US embassy cable - 05PARIS5990

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 03 PARIS 005990 
 
SIPDIS 
 
FROM USMISSION TO UNESCO 
 
STATE PASS USTR ALLGEIER, BALASSA 
IO/UNESCO FOR JANE COWLEY 
EUR/ER FOR PETER CHASE 
 
E.O. 12958: DECL: 09/02/2015 
TAGS: SCUL, ETRD, EU, CJAN, UNESCO 
SUBJECT:  USUNESCO:  CULTURAL DIVERSITY JUGGERNAUT 
BARRELS TOWARD PASSAGE OF CONVENTION AT OCTOBER GENERAL 
CONFERENCE 
 
REF:  A) PARIS 5185, PARIS 5417, C) PARIS 5116, D) 
 
PARIS 4528 
 
1.  (C) This cable is classified by DCM Andrew Koss, 
for reasons:  1.4 (b) and (d). 
 
Is UNESCO in the throes of mass hysteria 
--------------------------------------------- -- 
 
2. (C) Summary:  A picture is beginning to emerge of 
French and EU pressure on other UNESCO members to get 
the draft cultural diversity convention passed by 
UNESCO's fall General Conference and to allow the EU to 
play an unprecedented role in a UN organization.  At 
the same time, in a recent series of speeches, French 
leaders have made no secret of France's desire to use 
the convention document to curb American audiovisual 
exports by removing ill-defined "cultural goods and 
services" from WTO disciplines.  US Mission continues 
at every opportunity to point out that the draft 
Convention is a flawed document that is poorly written 
and contradictory and could be used to undermine human 
rights by giving governments broad rights to control 
access to culture expressions.  Meanwhile, China may 
have already provided a glimpse of the future by using 
culture as a pretext to censor the media. 
Unfortunately, UNESCO's member states seem to be in the 
throes of mass hysteria and beyond the reach of 
rational argument.  End Summary. 
 
Whatever it takes to get the job done - and we've just 
seen the tip of the iceberg 
--------------------------------------------- --------- 
3.  (C) A picture of pressure and tools used by France 
and other convention proponents to gain support from 
UNESCO member states is beginning to emerge.  The 
Kenyan deputy permanent delegate (protect) recently 
told us of a "workshop" on cultural diversity organized 
by the South African government at the Paris Hilton 
during the two days before the last negotiating 
session.  According to the Kenyan, when he asked who 
was paying for the sumptuous event which included sit- 
down lunches, he was told by a colleague not to ask 
questions.  (Note and comment:  the Mission recently 
inquired about holding a reception for the General 
Conference in the same space at the Hilton and the 
estimate was close to USD10,000.  We do not know the 
finances of the South African government but do find it 
surprising that they are flushing enough to spend 
thousands of dollars on such an event.  It is easy to 
assume it was paid for by one of the convention's 
wealthier proponents, much as a Smithsonian conference 
on cultural diversity last winter was funded by the 
Canadian government.) 
 
4.  (C) The Kenyan also told us that in the run-up to 
the last Executive Board, discussion on the EU role in 
UNESCO, his president was demarched by the British 
Ambassador.  Subsequently the Kenyan delegation to 
UNESCO received instructions to support the EU.  The 
Ambassador of Afghanistan tells us his foreign minister 
was approached in Kabul.  He also tell us that EU 
pressure and feelings of loyalty to the US really put 
his country in a tight spot. 
 
5.  (C)  The Mexican deputy (protect) also recently 
painted a picture of steady high-level pressure on his 
government to support the convention.  When Mexico did 
not fall into line during the last negotiations and 
took a reservation about article 20, the deputy was 
upbraided by the French Ambassador to UNESCO. 
 
France pulls no punches - It's all about the U.S. 
--------------------------------------------- ---- 
 
6. (U)  Calls by President Chirac (ref A) and Foreign 
Minister Doust Blazy to the annual gathering of French 
Ambassadors for passage of the UNESCO cultural 
diversity convention were not nearly as strong as that 
issued by French Culture Minister Renaud Donnedieu de 
Vabres in a July 19 speech (ref B) who made it clear 
(comment: despite claims to the contrary) that the rush 
to draft a convention has been about trade and 
thwarting the United States all along:  "We are thus 
committed to a true `race against the clock' against 
the parallel process of the signing of a bilateral free 
trade agreements that have been suggested to many 
countries by the United States and that contain clauses 
for the liberalization of cultural and audio-visual 
offers of service, as with the Doha Round underway in 
the World Trade Organization." 
 
7.  (U)  In other parts of the speech to French 
diplomatic staff Donnedieu de Varbres issued a call to 
arms:  "There is in the immediate future something at 
stake on which I ask you to continue to mobilize with 
the greatest energy:  adoption of the convention on 
cultural diversity at the time of the UNESCO General 
Conference." 
 
Brazil, dancing to a French beat? 
--------------------------------- 
 
8.  (SBU)  France has embraced Brazilian culture in a 
big way with its Year of Brazil.  All summer Paris has 
been full of expensive and splashy Brazilian cultural 
events and culture minister Gilberto Gil has been a 
frequent visitor.  Given the attention and money 
lavished on them by the French, it is hardly a surprise 
that the Brazilians have been among the most ardent 
supporters of the convention.  They are apparently so 
sure of victory at the General Conference that they 
announced at an August 25-26 OAS culture committee 
meeting that they will be hosting a meeting in November 
on implementing the convention. 
 
China invokes "National Cultural Diversity" 
------------------------------------------ 
 
9.  (SBU) We were given a recent glimpse of the type of 
mischief for which this convention might be used. 
According to a number of press stores, the Chinese 
government recently clamped down on foreign satellite 
broadcasts under the pretext of "protecting national 
security."  Not coincidentally, China is a fervid 
supporter of the current draft.  We have used this as 
an example of what the convention could lead to in 
conversations with our UNESCO colleagues. 
 
We invited your lawyers to meet ours, but we didn't 
mean it 
--------------------------------------------- ------ 
 
10. (SBU) The EU's invitation (ref C) to hold a meeting 
of lawyers appears to be window dressing.  On August 30 
Ambassador Oliver received a frantic call from the UK 
ambassador Tim Craddock who was concerned that the 
meeting (now scheduled for September 16) may evolve 
into something more serious than he intended.  He 
emphasized that he certainly did not intend to open the 
convention to further negotiation as all 25 members 
supported the draft convention and did not share our 
concerns about article 20 or feel that it would cause 
trade problems.  (Comment:  Craddock seems to have gone 
out on a limb and might be in hot waters with his EU 
colleagues.  It appears he did not really expect us to 
take him up on his offer.  We also are incredulous 
about Craddock's assertion that FCO lawyers have no 
problems with the draft convention as it stands now.) 
 
Comment: UNESCO the UN's `Intellectual' organization 
--------------------------------------------- ------- 
 
11.  (C) Comment:  Though UNESCO prides itself on being 
the UN's intellectual body, rational arguments are 
falling on deaf ears.  The proponents feel they have a 
victory and don't want to let it go, no matter how 
specious it is.  We also find among the supporters a 
general inability to explain what the convention does 
to protect cultural diversity beyond trade terms. 
 
12.  (C) Comment continued:  Although France and Canada 
have been the primary impulses behind the convention, 
the EC could not have had a unified position if all 25 
members had not agreed.  The sad reality is that even 
some of our closer friends in the EU have gone along 
with the convention, though they knew they were putting 
themselves at odds with the US.  The British demarche 
in Kenya is a good example.  To the extent it is an 
excuse, we have heard from the Czechs and Poles that 
their foreign ministries see this as a cultural issue 
and just do not want to be involved. 
 
13. (C) Comment continued:  This orchestrated campaign 
has gone on for the past two years with unlimited 
resources provided by the convention's proponents and 
led by France and Canada who do not seem to care if 
this causes potentially serious problems for the US 
reengagement with UNESCO.  Ambassador Oliver will be 
meeting with the Director General on September 2 and 
will strongly object to the both the process and 
substance of the convention.   She will urge the DG to 
return to the original charge of the 2003 General 
Conference to provide a preliminary draft text. 
 
OLIVER