MUSCAT MEDIA REACTION: CIVIL SOCIETY, FREE SPEECH, U.S.

UNCLAS MUSCAT 002223

SIPDIS

DEPT FOR NEA/ARP (TROBERTS),NEA/PPD (CWHITTLESEY),NEA/P
(FFINVER),INR/R/MR
LONDON FOR GOLDRICH
PARIS FOR ZEYA
USCENTCOM FOR PLUSH
FOREIGN PRESS CENTER/ASILAS

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: KPAO KMDR OIIP MU
SUBJECT: MUSCAT MEDIA REACTION: CIVIL SOCIETY, FREE SPEECH, U.S.
HYPOCRISY


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Creating A Civil Society
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1.The lead editorial in the government-owned Arabic daily "Oman"
on December 14 was entitled "NGOs and Civil Society":

"In order for the relationship between governments and nonprofit
organizations to be strong, governments must demonstrate respect
for human rights, enforce the rule of law, and promote the
development of civil society. Since the end of the Cold War,
there has been a new impetus to spread democratic principles
throughout the world. In the Arab world this has lead to calls
for greater tolerance. Some changes have already taken place.
For example, phrases like `open communication', `reform', and
`political freedom' are now employed in the Arab world. However,
Arab societies must do more to create an environment in which
civil society can grow. A positive first step would be to
implement policies that promote the development of non-profit
organizations that support civil society and community
involvement. If this is done, Arab societies will clearly be on
their way to creating meaningful civil societies."

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The Thin Red Line
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2. On December 16, "Oman" carried an editorial entitled "The
Danger of Silence":

"France's Al-Manar television station, which is owned and
operated by Hezbollah, has been silenced. Eutelsat, a French
satellite company, has refused to host the station on its
carrier. Critics of Eutelsat claim that the French government
pressured the company to stop hosting the station because the
government felt threatened by the content of the station's
reporting. It appears that in the West there is a thin line
between what is considered free speech and what is considered
dangerous speech. The difference depends on how sensitive the
topic is. Other examples of Islamic voices being silenced in the
West are mosque imams in Germany, Islamic groups in England, and
all of the above in the United States. In America there is a
very thin red line between the freedom to lift one's voice in
expressing opinions and the risk of losing one's voice
completely."

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U.S. Hypocrisy Causes Arab Bankruptcy
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3. An editorial appeared in the privately owned Arabic daily "Al-
Watan" on December 19 entitled "Bankruptcy through Excuses":

"It is hard to take the United States seriously when it claims to
stand for freedom of speech and political pluralism, but turns
around and applies political pressure on certain media groups to
prevent them from expressing their opinions.... This refers to
the U.S. role in blocking the broadcasting of Al-Manar
television. The U.S. alleges that the station obtains funding
from organizations on its terrorist list. Essentially, Al-Manar
has been prevented from broadcasting for attempting to obtain
funds to finance its daily operation. This incident shows that
the America does not practice what it preaches. The U.S. is
attempting to silence Arabic media and replace them with its own.
This explains the creation of Al-Hurra television and `Hi'
magazine."
BALTIMORE