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RUEHLA RUEHLN RUEHLZ RUEHMOS RUEHROV RUEHSR RUEHVK RUEHYG
DE RUEHRB #0201/01 0381941
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O 071941Z FEB 06
FM AMEMBASSY RABAT
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC IMMEDIATE 2702
INFO RUEHEE/ARAB LEAGUE COLLECTIVE PRIORITY
RUEHZL/EUROPEAN POLITICAL COLLECTIVE PRIORITY
RUEHCP/AMEMBASSY COPENHAGEN PRIORITY 0294
RUEKJCS/SECDEF WASHDC PRIORITY
RHEHNSC/NSC WASHINGTON DC PRIORITY

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 RABAT 000201 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SENSITIVE 
SIPDIS 
 
DEPT FOR NEA/MAG, EUR/NB, EUR/PPD, INR/R/MR 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: PREL PGOV KPAO KISL MO DK
SUBJECT: CARTOON CONTROVERSY:  MOROCCANS ANGRY BUT REACTING 
WITH RESTRAINT SO FAR 
 
¶1. (SBU)  Summary:  In response to the Danish cartoon 
controversy, reaction in Morocco has been uniform -- amongst 
the Moroccan government, the Supreme Council of Ulemas, the 
political parties, demonstrators, and shopkeepers -- in 
condemning the drawings and their  affront to the Prophet.  A 
February 3 demonstration organized by two Islamist groups 
drew as many as several thousand Moroccans to protest 
peacefully in front of Parliament in Rabat.  Some shopkeepers 
have taken it upon themselves to highlight Danish products in 
their store and ask consumers to boycott these goods (even 
while the goods remain on shelves).   SMS messages and an 
internet petition have also been urging a boycott of Danish 
products.  Friday sermons roundly condemned the drawings, but 
called for a "civilized reaction" from citizens.  The edition 
of France Soir which reproduced the drawings was banned in 
Morocco while the director and editor of a local Arabic daily 
which printed the pictures were called in for questioning by 
the police.  While there is no official Danish presence in 
Morocco, there are rumors that students have applied to have 
a "sit-in" in front of the Casablanca home of the honorary 
Danish consul, a Moroccan businessman, and the Islamist Party 
for Justice and Development (PJD) website has posted an 
announcement calling for all Moroccans to joint in this 
February 7 protest.  End summary. 
 
GOM and Ulema Council Condemn Cartoons 
-------------------------------------- 
¶2. (SBU) Minister of Communications and GOM spokesman Nabil 
Benabdullah issued the official Moroccan government reaction 
to the cartoons following a February 2 meeting of the Council 
of Government, noting that the drawings "harm the Prophet and 
constitute an act of provocation which offends the sentiments 
of Muslims."  Benabdullah explained that the cartoons, "in 
the name of freedom, attempt to offend the belief of the 
Islamic nation." 
 
¶3. (SBU) Morocco's Supreme Council of Ulemas, a group chaired 
by King Mohammed VI which includes fifteen religious 
scholars, the heads of the thirty regional councils and the 
Minister of Islamic Affairs, issued a strong condemnation of 
the cartoons.  The Ulemas' January 31 statement emphasized 
regret that the cartoons "aimed at offending and hurting 
Muslims."  The council also stressed the legitimacy of 
Morocco's reaction to the publication of the cartoons, 
including the banning of the edition of French daily France 
Soir which reproduced the drawings, and urged international 
decision-makers to unite to protect freedom and ethical 
values threatened by hatred.  According to official news 
agency Maghreb Arab Presse (MAP), the Ulemas also hailed the 
Vatican's public declaration, stressing that "it is 
unacceptable to hurt one another, especially when it comes to 
sacred symbols of other faiths."  In a statement calling for 
moderation, the council explained that there is "no room for 
abuses and conflicts among believers of different religions," 
and that the "right to freedom of speech does not include the 
right to harm the religious feelings of believers, regardless 
of their religion."  The communiqu emphasized that the 
reaction in Morocco to the drawings indicated no signs of the 
existence of a problem between Christianity and Islam. 
 
Peaceful Demonstration Draws Hundreds 
------------------------------------- 
¶4.  (SBU) In a peaceful demonstration in front of parliament 
on February 3, hundreds of Moroccans -- estimates were as 
high as 3000 -- protested the publication of the Danish 
cartoons.  The protest was organized primarily by the 
Islamist Reform and Unification movement and the Justice and 
Charity Organization (JCO). Abdelwahid Mutawakil, head of the 
JCO's Political Circle, and Fatallah Arsalane, JCO official 
spokesperson, were prominent participants, along with 
political party members from Istiqlal, the USFP and the Party 
for Justice and Development (PJD).  Saad Eddin Othmani, PJD 
Secretary General, told MAP that the purpose of the sit-in 
 
SIPDIS 
was to "send a clear message to the international community 
that Muslims won't tolerate any mockery or harm against 
Prophet Mohammed."  Othmani called on the international 
community to adopt a charter providing for the respect of all 
religions.  Istiqlal Executive committee member Mohammed 
Al-Khalifa described the sit-in as a "strong and bonafide 
condemnation from all Moroccans of any kind of insult against 
the Prophet and Islam."  The demonstration was authorized by 
the GOM, and no security incidents were reported.  There was 
no anti-American sentiment expressed among the demonstrators. 
 
¶5. (SBU) Despite the fact that Arabic daily (and 
 
RABAT 00000201  002 OF 002 
 
 
PJD-affiliated) Al-Tajdid reported that up to three thousand 
people participated in the event, several eyewitness reports 
put the number of protesters closer to several hundred. 
Slogans chanted during the protest focused primarily on 
support for the Prophet.  Many demonstrators carried the 
Koran and had handwritten slogans on small boards calling for 
"Yes for press freedom, but no for freedom to insult the 
Prophet," and "Against the European crusaders fighting 
Islam."  Other demonstrators carried the full-page 
advertisement from a recent edition of Al-Tajdid expressing 
support for the Prophet. The PJD website has called for 
another demonstration to take place in front of the home of 
the Danish honorary consul (a Moroccan citizen) in Casablanca 
the evening of February 7. 
 
Impact on the Press 
------------------- 
¶6. (SBU) According to a Ministry of Communications statement, 
Morocco banned the edition of France Soir which reproduced 
the cartoons.  The communiqu stressed that while Morocco 
respects freedom of opinion, it should not be used as a 
"false pretext" for "gratuitous provocation."  The statement 
added that the GOM would not allow the distribution of any 
publication "offending the feelings of a community of one and 
a half billion believers." Meanwhile, the editor and director 
of Arabic daily An-nahar Al-Maghrebiya were summoned by the 
police for republishing one of the cartoons despite the fact 
that the article published with the drawing denounced them. 
They have not yet been charged with any crime. 
Giving Consumers the Choice 
--------------------------- 
¶7.  (SBU) In smaller Moroccan groceries, some shopkeepers 
have put up signs indicating which products are Danish and 
asking Moroccans to boycott these products.  Larger grocery 
stores have not yet taken any Danish products off the shelf. 
Several Moroccans have received SMS phone messages asking to 
"make the Danish pay for their audacity to mock our prophet," 
and calling for the boycott of such products as Nido powdered 
milk, Puk butter, and Kinder chocolate.  An internet petition 
circulating within Morocco has registered a total of 4493 
signatures protesting the cartoons and "defending the 
Prophet." 
 
Friday Sermons Call for "Civilized" Response 
-------------------------------------------- 
¶8.  (SBU)  Throughout Morocco, the February 3 (Friday) 
sermons, including the prayer King Mohammed VI attended in 
northern Morocco, widely denounced the cartoons and called 
for people to show support to the Prophet in a "civilized" 
way.  While the sermon's message conveyed support for freedom 
of expression, it stressed that respect must be shown to 
religion, and especially to the three monotheistic religions 
of Christianity, Judaism, and Islam. 
 
Comment: 
------- 
¶9. (SBU) Overall, Moroccan reaction has been fairly 
restrained, compared to events elsewhere in the region, 
although media headlines continue to focus on the issue and 
the controversy is discussed regularly on some television 
talk shows.  Demonstrations will likely continue, but we do 
not anticipate violence, nor have the Moroccan police so far 
suggested undue concern with the level of popular sentiment. 
As the Danes are not officially represented here, it is more 
difficult for the Moroccans to find a specific target to air 
their grievances beyond a boycott of consumer products.  So 
far they are not turning their wrath on the EU or specific 
European countries.  The Danish Ambassador to Morocco, 
resident in Lisbon, however, plans to visit Morocco next week 
and may have additional comments on the Moroccan reaction 
when he calls at the US Embassy.   End comment. 
****************************************** 
Visit Embassy Rabat's Classified Website; 
http://www.state.sgov.gov/p/nea/rabat 
****************************************** 
 
Riley