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UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 03 PARIS 002979 
 
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TAGS: OPRC KMDR FR
SUBJECT: MEDIA REACTION REPORT - Moussaoui Trial NATO 
Expansion Conference Bolivia Nationalization - Energy Mini- 
Summit 
PARIS - Friday, May 05, 2006 
 
(A) SUBJECTS COVERED IN TODAY'S REPORT: 
 
Moussaoui Trial 
NATO Expansion Conference 
Bolivia Nationalization - Energy Mini-Summit 
 
B) SUMMARY OF COVERAGE: 
 
The Moussaoui trial and verdict elicit several 
commentaries, all underscoring the victory of justice over 
vengeance and pointing to the growing debate in the U.S. on 
the death penalty. In Le Monde the editorial concludes with 
the Guantanamo detainees, who, contrary to Moussaoui, are 
"deprived the right to defend themselves in a court of 
law." In Le Figaro a report explains that for the Pentagon, 
"the verdict proves that severity is best ensured with a 
military tribunal rather than a civilian one." (See Part C) 
La Croix titles on its front page: "Justice Has Prevailed 
Over Vengeance" and its inside article analyzes how "juries 
are no longer convinced of the effectiveness of the death 
penalty." Gilles Biassette of La Croix drafts a profile of 
Moussaouis's public defender, Gerald Zerkin who calls the 
trial "the trial of a lifetime." But Liberation, which 
"salutes" the verdict in one report, devotes a second story 
to the "supermax" prison where Moussaoui will be "entombed 
alive." An echo to the weekly column by Pierre Marcelle who 
says "Moussaoui's fate is worse than death." 
 
The Clearstream scandal continues to make headlines: for 
Liberation, the affair is "Interminable" while Le Figaro 
begins to give slightly less importance to the story. Its 
main front-page story is devoted to "France's Nuclear of 
the Future," and right below the fold a second story reads: 
"Villepin Resists" in reference to his 10th press conference 
yesterday, where he reiterated his intention to "stay the 
course." But communist l'Humanite interviews Denis Robert, 
the journalist who was the first one to investigate 
Clearstream's practices. "The anonymous finger pointer is 
not the worst part of the scandal. Clearstream serves as an 
international clearinghouse not only for occult financial 
deals, but also legal ones. Everyone wants to believe that 
Clearstream is a collateral victim, but I have proof that 
Enron accounts have gone through Clearstream as well as 
those of banks which deal closely with terrorism." 
Liberation's editorial analyzes the repercussions of the 
scandal on the presidential elections: "Will April 21st, 
2007 be the reverse of 2002? Will it be Le Pen against the 
Socialists.? To Le Pen's great joy, Villepin and Sarkozy 
could well end up as the last of Chirac's hunting trophies, 
a Chirac who, when he leaves the Elysee Palace will have 
managed to dissolve all his heirs. (Not just the National 
Assembly.)" 
 
Bolivia's nationalization of foreign oil and energy 
companies is Liberation's second lead story entitled "The 
Left Has Energy." The editorial analyzes the new "Latin 
American policy" and the "huge gap" between rich and poor. 
(See Part C) 
 
Le Figaro reports that VP Cheney was very critical of the 
Kremlin yesterday in Vilnius at an international conference 
on the future of NATO's EU expansion. (See Part C) 
 
(C) SUPPORTING TEXT/BLOCK QUOTES: 
 
Moussaoui Trial 
 
"Moussaoui Spared" 
Left-of-center Le Monde in its unsigned editorial (05/04): 
"By deciding against the death penalty, the jury did not 
fall into the trap set by both the prosecution and the 
accused. President Bush did not expand on the verdict . 
which is a reversal for the administration that was asking 
for the death penalty. The jury's refusal to inflict the 
death penalty proves not only the prosecution's weakness, 
but also the magnitude of the American public's doubts 
about the death penalty, today. The trial and its outcome, 
despite or because of Moussaoui's provocation, are 
exemplary. The American justice system has demonstrated it 
is capable of trying fairly the most odious of individuals. 
This makes even more untenable the fate of hundreds of 
Guantanamo detainees who are deprived by the U.S. 
government of their right to defend themselves before a 
jury." 
 
"A Precedent in the 'Anti-Terrorist War'" 
Philippe Gelie in right-of-center Le Figaro (05/05): "The 
Moussaoui trial, in the Bush administration's war against 
terror, was the exception to the rule. The testimony of 
Khalid Sheik Mohamed, who is detained by the CIA in a 
secret prison, stands as proof of the paradox behind the 
 
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legal battle waged by the Bush administration, an extension 
of its war on terror: phantom detainees, prisons held 
outside the law, some Martial Courts but few trials worthy 
of that name. Moussaoui's trial had the look of normality 
in the face of a justice of exception. Yet the leniency of 
the verdict could well reinforce the Bush administration in 
the belief that the legal system is not adapted to try 
'enemy combatants.' Meanwhile, the Pentagon stubbornly 
forges ahead with its exceptional procedures in Guantanamo. 
What will Washington do with the other 350 'enemy 
combatants?' The Moussaoui trial might have set the course 
for a return to legality. But the verdict proves that 
severity is best ensured with a military tribunal rather 
than a civilian one." 
 
"Justice" 
Dominique Quinio in Catholic La Croix (05/05): "Contrary to 
what Moussaoui said upon hearing his verdict, America has 
won, not lost. The law has won over vengeance, despite the 
horror that befell the Americans on 9/11 and despite 
Moussaoui's stubbornness and satisfaction in claiming 
responsibility. Yet the life sentence, which has been 
inflicted on him, is a terrible verdict. His lawyers' task 
will be to bring him back to France where life imprisonment 
is not possible. This trial was so exceptional that it is 
difficult to draw conclusions on the debate over the death 
penalty in the U.S. Abolitionists in the U.S. are making 
headway. and the death penalty is indeed receding. 
Meanwhile, the entire country can show the world that in 
this trial where the rights of everyone were respected, 
justice has been done." 
 
"A Fate Worse than Death" 
Pierre Marcelle in left-of-center Liberation (05/05): "This 
is a bitter victory indeed. The commentaries, which laud 
Moussaoui's life sentence, look obscene in light of a fate 
worse than death. Surprisingly enough there are few 
opponents to the war in Iraq among those who extol the 
virtues of this verdict. Iraq, where military wardens 
torture more humanely than lay juries. Moussaoui, short of 
a serious medical condition, may well spend half a century 
without exchanging a glance or a word with another human 
being. The condemned will surely go crazy and this will be 
an almost perfect crime. Some will say he was crazy to 
begin with. Meanwhile, what does the French legal system 
have to say about a case that should fall under its 
jurisdiction?" 
 
NATO Expansion Conference 
 
"In Vilnius, an Anti-Putin Front" 
Fabrice Node-Langlois in right-of-center Le Figaro (05/05): 
"In the air floated the scent of a new Cold War. Dick 
Cheney had never been so virulent against Putin's 
government. promising to bring up a host of controversial 
topics at the G8 in Saint Petersburg. Cheney also said that 
Belarus 'does not have its place in Europe.' While most 
European countries sent ministry level representatives, 
France, which believes that it is counterproductive to 
irritate Moscow, chose to adopt a low profile by sending a 
lower ranking official." 
 
Bolivia Nationalization - Energy Mini-Summit 
 
"A Huge Gap" 
Pierre Haski in left-of-center Liberation (05/05): "The 
idea of Latin America shifting to the left and breaking 
with an IMF version of ultraliberalism, source of injustice 
and inequalities, is enticing. Bolivia's nationalization 
policy is a symbol of such a shift. Regional summits like 
those with Castro and Chavez, and coming elections in Peru 
and Mexico feed this perception of a pink or even red South 
America. Yet all left-leaning South American governments 
are not alike. And today, the difference lies in the fact 
that globalization has passed through these nations. It is 
remarkable that the first victim of Bolivia's 
nationalization is a public company from neighboring 
Brazil, run by left-leaning Lula. But the success of 
radical left parties is the result of the failures of more 
liberal regimes, which have made the huge gap between rich 
and poor even greater. The telltale signs of success or 
failure will be in the social progress achieved by the new 
leaders. In Venezuela, outside the advances made in the 
energy sector, the rest is insignificant. Beyond the anti- 
imperialist rhetoric, this is where the test lies. If 
indeed these new policies are successful, the repercussions 
will travel very far, as far as Washington, which is 
looking at what is developing in its backyard with dismay." 
STAPLETON