US embassy cable - 04MADRID4147

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 MADRID 004147 
 
SIPDIS 
 
E.O. 12958: DECL: 10/05/2014 
TAGS: PGOV, PREL, CASC, SP, American - Spanish Relations 
SUBJECT: AMBASSADOR MEETS MINISTER OF JUSTICE TO DISCUSS 
LAW ENFORCEMENT AND TIP ISSUES 
 
Classified By: Political Counselor Kathy Fitzpatrick; reason 1.5 (B) an 
d (D). 
 
1. (C) Summary.  The Ambassador met with Minister of Justice 
Juan Fernando Lopez Aguilar on October 21 to discuss law 
enforcement issues, including counterterrorism cooperation, 
trafficking in persons, and Mutual Legal Assistance and 
Extradition treaties (MLAT).  The Ambassador stressed the 
USG's interest in highlighting the good ties between the U.S. 
and Spain, particularly on law enforcement issues.  Aguilar 
agreed on the importance of working together to combat all 
forms of international crime and described the level of USG 
cooperation with the Ministry of Justice (MOJ) as 
"excellent."  Asked how cooperation could be improved, 
Aguilar said the GOS would like to see more timely responses 
to GOS requests for USG information in GOS counterterrorism 
investigations.  He said the GOS is committed to combating 
trafficking in persons.  On other matters, Aguilar discussed 
the Zapatero Government's conflict with the Catholic Church 
on a range of GOS social initiatives and said he was amazed 
by the growth of Protestant and other non-traditional 
denominations in Spain.  Aguilar is among the most positive 
of Zapatero's officials towards the USG and is well placed to 
help us on security matters.  End Summary. 
 
2. (C) The Ambassador and DCM met with Justice Minister 
Aguilar to discuss a range of law enforcement issues.  The 
Ambassador thanked Aguilar for Spain's high level of 
cooperation with the USG on law enforcement issues, including 
in the fight against terrorism.  The Ambassador expressed the 
USG's appreciation for the Spanish Attorney General's 
proposal to begin talks with the USG on the formation of a 
joint counterterror investigation team.  Aguilar agreed with 
the Ambassador on the importance of strong bilateral 
cooperation on law enforcement issues, describing the level 
of USG agencies' cooperation with their Spanish counterparts 
as "excellent." 
 
//TRAFFICKING IN PERSONS// 
 
3. (C) The Ambassador underlined the importance to the USG of 
combating traficking in persons (TIP), noting that the 
Embassy had received significant cooperation from GOS 
contacts in preparing the 2003 TIP report.  Aguilar said the 
GOS understands the scope of the TIP problem in Spain and is 
committed to dismantling TIP networks.  He said he had been 
aware of the problems of East European victims discussed in 
the TIP report, but was surprised by the number of African 
prostitutes making their way to Spain via Maghrebi smuggling 
routes.  The DCM said the USG found government statistics 
related to TIP a particularly useful tool for gauging 
international trafficking patterns.  Aguilar said GOS would 
gladly share TIP statistics with the Embassy. 
 
//LAW ENFORCEMENT COOPERATION// 
 
4. (C) Aguilar and the Ambassador discussed upcoming talks in 
Madrid between USG and GOS legal officials to work out the 
final details of the bilateral protocol to the Mulitlateral 
Extradition and Legal Assistance treaties (MLAT).  Aguilar 
remarked on the continuing political sensitivity for Spanish 
authorities on extraditions related to death penalty cases. 
He nonetheless assured the Ambassador that the MLAT 
discussions were on track from the Spanish perspective and 
that all pending issues would be resolved in the late 
November or early December meeting of bilateral legal 
experts.  The Ambassador asked whether Spain has replaced its 
Central Authority for enforcement of the Hague Convention on 
Parental Child Abduction, a pending issue of importance to 
our Mission.  Aguilar provided the name of the official in 
the Ministry of Justice who oversees the Central Authority, 
but indicated the position has not yet been filled. 
 
5. (C) The Ambassador asked what the USG could do better in 
terms of law enforcement cooperation.  After consulting 
briefly with his aides, Aguilar said the GOS would like a 
more timely response from USG agencies on Spanish requests 
for information related to counterterrorism investigations. 
(NOTE: This stems from complaints by some Spanish officials, 
notably high-profile judge Baltasar Garzon, that the USG is 
"impeding" Spanish investigations by not making intelligence 
information available to Spanish prosecutors for use in 
court.  This is likely to remain a point of contention, 
especially in cases where GOS police lack information that 
can be used in court.  END NOTE).  However, Aguilar did not 
press the issue and stressed Spain's overall satisfaction 
with the level of USG cooperation. 
 
//RISING IMPORTANCE OF NON-TRADITIONAL RELIGIONS// 
 
6. (C) Switching from law enforcement matters to GOS 
relations with religious organizations (which also falls 
under the purview of the Ministry of Justice), Aguilar 
defended the Zapatero Government's iniative to reduce the 
influence of the Catholic Church and to decrease some of the 
government benefits enjoyed by the Church but not by other 
denominations.  He said accusations that Zapatero was 
anti-Catholic Church were unfair; the GOS wants a truly 
secular state without providing special advantages to any 
particular group.  Aguilar said Spain's religious demography 
was vastly more complex than in the past, noting the 
impressive rise of Protestant churches, Mormon congregations, 
and, most recently, the opening of a Church of Scientology 
center in downtown Madrid. 
 
//BIOGRAPHIC NOTES// 
 
7. (C) Aguilar was born in 1961 in the Canary Islands. 
Within the PSOE, Aguilar has served as Assistant Spokesman 
(1993-1998), as a member of the party's Executive Committee, 
and as an election coordinator.  He was one of the PSOE 
negotiators in security discussions with the Popular Party 
that resulted in the PSOE/PP Anti-Terrorist Pact.  He holds a 
masters degree from the University of Granada, a law degree 
from the University of Bologna, and was chair of the School 
of Constitutional Law at the University of Las Palmas. 
Aguilar also received a degree from the Fletcher School of 
Law and Diplomacy, spending two years in the U.S. during his 
studies.  He is friendly towards the USG and will likely be a 
useful interlocutor on law enforcement issues throughout his 
tenure as Minister. 
ARGYROS