FREEDOM AGENDA: OPPOSING REACTIONS TO THE NEW

C O N F I D E N T I A L KUWAIT 000804

SIPDIS

SIPDIS

FOR NEA/ARP, NEA/P, NEA/PPD, DRL

E.O. 12958: DECL: 03/07/2016
TAGS: PGOV KHUM IR KU FREEDOM AGENDA
SUBJECT: FREEDOM AGENDA: OPPOSING REACTIONS TO THE NEW
PRESS AND PUBLICATIONS LAW

REF: KUWAIT 768

Classified By: DCM Matt Tueller for reasons 1.4(b) and (d)


1. (U) Summary and Comment: Reactions to the newly-passed
Press and Publications law (reftel) have varied widely and at
times tended to hyperbole. One knowledgeable post contact
sees it as a great step forward while another fears it will
lead to the end of quality journalism in Kuwait. Liberals
are generally critical of some of the restrictive provisions
contained in the law. Despite the fact that most of our
contacts express serious reservations about aspects of the
law, all have welcomed its passage. Secular MPs applaud the
intrinsic freedoms guaranteed by the law; Islamists see new
opportunities to air their views; the "independent" bloc -- a
group of pro-government deputies -- supported the law when it
became clear it was destined to pass, perhaps as a way of
gaining political capital for what they see as a more
important upcoming fight over electoral redistricting. End
Summary and Comment.

Group of Local Lawyers' Oppose the Law
--------------


2. (U) The Al-Watan Arabic-language daily reports that the
Lawyer's Association called for the withdrawal of the Press
and Publications Law. The association called the law
unconstitutional, with only superficial changes meant to
deceive those with noble intentions, while actually
strangling freedom of criticism and publication by
intimidating journalists with the threat of jail time and
unreasonably harsh monetary penalties for crossing vaguely
worded red lines.

Four MPs Pushed for Stricter Measures
--------------


3. (U) In contrast, a group of four independent MPs
unsuccessfully tried at the last minute to add a number of
amendments that would have further restricted the rights of
journalists by adding all government officials to the list of
those who may not be criticized. (Note: the list of those
who cannot be criticized includes the Amir, the courts, and
the Public Prosecution. End note.) They also wanted to
increase the penalties for some offenses related to
publishing material on forbidden topics. In spite of the
failure of their amendments, all four voted for the measure.

Media Advisor Says Law Important Step in Press Freedom
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4. (C) Dr. Ayed Al-Mana', advisor to the Kuwait Journalists
Association and professor at the Public Authority for Applied
Education and Training, told PolOffs and Political Specialist
that the key development in the law is found in the role
given to the courts. Previously, the Government had the
final say on the licensing of newspapers. (Note: No new
Arabic-language newspapers have been licensed in Kuwait since

1976. End Note.) The Ministry of Information still has the
right to reject or approve license applications, but
applicants can appeal decisions to the courts. Furthermore,
whereas the old law allowed the Government to close down a
newspaper directly, the new law says only a court can
temporarily close down a newspaper, and it can only do so in
response to a request from the Public Prosecutor's office.
While Al-Mana' predicted that the high financial burden in
opening a newspaper (350,000 Dinars or over 1.2 million USD)
would probably inhibit the appearance of more than a few new
dailies, he thought the law was an important gain for freedom
of the press.

Opening the Door to Extremist Ideas?
--------------


5. (C) Former journalist Khalid Thiyab Al-Rajhi, on the
other hand, tells us he foresees a period of "chaos" and the
degradation of journalistic standards. He believes that the
amount of money needed to start a newspaper is not difficult
for Kuwaitis to gather. The small size of the Kuwaiti market
will make competition among the papers brutal. Al-Rajhi
thinks the papers will resort to sensationalism and yellow
journalism in order to attract readership. More ominously,
he believes that the legal safeguards and punishments in the
law are too weak to dissuade determined scoundrels. For
instance, if the maximum punishment for unwarranted smearing
of someone's character is 3,000 Dinars (USD 10290),perhaps
someone would be willing to pay 6,000 Dinars to the paper to
run such an article. (Comment: the slander provisions of the
law are extremely important in a small country where everyone
knows everyone and family reputation is extremely important.
End Comment.) Whereas the Ministry used to be able to

control licensing and to shut down papers easily, this will
be more difficult under the new law. He fears this will lead
to Iran and other outside interests either founding their own
papers or influencing the existing ones. According to
Al-Rajhi, the party that will suffer the most from the new
law is the United States, as Islamists and Iranians use their
new freedom for attacks. He said it was analogous to the
situation of popular Arab satellite television stations like
Al-Manar, Al-Jazeera, and Al-Arabiyya, vis-a-vis Al-Hurra,
which, he said, no one watches. Notably, Al-Rajhi still
favored the law because he believes in the principle of
freedom of the press.

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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/
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LEBARON