OMAN ONLINE: MORE PARDONS, LESS PAPERS

UNCLAS MUSCAT 001157

SIPDIS

STATE FOR NEA/ARPI, NEA/PPD, NEA/P, IIP/G/NEA

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: KPAO SOCI MU
SUBJECT: OMAN ONLINE: MORE PARDONS, LESS PAPERS

REF: MUSCAT 972


1. Summary: The Omani Internet message boards "al-Sablah" and
"al-Majarra" are the liveliest and most comprehensive Arabic-
language fora for political and social discourse in the country,
touching on issues and personalities rarely addressed in the
conventional media. While not totally free, nor wholly
reflective of Omani public opinion, these popular sites
nevertheless offer a worthwhile window into the hot topics and
unvarnished views of the day. This edition of Oman Online
contains the following topics:

-- More Pardons From The Sultan
-- A Proposal For An "Opposition" Magazine
-- Which Is The Best Newspaper in Oman?

End summary.

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To Err Is Human
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2. Coming on the heels of last month's royal pardons (reftel),
the July 19 news of the Sultan's pardoning of 369 more prisoners
(septel) elicited mainly laudatory responses from al-Sablah
members. "We congratulate the families of the arrestees, and all
Omanis, for this gift from His Majesty" and "Long live our wise
leader, who is saving the country from internal conflicts" were
two commonly expressed sentiments. One member hoped that "the
secret organization file should be closed for good, so the

SIPDIS
security agencies can no longer use it as an excuse to arrest
people."

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Plenty of Ammunition In This Magazine
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3. Al-Sablah participants took a jaundiced view of a report
alleging that the Ministry of Information intends to publish an
"opposition" magazine, focusing on controversial topics within
Omani society. "This is just one more instance of the Ministry
of Information lamely trying to show that they allow freedom of
expression," bemoaned one observer. Another declared, "The media
in our country is a lie. This new magazine is a hopeless case,
because it will be controlled by the Ministry of Information and
it will only represent the government's position." Never missing
an opportunity to involve the United States, one participant
claimed, "The magazine would just be an attempt to show the
Americans that we are democratic, and that we allow others to
express their opinions freely."

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All The News That's Fit To Print
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4. A similar contempt for Oman's existing print media surfaced
when one al-Sablah member asked, "Which is the best newspaper in
Oman?" Among the overwhelmingly negative responses, several
referenced the lack of variety: "All the newspapers have the same
ideology. They only publish the government line; all we get is
what the government wants us to know." Others added, "Why read
the Omani papers? Their `reports' are usually weeks behind the
regional newspapers."


5. Wrote one wag, "I really like the design and graphics of the
newspapers, especially the large advertisements that take up the
space of real news." At least one participant did try to answer
the original question: "Actually I like `al-Watan' [a privately-
owned, widely-read Arabic daily] because they are more objective
and capture the feeling of the street. For example, they
describe Israelis as Zionists, and Palestinians as martyrs
instead of suicide bombers."

BALTIMORE