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.)

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TUELLER