KUWAIT MEDIA REACTION - ELECTIONS, CENSORSHIP, REFORM AND

UNCLAS KUWAIT 002366 SIPDIS SIPDIS STATE FOR NEA/ARP, NEA/PA, NEA/AIA, NEA/PI, INR/NESA, R/MR, I/GNEA, B/BXN, B/BRN, NEA/PPD, NEA/IPA FOR ALTERMAN LONDON FOR TSOU PARIS FOR ZEYA E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: OPRC KMDR KPAO KDEM PGOV KU SUBJECT: KUWAIT MEDIA REACTION - ELECTIONS, CENSORSHIP, REFORM AND FIGHTING CORRUPTION Block Quotes -------------- Sunday, June 18, 2006 -- Under the headline "Inexcusable Reaction," Dr. Shamlan Yousuf Al-Issa, a Political Science Professor at Kuwait University and a columnist in the pro-government Arabic daily Al-Seyassah, opined: "The accusation by the Minister of Information Mohammed Al-Sanousi against four satellite TV channels is a regrettable move. Mr. Al-Sanousi claims that these TV channels are spreading biased opinions in an unprofessional manner in a way that could harm the citizens of Kuwait and pose a threat to national security. It is a shame to have this type of allegation come from a minister in the government at a time when Kuwait is preparing to become an open country politically, and commercially.... This move by the Minister of Information is an indication that Kuwait would never be a media center similar to Dubai." -- Kuwaiti writer and political activist Dr. Mohammed Hussein Al-Yousefi wrote an op-ed in Arabic pro-government daily Al-Seyassah under the headline, "Al-Sistani and Kuwait's Elections." Dr. Al-Yousefi said, "An election banner in one of the districts in Kuwait carried a slogan taken from a fatwa by the great Imam Ayatollah Sistani. The fatwa forbid the act of buying votes, and we all know that fatwas are put to answer questions that people have. Other fatwas in the past by Shaykh Abdul Aziz bin Baz forbade mixed-gender meetings. These are just examples of things that occupy peoples' minds these days.... These days, everyone nowadays is working diligently to gain votes in an unexpected electoral race and racing the clock, especially the women. They were planning for their campaigns next year, but the unexpected dissolution of the Parliament placed women in an unfavorable situation. As the proverb says, the wind sometimes blows against the wish of the ship's captain." -- Under the headline "Change It and Resign", the daily progressive Arabic Al-Qabas ran a column by Dr. Abdullatif Al-Duaij, a columnist and a member of the "We Want it Coalition" political group, in which he said, "The call for action now must be to encourage the future MP's to work towards defeating the forces of corruption, not to join these forces. It is unacceptable to run an election according to the wishes and orders of the corruptive forces. The decision to run this election based on the old 25 districts was a victory for those who favor corruption. The reformists want these electoral districts to become five. Let us run this election with one aim in mind and that is changing the number of electoral districts. Candidates and voters must work together to foil the plan of the corruptive group. The National Assembly election in 2007 will be based on five districts." ********************************************* * For more reporting from Embassy Kuwait, visit: http://www.state.sgov.gov/p/nea/kuwait/?cable s Visit Kuwait's Classified Website: http://www.state.sgov.gov/p/nea/kuwait/ ********************************************* * TUELLER