MEDIA REACTION ON MIDDLE EAST

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SUBJECT: MEDIA REACTION ON MIDDLE EAST


Summary

-- Lead stories in all papers today, October 6,
continue to highlight stories related to developments
in Iraq and the Palestinian territories. All papers
highlight reports about King Abdullah's mediation
efforts to set a meeting between the Palestinian
President Mahmoud Abbas and the Israeli Prime Minister
Sharon on or about October 10.

Editorial Commentary

-- "The trick of reform"

Columnist Manar Rashwani writes on the op-ed page of
independent, centrist Al-Ghad Arabic daily (10/06):
"What do we mean by reform and how do we implement it?
The most familiar and granted answer is represented in
the word 'democracy', but is it really democracy?
Let's say that it is the correct answer and that it is
the key to everything we have wanted and been waiting
for. Here's another question: what is the democracy
that we seek to implement really? Is it just
legislative and municipal elections in accordance with
the concept of democracy that the United States is
promoting in our countries and that yielded nothing
but a model of 'illiberal democracy'? Then again,
what about our endless debate with regard to the
relationship between Islam and democracy? This last
question is part of the bigger and present issue of
the role of religion in the Arab and Muslim society, a
matter that will dictate posing another question about
the form of Arab reform: will it be secular or
religious, extremist or moderate? The best answer to
the question of reform may just be democracy, with all
its features, particularly respect for human rights
and basic freedoms, as well as political pluralism and
the majority rule. Yet, we must wonder: what are we
to do with regard to human rights at the level of
minority groups, be they ethnic, religious or
sectarian? And what are we to do about poverty and
unemployment, the responsibility for which we put on
the shoulders of our governments that surrendered to
the so-called 'economic reform' programs? Can we
really declare a unilateral disengagement from the IMF
and the World Bank? It seems that any attempt to find
serious answers to the above questions will yield
disappointment. We allege that all so-called
'reformist' Arab movements are no more than attempts
to affect change that does not necessarily mean
reform. In fact, they may very well lead to the re-
creation of oppression and tyranny under new names and
with unfamiliar faces. Our proof of this allegation
is the absence of a genuine and comprehensive Arab
reform project that includes all social, economic,
political and cultural aspects and presents a
futuristic vision capable of accurately identifying
human values".

-- "Too much talk, too little deeds"

Chief Editor Ayman Safadi writes on the back-page of
independent, centrist Arabic daily Al-Ghad (10/06):
"The Arabs fear Iran's influence in Iraq and it is a
legitimate and justified fear. Yet, the
responsibility for the growth of the Iranian presence
in Iraq is borne, in part, by the Arabs who were
absent from Iraq at the same time when Iran was
realizing the opportunity it had to strengthen its
presence there. Iran succeeded in benefiting from the
dismantling of the Iraqi state following the ousting
of the former regime.... In return, the Arab
countries exerted no effort towards developing its
relations with the new Iraq. The Arabs adopted the
same old tradition in their policy towards Iraq that
they had followed with so many other issues: too much
talk, too little deeds. The Arabs did not bother to
make any initiatives towards Baghdad. As for the
Iraqis, they felt let down by their neighbors, a
feeling that grew into skepticism and doubt of the
Arab countries' intentions towards them and worry of
any Arab initiative that intervenes in their affairs.
After almost two and half years since the fall of the
Saddam Hussein regime, the Arab League is making a
move towards Iraq in an effort to convene a general
Iraqi conference that seeks to achieve national
reconciliation. The move is late, but not so much so
that it is impossible to achieve results towards
getting Iraq out of its crisis. The Iraqis will
appreciate the initiative if the Arab League deals
with them on the basis of respect for their self-
determination right and of a realistic approach that
the past is gone and buried.... The Arab world is now
paying the price for its delay in forming its policies
on Iraq in accordance with the new facts on the ground
following the fall of the Saddam Hussein regime. The
opportunity is still here to set things right, and
yet, any effort to put the Iraqi-Arab relations back
on the right track requires an Arab realization that
the Iraqis will only accept any Arab role if it
clearly states respect for the right of the Iraqis to
choose the future they want".

-- "Karen Hughes?!"

Columnist Amin Mashaqbah writes on the op-ed page of
leading semi-official Arabic daily Al-Rai (10/06):
"We say here that the problem does not lie with the
American people but with the policies in effect in the
Middle East, particularly those adopted after 9/11.
The new empire has been declared in the Middle East
with clear and open strategic objectives for everyone
to see, starting with the disarmament of weapons of
mass destruction, through the fight against terrorism
and extremism and the removal of dictatorial regimes,
and ending with control over oil sources and the
preservation of Israel's security and survival. Thus
Afghanistan and Iraq were occupied and the new
American model for democracy was established. And
ever since the arrival of the conservative right wing
into power, the Zionist ideologies were linked to
American policies in the region. This is dividing
line that must be recognized. The Zionist agenda
controls the American decision-making process. As an
Arab citizen, I'm not against American interests, but
I am against the loss of peoples' legitimate rights
and self-determination rights. The American policies
are making Karen Hughes' mission of improving the U.S.
dark image very difficult.... They say that they
understand the Palestinian issue and talk about the
need to establish a Palestinian state, but the U.S.
administration has set free Sharon's hand to wipe out
all forms of legitimate resistance for the Palestinian
people on the pretext of fighting terrorism....
Hughes says that no one wants war, but who was it that
launched the war on Iraq and continues to wage it?
Who started the war on Afghanistan? Who is supporting
the war in Palestine and the Occupied Territories? We
are against terrorism, form and content, but who
created the terrorism and the extremism other than the
American policies, actions and wars in the region.
Therefore, the majority of the people in this region
believe that improving the American image cannot be
done except by improving and changing the U.S.
policies on the ground."
HALE