Twitter Check our Reddit Twitter this Digg this page

courage is contagious

### Viewing cable 09CAIRO544,

If you are new to these pages, please read an introduction on the structure of a cable as well as how to discuss them with others. See also the FAQs
Understanding cables
Every cable message consists of three parts:

- The top box shows each cables unique reference number, when and by whom it originally was sent, and what its initial classification was.
- The middle box contains the header information that is associated with the cable. It includes information about the receiver(s) as well as a general subject.
- The bottom box presents the body of the cable. The opening can contain a more specific subject, references to other cables (browse by origin to find them) or additional comment. This is followed by the main contents of the cable: a summary, a collection of specific topics and a comment section.

To understand the justification used for the classification of each cable, please use this WikiSource article as reference.
Discussing cables
If you find meaningful or important information in a cable, please link directly to its unique reference number. Linking to a specific paragraph in the body of a cable is also possible by copying the appropriate link (to be found at theparagraph symbol). Please mark messages for social networking services like Twitter with the hash tags #cablegate and a hash containing the reference ID e.g. #09CAIRO544.

Reference ID | Created | Released | Classification | Origin
--- | --- | --- | --- | ---
09CAIRO544 | 2009-03-30 13:01 | 2011-01-28 00:12 | CONFIDENTIAL | Embassy Cairo

`

    VZCZCXRO3905
    RR RUEHROV
    DE RUEHEG #0544/01 0891336
    ZNY CCCCC ZZH
    R 301336Z MAR 09
    FM AMEMBASSY CAIRO
    TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC 2050
    INFO RUEHXK/ARAB ISRAELI COLLECTIVE
    RUEHLO/AMEMBASSY LONDON 1241
    RHEHNSC/NSC WASHDC

` `

    C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 03 CAIRO 000544SIPDIS

    FOR NEA/ELA AND DRL/NESCA NSC FOR PASCUAL AND KUCHTA-HELBLING LONDON FOR SREEBNYE.O. 12958: DECL: 03/29/2029

    TAGS: PGOV PHUM KDEM KIRF KWMN SOCI EG

    BLOGGERS MOVING FROM ACTIVISM TO BROADENING DISCOURSE AND SELF-EXPRESSION

    REF: A. CAIRO 468 B. CAIRO 243 C. CAIRO 229 D. CAIRO 152 E. 08 CAIRO 2403 F. 08 CAIRO 1973 G. 08 CAIRO 783 H. 07 CAIRO 3214 I. 06 CAIRO 3161

    Classified By: DCM Matt Tueller for reason 1.4 (d).

    ¶1. KEY POINTS — (C) Egypt’s bloggers are playing an increasingly important role in broadening the scope of acceptable political and social discourse, and self-expression.
    -- (C) Bloggers’ discussions of sensitive issues, such as sexual harassment, sectarian tension and the military, represent a significant change from five years ago, and have influenced society and the media.
    -- (C) The role of bloggers as a cohesive activist movement has largely disappeared, due to a more restrictive political climate, GOE counter-measures, and tensions among bloggers.
    -- (C) However, individual bloggers have continued to work to expose problems such as police brutality and corporate malfeasance.

    ¶2. (C) Comment: The government generally allows bloggers wide latitude in posting material critical of the GOE.
    Exceptions to this policy are bloggers who directly insult President Mubarak or Islam, and the government has arrested and jailed bloggers who have crossed these red-lines. The GOE has also arrested activists, such as XXXXXXXXXXXX and XXXXXXXXXXXX, who have used blogging to organize and support protests (refs A and C). Activists are increasingly writing blogs to advance their political aims. Contacts accurately point out that bloggers have ceased to function as a cohesive activist movement. It is noteworthy that bloggers did not play a significant role in the most recent example of mass cyber-activism — the April 6, 2008 strike orchestrated through Facebook (ref G).

    -----------------------------
    The Current State of Blogging
    -----------------------------

    ¶3. (C) Egypt has an estimated 160,000 bloggers who write in Arabic, and sometimes in English, about a wide variety of topics, from social life to politics to literature. One can view posts ranging from videos of alleged police brutality (ref B), to comments about the GOE’s foreign policy, to complaints about separate lines for men and women in government offices distributing drivers’ licenses. One NGO contact estimated for us that a solid majority of bloggers are between 20 and 35 years old, and that about 30 percent of blogs focus on politics. Blogs have spread throughout the population to become vehicles for a wide range of activists, students, journalists and ordinary citizens to express their views on almost any issue they choose. As such, the blogs have significantly broadened the range of topics that Egyptians are able to discuss publicly.

    -------------------------------------------
    Expanding Discourse and Personal Expression -------------------------------------------

    ¶4. (C) XXXXXXXXXXXX  told us that blogging allows Egyptian youth to air their views about social and political issues in ways that were “unimaginable five years ago.” XXXXXXXXXXXX said that blog debates currently cover formerly “taboo” topics, such as Christian-Muslim tensions and the military’s potential role in succession. XXXXXXXXXXXX, a blogger who now concentrates on journalism and film-making, described how bloggers began public discussions of issues, such as sexual harassment and the legal status of Bahai’is, that were previously too sensitive to discuss. XXXXXXXXXXXX attributed the media’s sympathetic treatment of the Bahai’is’ national identification card case in January 2008, in comparison with skeptical media coverage of the issue in 2004, to bloggers’ efforts.

    CAIRO 00000544 002 OF 003

    ¶5. (C) Two young upper middle-class bloggers told us that expressing themselves on their blogs is a “bright spot” for them in the current atmosphere of political, economic and social malaise. They noted that blogging provides them with an outlet, which they perceive as relatively anonymous, to disseminate criticism. One of them expressed satisfaction over being able to attack the “religious hypocrisy” and the “serious problems” in the society. A third blogger told us that she uses her blog to discuss whatever issues may be bothering her: her views on dysfunction in the Sinai, the prime minister’s latest speech, or the Obama administration’s Middle East diplomacy. She has written critically about issues, such as the XXXXXXXXXXXX (ref F), without any GOE attempts to silence her.

    ---------------------------------------
    Relationship with the Independent Media
    ---------------------------------------

    ¶6. (C) XXXXXXXXXXXX noted that the open atmosphere created by bloggers has positively influenced the independent media, especially satellite television, to discuss sensitive issues such as sexuality and abortion. XXXXXXXXXXXX  explained that while bloggers originally pushed the independent press to tackle new issues in 2006, the independent press has now overtaken the blogs in breaking important news. XXXXXXXXXXXX asserted that while bloggers did ground-breaking reporting on sexual assaults in 2006 before the independent press covered the issue, bloggers are now recycling news stories that the independent press breaks. According to XXXXXXXXXXXX, the relationship between bloggers and the independent press has come full circle, as bloggers now depend on the independent press for news.

    -------------------------------
    Originally an Activist Movement
    -------------------------------

    ¶7. (C) While the voices of individual bloggers are currently making their mark on expanding public discourse and personal expression, bloggers originally saw themselves as a cohesive movement of political activists. XXXXXXXXXXXX, said that in 2006, bloggers with diverse orientations — secular, Islamist, and leftist -- worked together to organize events, such as a sit-in protest at the Judges’ Club (ref I) and demonstrations in Tahrir Square. XXXXXXXXXXXX characterized bloggers during this period as activists who worked closely with civil society organizations to raise public awareness of issues, such as sexual assault. Because of bloggers’ independent, relatively anonymous identities, XXXXXXXXXXXX continued, they were able to engage on these issues more freely than NGOs. XXXXXXXXXXXX believes that female bloggers’ personal accounts of being harassed put an important personal face on the problem.

    ¶8. (C) Since 2006, XXXXXXXXXXXX said, bloggers have not been able to replicate the same kind of political activism for a number of reasons. He cited growing tensions and divisions within the blogger community, where Islamist bloggers are openly critical of secular and Christian bloggers. As part of the GOE’s increasing crack-down on political reformers since 2005-6, XXXXXXXXXXXX said, State Security (SSIS) began to target bloggers.  XXXXXXXXXXXX, and of pressuring western news organizations to dismiss other bloggers who challenged the GOE. XXXXXXXXXXXX noted that many bloggers have abandoned their blogs due to this pressure, and are focusing instead on careers in journalism and civil society.

    ¶9. (C) XXXXXXXXXXXX explained that as political activism waned after 2006, bloggers lost their context for advocacy. He concluded that there is currently no political opening for bloggers to push for significant change, and predicted that the next opportunities may be during the 2011 presidential election.
    Human rights activist XXXXXXXXXXXX separately echoed XXXXXXXXXXXX’ assessment, opining that there is a current “despondency” among bloggers, whom  XXXXXXXXXXXX considers to be part of the broader activist community. XXXXXXXXXXXX asserted that in the current “political stagnation,” bloggers are bereft of compelling and achievable political causes, but XXXXXXXXXXXX predicted they would play a crucial role “during the eventual succession.”

    ----------------------------------
    Bloggers as Human Rights Activists

    CAIRO 00000544 003 OF 003
    ----------------------------------

    ¶10. (C) While XXXXXXXXXXXX minimizes bloggers’ current impact as activists, veteran civil society advocates view bloggers’
    contributions as significant. XXXXXXXXXXXX  stressed the importance of bloggers’ concern with torture and press freedom. At a public lecture XXXXXXXXXXXX human rights lawyer XXXXXXXXXXXX lauded XXXXXXXXXXXX for posting an alleged police sodomy video a few days earlier (ref B), and for breaking the El-Kebir police brutality case. In November 2007, a court sentenced two polic officers to three years in prison for assaultin and sodomizing bus driver Imad El-Kebir. The cse gained notoriety after XXXXXXXXXXXX  a cell phoe video recording of the attack (ref H).

    ¶11. (C XXXXXXXXXXXX cited the “3,000 hits per day” on XXXXXXXXXXXX’ blogas evidence of his influence, asserting that XXXXXXXXXXXX is more widely read than “Rose Al Youssef,” th SSIS-backed daily newspaper. Separately, a human rights lawyer XXXXXXXXXXXX marveled at XXXXXXXXXXXX power to expose police brutality on his blog. Bloggers have also been active on other issues. XXXXXXXXXXXX
    SCOBEY

`