IRI FINALLY BREAKS DOWN THE DOOR TO OMANI

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 MUSCAT 000244

SIPDIS

SENSITIVE

STATE FOR NEA/PI, NEA/ARPI
ABU DHABI FOR MEPI (HWECHSEL)

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: PGOV KMPI PREL EAID MU
SUBJECT: IRI FINALLY BREAKS DOWN THE DOOR TO OMANI
PARLIAMENT


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Summary
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1. (SBU) The International Republican Institute finally
succeeded this month in carrying out a training program for
elected Omani parliamentarians that the Majlis' President had
vowed for five years would never be permitted. Twelve
deputies and a senior staffer participated in a 3-day
workshop on critical reading of legislation, and came away
insisting on further courses. Finally having undergone a
change of heart, the Majlis President at the end asked IRI
why the workshop lasted only a few days. After investing
five years' of effort in winning over Oman's elected
quasi-parliament, IRI now faces the task of winning over MEPI
funds to continue its work. The Embassy strongly endorses
IRI's continued presence in Oman. End summary.

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Winning the Trial
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2. (SBU) International Republican Institute (IRI) Middle East
Program Officer Omar Alvi briefed Pol/Econ Chief on February
9 about a ground-breaking training program February 5-7
conducted at the Majlis al-Shura (Consultative Council) that,
for the first time in IRI's five years of work with the
Majlis, included elected deputies as opposed to only staff.
The "workshop" on reading draft legislation grew out of a
similar program IRI conduced in 2004 with Majlis staffers
that so impressed Majlis Secretary General Abdul Qadir
al-Dhahab that he asked that it be extended to members as a
special trial.


3. (SBU) The twelve participants in the 3-day, 9-hour event
(called a "workshop" to avoid offending the members with the
term "training") included Majlis Vice President Ishaq
al-Siyabi, the chairpersons of four Majlis committees (and
two deputy chairpersons),and the director of the Secretary
General's office. One of the Majlis' two female members was
among those taking part.


4. (SBU) Despite initial worries over how the members would
respond to an Egyptian trainer (Mahmoud Sabrah),and constant
interruptions on Day 1 from members' cell phones, the
audience eventually warmed enthusiastically to the subject
matter and ended the workshop insisting on more such
opportunities. Female deputy Rahila al-Riyami, who chairs
the Education and Culture Committee, forcefully insisted that
cell phones be turned off early on Day 2, from which point
members began in earnest to engage on the subject matter. By
Day 3, Alvi reported that the members' discussions grew
positively "risky" in the amount of frank criticism they
expressed toward the Majlis' circumscribed legislative role
and the government's dismissive attitude towards it.

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Majlis Asking for More
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5. (SBU) Sabrah used two pieces of legislation previously
passed by the Majlis (one on the medical profession and the
other on consumer protection) as his case studies in critical
reading. By the end of the course, Vice President al-Siyabi
asked in mock outrage how he and his colleagues could have
approved such flawed bills once the course had helped them
recognize gaps and contradictions in the government-drafted
laws. The members asked IRI in their feedback for further
in-depth study on critical reading of legislation, as well as
a broader array of other legislative courses. Vice President
al-Siyabi told Alvi that he would recommend a continuation of
the IRI training to Majlis President Sheikh Abdullah
al-Qatabi, but urged IRI to raise it with the President as
well in light of the President's infamous opposition to
member "training". When meeting with Sheikh Abdullah for
their out-brief, the Majlis President asked why the IRI
training had only lasted three days, indicating that his
opposition had finally been overcome. (Note: IRI
diplomatically kept mum on the fact that the Majlis Secretary
General had restricted them to 3 days for this initial trial,
primarily on the basis of his fear of offending Sheikh
Abdullah. End note.)

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Comment
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6. (SBU) While this 3-day IRI course may sound modest by
standards elsewhere, it is positively ground-breaking in the
Omani context. Majlis President Sheikh Abdullah al-Qatabi is
famously sensitive to outside "interference" in his Council,
and quick to take offense at perceived slights. As recently
as 2004, Qatabi had told us that it was wholly inappropriate
for elected members of the Majlis to undergo "training,"
saying that any interaction with the USG would have to be on
a peer basis with fellow parliamentarians. The UK Embassy
has dealt with similar restrictions, although the Brits have
had better luck enlisting its MP's in exchanges with their
counterparts in the Majlis. But just as IRI has finally
crossed this rubicon, its existing funding is running out.
Without MEPI approval of its new project proposal, IRI's
first program with Majlis deputies could well be its last,
and any successor NGO seeking to fill the void will likely
face years of work to win anew the Majlis' confidence. The
Embassy would hate to see IRI's careful cultivation of the
Majlis al-Shura go to waste and strongly endorses continued
MEPI funding for IRI efforts in training the Majlis al-Shura..
BALTIMORE