SENIOR KUWAITI MFA OFFICIAL'S VIEWS ON SPEAKING

C O N F I D E N T I A L KUWAIT 003403 SIPDIS FOR NEA/ARPI AND S/WCI; LONDON FOR TSOU; PARIS FOR ZEYA E.O. 12958: DECL: 07/31/2015 TAGS: PREL PHUM PGOV KISL KPAO KCRM KU KACW SUBJECT: SENIOR KUWAITI MFA OFFICIAL'S VIEWS ON SPEAKING OUT ON GITMO AND DETAINEES: TOO LITTLE, TOO LATE REF: STATE 139288 Classified By: Charge d'Affaires Matthew H. Tueller for reasons 1.4(b) and (d) ¶1. (C) PolChief discussed reftel points July 31 with Ambassador Khaled Al-Maqamis, Ministry of Foreign Affairs Director of Coordination and Follow Up. Al-Maqamis has the GOK lead for detainee issues and has previously engaged EmbOffs on what he views as a complete failure by the U.S. to inform the "common people" that the detainees are indeed treated humanely and that many pose a direct threat to regional security. He welcomed the effort to better inform the international community about detainee issues, but said it was too late, too little, and addressed to the wrong audience. ¶2. (C) Al-Maqamis began his monologue by critiquing media coverage of the detainees. He said that the Arab world has seen no "positive," proactive coverage of detainee issues. Reports have focused on allegations of abuse and interviewed released detainees, regardless of nationality, said the same negative things giving credence to reports of torture. He said most Arabs believed the former detainees confessed to terror activities as a way to escape torture and other mistreatment. He recommended that the media be allowed to interview current detainees, especially the more strident ones, saying, "Let the crazy people talk so that everyone can hear their evil." He accused the U.S. of keeping the "common Arab people" at a distance and encouraged "embracing" them and showing them the type of people detained. ¶3. (C) In addition to a more focused media campaign, Al-Maqamis encouraged more detainee visits. He recommended that MFA officials and politicians be allowed to visit detainees, arguing that comments from these individuals that detainees were well-treated would resonate within the Arab/Muslim world. He said that embassy representatives and security personnel who had previously visited detainees were viewed as biased. He also called for allowing family members to visit their detained relatives. He predicted that unruly detainees would change their behavior and become more cooperative if they saw a parent or wife. He was also convinced that the family members could confirm the health and well-being of the detainees and thus affect public perception. He quickly discounted visits by the ICRC and other NGOs. ¶4. (C) Al-Maqamis claimed that most Kuwaiti relatives of detainees had accepted that their relatives may have done something wrong and punishment was merited. He said the problem of not knowing the detainees' situations fueled the criticisms. He said the issue was particularly sensitive for Kuwaitis who spent more than a decade not knowing the fates of family and friends arrested and detained by Saddam Hussein. These scars were still fresh and for the relatives of the 11 detained Kuwaitis, they were constantly reliving the Iraqi POW experience. (Note: There were 605 Kuwait POWs from the 1990 - 91 Gulf War. All are presumed to have been killed by Saddam Hussein and the GOK has located and identified hundreds of sets of remains. End Note.) ********************************************* Visit Embassy Kuwait's Classified Website: http://www.state.sgov.gov/p/nea/kuwait/ You can also access this site through the State Department's Classified SIPRNET website ********************************************* TUELLER