KUWAIT SPECIAL MEDIA REACTION, NOVEMBER 12: NOV. 6 POTUS SPEEC

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SUBJECT: KUWAIT SPECIAL MEDIA REACTION, NOVEMBER 12: NOV. 6 POTUS SPEEC


1. President Bush's November 6 NED speech has garnered mixed
placement in Kuwait's Arabic press, with some major papers
putting the speech in the back pages of the international
section as opposed to the front-page treatment POTUS
statements are usually accorded in Kuwait. (Comment: we
think this reflects the laid-back, non-political pace of
Kuwaiti journalism during Ramadan as opposed to any
ideological or policy interpretation by the editors. End
Comment.) Headlines generally focus on the President's call
for democratic change in the Arab world and his mention of
Kuwait as among those moving towards democracy. Most of the
brief and rather superficial editorial commentary included
in the reportage views the speech as an effort to shore up
US domestic support for ongoing operations in Iraq and/or as
a veiled warning to Iran and Syria not to obstruct US
policies.


2. Perhaps reflecting the lassitude that pervades Kuwait's
editorial offices at this point in Ramadan, number one
Arabic daily "Al Rai al Aam" imports an article by Lebanese
writer Khairallah Khairallah, who blasts the speech as
destabilizing to the region and dismissive of the
Palestinians.


3. Two local op/eds have appeared thus far: one by liberal
University of Kuwait Dean Ali Al-Tarrah, and another by "Al-
Siyassah" editor-in-chief Ahmad Al-Jarallah. Al-Tarrah notes
the President's statement that Islam is not incompatible
with democracy and declares that "rescuing the Islamic world
from the (current) crisis requires presenting a modern
vision of Islam, one which makes use of Western democratic
values." Editor-in-chief Al-Jarallah says the POTUS speech
reflects US determination "to create a democratic model in
Iraq for the region," and that it is time for Arab countries
to "act according to Western ideals of democracy, human
rights, and freedom."


4. Following are headlines and commentary:

November 7, 2003

-- Headline: "Bush denounced the Syrian and Iranian legacy
of oppression and called for a `democratic revolution' in
the Arab World. He praised Kuwait and five other Arab
counties, and said Islam does not clash with American
strategy."
(From Al-Seyassah, prominently placed on the front page with
a photo of the President)

The newspaper editorialized that Bush purposely divided the
region into two blocs: those moving towards democracy and
the others whom he threatened with punishment. The paper
also noted that the President did not mention Israel, either
positively or negatively.

-- Headline: "Bush admits that supporting tyrannical
regimes stirred anti-American feelings that nourished
terrorism."
(From Al-Rai Al-Aam, prominently placed on the front page)

-- Headline: "Bush: We supported tyranny in the region for
sixty years."
(Al-Watan, front page)

-- Headline: "Bush: Freedom is coming to the Middle East."
(From Al-Qabas, page 33, international news section: brief
report, prominent headline)

-- Headline: "Bush to Arab leaders: End decades of
depravation and suppressed anger."
(Al-Anba, page 17: brief report, prominent headline)

November 8, 2003

-- Headline: "In his speech, the President indirectly
defied Egypt and warned Iran and Syria. Saudi Arabia and
the Palestinians: Bush should have ended the Israeli
aggression and transferred the authority to the Iraqis."
(Al-Qabas, page 35, international news: with a photo of the
President delivering his speech)

The newspaper reported that "in an attempt to justify the
war [in Iraq] from a political and ethical perspective after
failing to find WMD, and in light of the increasing
criticism for his policy in Iraq, President Bush stated that
`Iraqi democracy will succeed.'" The newspaper also
editorialized that "the speech was an attempt to convince
Americans that the financial and human price paid in Iraq is
ethically and politically justified because freedom deserves
the struggle."

-- Headline: "Bush: the Iraqi model will succeed and will
be a model for the entire region. The Middle East is the
focus for American policy in the upcoming decades and Islam
is harmonious with the principles of democracy."
(Al-Watan, page 28: half-page story with a photo of the
President, Secretary Powell, and Secretary Rumsfeld)

The newspaper editorialized that "Bush's speech is the most
recent attempt to justify the war on Iraq as a requirement
for the adoption of democracy in the region at a time when
he is being criticized for the increasing losses among the
American forces."

-- Headline: "Bush challenges Iran, Syria, and Egypt to
adopt democracy and praises positive developments in
Bahrain, Kuwait, Qatar, and Saudi Arabia."
(Al-Rai Al-Aam, page 28, international news)

The newspaper published a front-page political analysis by
Lebanese writer Khairallah Khairallah who argued that the
speech "was the most dangerous statement made by the
President concerning the region." The analysis claimed that
the President was more "aggressive toward Syria" and some
Palestinian leaders than towards Iran. The report criticized
the President's speech for not mentioning the word
"occupation." Khairallah argues that if the President had
mentioned that "his administration supports the end of the
Israeli occupation of Palestine and the Golan heights, his
speech would have been more comprehensive and the mission of
his administration in the region would have been less
difficult."


5. Editorial opinion:

--"President Bush's Speech and the Necessity for Political
Reforms in the Region."
Liberal Dean of Kuwait University's College of Social
Sciences, Dr. Ali Al-Tarrah, wrote in Al-Seyassah (11/09):
"President Bush's speech on the situation in Iraq and the
Middle East stressed the importance of democracy and the
need for political reform in the region in order to end the
increase in extremist ideology. There is no doubt that
democracy is a concept of Western origin, but nevertheless
it does not contradict Islam. As a matter of fact, the
principles of Western democracy share many points of
commonality with the principles of Islam. It is wrong to
think that secularism is a precondition for democracy.
Religion could also play an important role in democratic
policies, as is the case in the United States. Rescuing the
Islamic world from the [current] crisis requires presenting
a modern vision of Islam, one that makes use of Western
democratic values. Human rights must also be emphasized
because most Islamic societies, even the Iranian model,
violate human rights."

-- "America in Iraq"
Editor-in-chief of Arabic daily Al-Seyassah, Ahmad Al-
Jarallah opined (11/8): "President Bush's words reiterated
that he will not leave Iraq before accomplishing his goal of
establishing a democratic country to serve as a model [to
the region]. Such laudable objectives are infuriating those
who have been hurt by the American success in Iraq, despite
their attempts to fuel violence and terrorism in the
country. What the President is saying is not only America's
view, but also that of the West, based on democracy, human
rights, and freedom. It is now the turn of Middle East
countries to act according to Western ideals. In all cases,
American and Western goals are ethical, based on reforms and
the interests of the people of the region and the stability
of its regimes. These goals are different from the goals of
previous decades which were directly linked to colonizing
countries, robbing their fortunes, and exploiting their
people."


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