THE LINES AND BEARDS GET LONGER AT THE ARAB BOOK

UNCLAS KUWAIT 004371

SIPDIS

STATE FOR NEA/ARPI

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: KISL PREL PGOV KU
SUBJECT: THE LINES AND BEARDS GET LONGER AT THE ARAB BOOK
EXHIBITION



1. Summary: The 29th Arab Book Fair reflected a continued
trend of the gradual Islamization of the annual exhibition.
A noticeable increase in Islamic religious books, shoppers,
and booksellers highlighted the fair, where the majority of
participants and shoppers were rural conservative Muslims.
Some urban, moderate Kuwaitis increasingly shied away from
the event and some liberal contacts described the event as a
waste of time. Nonetheless, Washington-produced Arabic texts
sold well at the U.S. Embassy's book fair stall. End Summary.


2. The 29th Arab Book Fair was held from November 23 -
December 3. Twenty-five countries took part in the
exhibition, displaying over 90,000 books, mostly in Arabic,
although there were a limited number of English-language
books available. The opening was presided over by
Information Minister Mohammed Abulhassan. (Note: The
Information Minister is likely to be the next minister to
face a parliamentary grilling. Members of the Salafi
Movement, a.k.a. Scientific Salafis, are attacking him on
numerous charges including irregularities in the Ministry,
permitting indecent concerts and inappropriate television
programming, and general promotion of moral corruption. End
Note.)


3. Over the past five years, the tone of the book fair has
become increasingly more religious. The majority of patrons
this year were bearded Kuwaiti men and fully-veiled Kuwaiti
women. The majority of the bookshops and publishers taking
part in the exhibition, particularly the Kuwaiti
participants, reflected conservative religious ideologies.
Most books covered traditional and historical issues such as
the life of Prophet Mohammed, the spread of Islam, and
Islamic life issues and rituals. Analytical books about the
Islamic groups and movements were not seen. (Comment: This
is almost certainly because of the growing influence of the
Islamist groups in Kuwait. A few years ago, Islamist MPs
grilled Shaykh Saud Nasser Al-Sabah, then Information
Minister, because some of the books at a previous fair were
perceived to be contrary to Islamic values. End Comment.)
Many shoppers filled their shopping carts with lower-quality
religious books which are sold at bargain prices. The fair
is viewed by rural bedouin and Islamists as a day out for the
family. Kids can "play" in the shopping carts and cheap
books on Islam are plentiful. As a result, most urban
Kuwaitis increasingly avoid the book exhibition. (Comment:
Several liberal post contacts described the event as a waste
of time, the Islamic experts as "hacks," and commented that
many Kuwaitis never read their purchased books, instead using
them as home decor. End Comment.)


4. New this year was a display of modern and professionally
published English-language children's books on Islam. In
place of music played on the traditional oud, an Arab
mandolin, it was agreed that there would be only readings
from the Qur'an to accentuate the mood at the fair -- a
widely understood concession to the Islamists -- and workers
at one booth handed out free informational CDs in support of
Palestinian political causes. Some of the many non-Islamic
books to be found included interpretation of dreams,
hypnotism, cooking, general fiction, and technical and
computer-related reference books. There were also books on
astrology, a topic growing in popularity among Arab women,
and Neuro-Linguistic Programming (NLP),a technique for
personal self-improvement and societal betterment that is
gaining many adherents in the Arab world, especially among
Islamists.


5. The U.S. Embassy stall, adorned with red, white, and blue
bunting, did brisk business. Embassy staff working the event
sold approximately 400 books, in Arabic and English, on a
variety of topics including: U.S. politics, history, and
culture as well as English-language instruction. Especially
popular was an Arabic-language book about the boxer Muhammed
Ali and texts about the U.S. legal system, both of which sold
out. Arabic-speaking participants also purchased
Arabic-language texts on U.S. history, government, and the
electoral process, and expressed a desire to have more, and
more modern, texts for learning English.

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LEBARON