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### Viewing cable 08RABAT21, MINISTER OF COMMUNICATIONS DISCUSSES PRESS CODE, VIDEO

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Reference ID | Created | Released | Classification | Origin
--- | --- | --- | --- | ---
08RABAT21 | 2008-01-09 06:19 | 2010-12-11 21:30 | CONFIDENTIAL | Embassy Rabat

`

    VZCZCXYZ0003
    RR RUEHWEB

    DE RUEHRB #0021/01 0090619
    ZNY CCCCC ZZH
    R 090619Z JAN 08
    FM AMEMBASSY RABAT
    TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC 7987
    INFO RUEHAS/AMEMBASSY ALGIERS 4627
    RUEHLB/AMEMBASSY BEIRUT 0530
    RUEHEG/AMEMBASSY CAIRO 2259
    RUEHDM/AMEMBASSY DAMASCUS 0699
    RUEHLO/AMEMBASSY LONDON 3483
    RUEHFR/AMEMBASSY PARIS 4886
    RUEHTU/AMEMBASSY TUNIS 9465
    RUEHCL/AMCONSUL CASABLANCA 3806

` `

    C O N F I D E N T I A L RABAT 000021

    SIPDIS

    SIPDIS

    STATE FOR NEA/PPD AND NEA/MAG

    E.O. 12958: DECL: 01/03/2018
    TAGS: PGOV KPAO SCUL OIIP KIRC PHUM KISL MO
    SUBJECT: MINISTER OF COMMUNICATIONS DISCUSSES PRESS CODE, VIDEO
    PIRACY AND MODERATE MUSLIM MESSAGING WITH AMBASSADOR

    Classified by Ambassador Thomas T. Riley for reasons 1.4 (b) and (d).

    ¶1. (C) Summary: Ambassador Riley paid an introductory call on
    January 4, 2008 with Khaled Naciri, the new Moroccan Minister of
    Communications and Government Spokesman. Naciri stated that passing
    a revised, more liberal press code was one of his top policy
    priorities. He defended, however, the need to maintain prison
    sentences in rare cases as a "precaution," arguing in particular that
    publication of anything that might be deemed a "provocation" against
    Islam could reinforce fundamentalism and destabilize Moroccan
    democracy. He pledged that the Fassi government would not limit
    freedom of expression, and described plans to further liberalize the
    audiovisual sector. Naciri assured the Ambassador that Morocco was
    committed to combating video piracy, recognizing the importance of
    the film industry to the Moroccan economy. He also discussed
    Government of Morocco (GOM) efforts to promote a moderate vision of
    Islam in Morocco and with Arab communities abroad via a public
    television and radio network focused on religion. A former
    international visitor program (IVP) participant, Naciri expressed
    appreciation for USG efforts to promote professionalism and ethical
    journalistic practices in Morocco through training and exchange
    programs. End summary.

    ------------------------------
    Promoting Freedom of the Press
    ------------------------------

    ¶2. (C) Said Sihida, head of the minister's cabinet, and an aide
    joined from the Ministry of Communications (MOC); the PAO and IO
    accompanied the Ambassador. The Ambassador opened by asking Naciri
    for an update on the long-promised revised press code, noting that
    its passage was a top USG policy priority. Naciri stated that this
    was one of his two top priorities as well (the other being
    liberalization of the audiovisual sector - see para 6 below). He
    stated that the previous government had hoped to finalize and
    introduce it to parliament last year, but the government had run out
    of time because of parliamentary elections. Naciri repeated a
    familiar refrain that the Ministry of Communications had been caught
    in the middle between the competing interests of the media community
    (which wanted to see the draft further liberalized), and the
    Ministries of Interior and Justice (which had taken a more
    conservative stance). Naciri stated that he had already held
    consultations with all the key stakeholders, and was in the process
    of collecting final comments.

    ¶3. (C) Naciri's goal was to reach consensus on a final draft text
    that would be more liberal than the existing one, but which would
    preserve key "precautions," including prison sentences for a very few
    "extreme cases," notably concerning the three red-lines: Islam, the
    monarchy and "territorial integrity" (read: Western Sahara).
    Journalists had expressed concern that the provisions of the new law
    were too vague, but Naciri argued it was not possible to have an
    exact recipe for what constituted a transgression. Nevertheless,
    "you will see that the new text will be a step forward . . . a very,
    very liberal text," he stated, taking into account the views of all
    the stakeholders, and in which prisons sentences would be very
    limited.

    ¶4. (C) Naciri stated that application of the law was as important as
    the law itself. The new press code should be considered in the
    context of a Moroccan Government commitment to openness and
    democracy. He noted that prison sentences existed in the French
    press code; they were never applied, but were nevertheless maintained
    as a precaution. He stated that fundamentalism was one of the main
    political forces confronting the Arab world today; Arab governments
    could not allow this phenomenon to be reinforced, and provocations
    against Islam, he stated, fed the demagoguery of the fundamentalists.
    "We must not allow democracy to be used by those who want to
    destabilize it," he stated, which was the underlying reason for the
    existence of the red-lines in the press code. Every day, Naciri
    stated, there were examples of transgressions of the red-lines in the
    press, which the Moroccan Government chose not to prosecute. This
    demonstrated that, regardless the text of the press code, the
    government was committed politically and philosophically to
    permitting the maximum possible freedom of the press; "This
    government will not threaten freedom of expression," he averred.

    ¶5. (C) The Ambassador stated that Morocco was known internationally
    for its advances in the area of press freedom, but it was important
    to remain vigilant. He commented that international organizations
    and non-governmental watchdog groups evaluated press freedom as much
    by the written law as by its application; this was a reality that

    underscored the need for a revised press code. Naciri responded that
    the GOM was endeavoring to strike a balance. He reminded the
    Ambassador that he was first and foremost a human rights activist,
    and that he understood the point of view of such NGOs. "I am imbued
    in the human rights philosophy," he stated, which "does not change
    just because I am a minister." (Note: Naciri previously participated
    in an international visitor program focused on human rights issues.
    End note.)

    ¶6. (C) Naciri stated that his second priority was the further
    liberalization of the audiovisual sector. In this regard, he
    expected that the Higher Audiovisual Communications Authority (HACA)
    would be issuing additional licenses for private television and radio
    stations this year. He also discussed the planned launch of a
    publicly-financed Amazigh (Berber) television channel in the coming
    months. Naciri stated that the core team was already in place, with
    plans to begin broadcasting six to seven hours per day, but that the
    Minister of Finance had not yet approved the expensive budget for the
    project.

    -----------------------------------
    Video Piracy Bad for Moroccan Image
    -----------------------------------

    ¶7. (C) Naciri, who heads a governmental committee on the enforcement
    of intellectual property rights (IPR), stated that the promotion of
    the film industry in Morocco was an additional priority. He
    acknowledged receipt of a letter from the Ambassador expressing
    concern about the availability in Moroccan markets of a high-quality
    pirated version of Ridley Scott's latest film "American Gangster."
    Noting the key economic role played by the film industry in Morocco,
    the Ambassador reiterated his concern that this pirated video went on
    sale while Scott was filming his latest film in Morocco. He also
    related a conversation he had had with a well-known Moroccan singer,
    now living in Europe, who was one of the most popular singers in
    Morocco but had sold only ten legitimate copies of his latest CD in
    the whole country. He expressed concern that Moroccan artists could
    not survive without moving to Europe.

    ¶8. (C) Naciri stated flatly that Moroccan did not want to be
    associated with this sort of piracy. Naciri assured the Ambassador
    that the Moroccan security forces were on board regarding the need to
    enforce IPR.

    --------------------------------------
    Using the Airwaves to Combat Extremism
    --------------------------------------

    ¶9. (C) Expanding on his earlier discussion of the threat of Islamic
    fundamentalism, Naciri raised GOM efforts to promote a moderate
    vision of Islam on the government-owned Mohamed VI television and
    radio network, which is focused on religious issues. Such
    programming was intended to counterbalance fundamentalist messages
    about Islam that were circulating widely in Morocco via Arab
    satellite networks such as al-Jazeera, as well as from Europe,
    advanced by preachers of a "catastrophic vision of Islam." "We are
    in a difficult battle," he stated. The strategic objective of the
    GOM was to promote, via Mohamed VI television and radio, an
    alternative mindset, in order to influence Moroccans in Morocco, and
    Arabs living in Europe, to embrace moderation. (Note: Mohamed VI
    television and radio, part of the government-owned television and
    radio corporation SNRT, was founded two years ago as a venue for the
    GOM to broadcast moderate perspectives on Islam. It is available via
    both local and satellite broadcast, and is piped in to mosques
    throughout the country, allowing the government to provide AV
    content, such as sermons and lessons on Islam, that conform with its
    moderate vision. End note.)

    --------------------------------------
    Promoting Professionalism in the Media
    --------------------------------------

    ¶10. (SBU) IO provided Naciri a briefing on USG efforts to promote
    professionalism and the ethical practice of journalism in Morocco.
    Over the past ten years, the USG had sponsored the participation of
    roughly 100 journalists in a variety of exchange programs in the
    U.S., the IO noted, as well as in reporting tours abroad in places
    such as Pakistan and Mali. The USG had also provided in-country
    training, conducted by American and local experts, on issues ranging
    from investigative reporting, to journalistic ethics, to citizen and
    electronic journalism. Naciri expressed enthusiasm for these
    programs, and hoped to reinforce and expand them.

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

    ¶11. (C) Naciri's comments on the revised press code confirm concerns
    expressed to us recently by senior members of the Moroccan press
    establishment that short-term progress is unlikely, and reinforce our
    impression that nothing will happen absent a clear expression of
    royal will. Notwithstanding Naciri's assurances that a new draft
    would be very liberal, the prison sentences he pledged to maintain
    are a non-starter for local publishers, editors and journalists.
    Moreover, given that Moroccan law continues to be deployed on a
    sporadic but regular basis to stifle press freedom, it is unlikely
    that anyone in the local press community would be assuaged by
    Naciri's statement that prison sentences will be used sparingly. We
    will continue to press this issue at every opportunity with senior
    GOM officials. Naciri's statements on promoting moderate Muslim
    messaging demonstrate the GOM commitment to creatively employing its
    own substantial resources to combat extremism. End comment.

    Riley

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