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Viewing cable 06DJIBOUTI90, DJIBOUTI TAKES FRANCE TO

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Reference ID Created Released Classification Origin
06DJIBOUTI90 2006-01-22 14:50 2011-08-24 00:00 UNCLASSIFIED Embassy Djibouti
This record is a partial extract of the original cable. The full text of the original cable is not available.
UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 DJIBOUTI 000090 
 
SIPDIS 
 
STATE FOR AF AND AF/E; 
LONDON, PARIS FOR AFRICA WATCHER; 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: PREL PGOV PINS KGCN KJUS KLIG DJ FR
SUBJECT: DJIBOUTI TAKES FRANCE TO 
INTERNATIONAL COURT OF JUSTICE 
 
REF: 05 DJIBOUTI 1069 
 
04 DJIBOUTI 1372 
04 DJIBOUTI 1084 
04 DJIBOUTI 585 
 
1. (U) SUMMARY: On January 10 Djibouti 
formally requested mediation by the 
International Court of Justice (ICJ) between 
itself and France over the long-standing and 
thorny Judge Bernard Borrel Affair (see 
reftels).  The Government of Djibouti (GoD) 
alleges that France violated its 
"international obligations in respect to 
mutual assistance in criminal matters" in 
the investigation into the 1995 death in 
Djibouti of the French judge. For more than 
ten years the case has remained open amid 
Mrs. Borrel's claims that members of the 
Government of Djibouti assassinated her 
husband.  She claims he was killed after he 
uncovered information which incriminated 
Djiboutian officials in the 1990 bombing of 
the Caf de Paris in Djibouti City. END 
SUMMARY 
 
2. (U) The alleged suicide of French 
magistrate, Bernard Borrel, in 1995 in 
Djibouti, remains a volatile subject in 
Djibouti-France relations. The issue of the 
death of the French magistrate, and 
discovery of his body 80 Km north of 
Djibouti in 1995, has surfaced once again in 
the local media.  In February 2005, France's 
Ministry of Justice agreed to hand over the 
case file to Djiboutian judicial 
authorities. However, French judge Sophie 
Clement refused to comply.  In her refusal, 
Clement stated that French authorities had 
no right to hand over secret documents to "a 
foreign political authority" arguing that to 
do so would "compromise the fundamental 
elements of national interest [of France] 
and [France's] agents". 
 
3. (U) A press release issued by the ICJ 
declared:  "In an application filed in the 
Registry of the Court on 9 January 2006, 
Djibouti states that the subject of the 
dispute concerns the refusal by the French 
governmental and judicial authorities to 
execute an international letter rogatory 
regarding the transmission to the judicial 
authorities in Djibouti of the record 
relating to the investigation in the Case 
against X for the murder of Bernard Borrel." 
Djibouti maintains that the refusal 
constitutes a violation of France's 
international obligations under the Treaty 
of Friendship and Cooperation signed by the 
two States on 27 June 1977, and the 
Convention on Mutual Assistance in Criminal 
Matters between France and Djibouti, dated 
27 September 1986.  Djibouti further asserts 
that, by summoning certain internationally 
protected nationals of Djibouti (including 
the Head of State) as witnesses in 
connection with a criminal complaint for 
subornation of perjury in the Borrel case, 
France violated its obligation to prevent 
attacks on the person, freedom or dignity of 
persons with diplomatic protection. 
 
4. (U) On September 30, 2004 the Court of 
Versailles summoned the Procureur de la 
Republique (Attorney General of Djibouti), 
Djama Souleiman, and Hassan Said, head of 
Djibouti's National Security Service (NSS), 
to appear before the examining French 
magistrate to respond regarding a complaint 
entered by the widow of Bernard Borrel. In 
response to the summoning of the judge, 
Djama Souleiman said in an interview, 
reproduced in Djibouti's state-run newspaper 
"La Nation" on October 4, 2004, "French 
magistrates forget easily that Djibouti is 
an independent and sovereign country. They 
still think Djibouti is a French territory. 
There is a judicial agreement between 
Djibouti and France since September 27 1986 
and if they want to call me, they have to go 
through that procedure". He highlighted that 
each country must respect the legal 
procedures of that agreement. 
 
5. (U) Article 38, paragraph 5, of the Rules 
of Court states "When the Applicant State 
proposes to found the jurisdiction of the 
Court upon a consent thereto yet to be given 
or manifested by the State against which 
such application is made, the application 
shall be transmitted to that State.  It 
shall not however be entered in the General 
List, nor any action be taken in the 
proceedings, unless and until the State 
against which such application is made 
consents to the Court's jurisdiction for the 
purposes of the case."  In accordance with 
this Article, the Application by the 
Republic of Djibouti was transmitted to the 
French Government and no action will be 
taken in the proceedings unless and until 
France consents to the Court's jurisdiction 
in the case. 
 
6. (U) The Djiboutian Ministry of Foreign 
Affairs, Mahmoud Ali Youssouf stated in a 
public communiqu following referral to the 
ICJ: "Djibouti has engaged international 
lawyers who will defend our case". Sources 
indicate that one of the international 
lawyers is American.  Nevertheless, the 
Minister said that the Court's decision will 
not negatively influence "good relations" 
between the two nations. 
RAGSDALE