MEDIA REACTION: FERNANDEZ COMMENTS, DPRK NUCLEAR PROGRAM,

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 MUSCAT 001535 SIPDIS SIPDIS STATE FOR NEA/ARP, NEA/PPD, NEA/PI, AND INR/R/MR STATE PASS USTR FOR N. MOORJANI, J. BUNTIN LONDON FOR TSOU PARIS FOR ZEYA USCENTCOM FOR PLUSH FOREIGN PRESS CENTER FOR SILAS E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: OIIP KPAO KMDR MU SUBJECT: MEDIA REACTION: FERNANDEZ COMMENTS, DPRK NUCLEAR PROGRAM, IRAQI DEATH STATISTICS, IRAQ DETAINEE TREATMENT, DEFINITION OF TERRORISM ¶1. SUMMARY: Alberto Fernandez's Al-Jazeera remarks received extensive coverage in local press; government-owned "Oman Daily Observer" ran positive pictures of U.S. soldiers and Iraqi children; private daily "Al-Shabiba" criticized the "double standards" of U.S. policy on Israeli and North Korean nuclear programs and disputed U.S. statistics on Iraqi civilian casualties; state Arabic daily "Oman" condemned U.S. treatment of Iraqi detainees; private Arabic daily "Al-Watan" awkwardly parsed the differences between terrorists and criminals. END SUMMARY. -------------- COVERAGE -------------- ¶2. Each of Oman's Arabic-language dailies and the English-language "Times of Oman" (privately owned, circulation 25,000) reported NEA's Alberto Fernandez's remarks on Iraq. The "Times" drew on Reuters coverage, as did the Arabic "Al-Watan" (privately owned, circulation 42,000). "Al-Watan" also carried an editorial that mentioned the remarks (Para xxx). "Oman" (government-owned, circulation 38,000) front-paged its coverage, compiled from wire services, as did "Al-Shabiba," (youth-oriented, privately owned, circulation 20,000). ¶3. The "Observer" printed positive pictures of U.S. soldiers interacting with Iraqi children this week. (Comment: this is very likely a conscious move, of a kind seen occasionally in Oman, by the state press to dampen anti-American sentiment in the country. End Comment.) -------------- BLOCK QUOTES: "FAILED" IRAQ GOALS -------------- ¶4. On October 28, "Al-Watan" commented on remarks by Alberto Fernandez in an editorial headlined "Witnesses from their Own Household": "The situation is increasingly deteriorating and has even become worse for America and Britain. This is due to several factors: the military intervention in Iraq and Afghanistan, the continuous and unconditional support for Israel, the sluggishness in taking practical measures to find a fair solution to the Palestinian issue, and the loss of reliability of Western proposals regarding human rights, freedom, and democracy. All these have made Washington and London lose their campaigns to 'win the hearts and minds' of Arabs and Muslims, and at the same time escalated the rate of threats of 'Islamic Terrorism' against Western interests, whether inside or outside the concerned countries. All this explains an increasing awareness in the Western countries that the war in Iraq has failed to achieve its declared goals, as evidenced by the statement of U.S. State Department public diplomacy official Alberto Fernandez, who said that 'arrogance and stupidity' had characterized his country's Iraq policy. Despite his later written apology, his direct chief, Karen Hughes, Undersecretary of State, has also admitted that some mistakes have been made that increased terrorist threats. British Interior Minister John Reed has admitted the same, although he used to deny such incidents when he was in government handling the defense portfolio." -------------- DOUBLE STANDARDS ON NORTH KOREA -------------- ¶5. On October 28, youth-oriented, privately owned "Al-Shabiba" wrote about "The North Korean Nuclear Test and the U.S. Challenge:" "The North Korean nuclear test has caused much confusion for the U.S. president's administration, which is principally occupied with the Iranian nuclear issue. It has also confused U.S. allies and may even have increased Iran's obstinacy and insistence on enriching uranium. It might also have increased the possibility of more cooperation between Iran and North Korea in the nuclear field. This means that the Republican Party's popularity might deteriorate further with the approach of November's midterm congressional elections. Hence, the Democratic Party would gain more support against President Bush's Party. UN Resolution 1718, which calls on Pyongyang to get rid of all nuclear weapons, is a very difficult matter and constitutes double standards. Israel possesses more than 400 nuclear warheads, in addition to nuclear ballistic missiles, but no UN Security Council resolution has ever condemned it. The path has now been open to other countries to enter the [nuclear] club to MUSCAT 00001535 002 OF 002 break the arrogant and oppressive methods employed by the superpowers. In addition to those countries that already admitted their possession of nuclear arms, we can see that Iran, Brazil, South Africa, Japan, and many other countries are on the same track... The provocative policies and the oppressive methods used by America against other countries are primarily responsible for inciting the nuclear aspirations of these countries." -------------- IRAQI DEATH STATISTICS -------------- ¶6. On October 22, a columnist for "Al-Shabiba" wrote about Iraqi civilian deaths in "Half A Million Omitted by Mistake!": "If the difference in the death toll's statistics was one thousand or even ten thousand, it would have gone unnoticed, particularly after the destruction of Al Basra and Al Kufa. But the true difference between the international estimate and the U.S. one is at least half a million. The U.S. claims that Iraqi casualties do not exceed 50,000, a number which is most suitable to the death toll of traffic accidents or measles victims. No doubt Iraqis would mock the approved American figures about the death toll, and more than a quarter million widows and children may send their mourning clothes to any fact-finding body to enable it to discern the truth. As the birth has a certificate, the death has a certificate as well, unless these certificates were exterminated during the wave of burning and destruction of the documents, chips, and facts." -------------- IRAQ DETAINEE TREATMENT -------------- ¶7. On October 29, government-owned, Arabic-language "Oman" wrote about "The Best Bad Picture": "A picture has come to light portraying seven Iraqi men wearing simple country garments, with their eyes strongly blindfolded and their hands shackled, driven by a U.S. marine on Iraqi soil. A photographer who was accompanying the American occupation forces boasts that he took this picture, which won first prize in an international photography competition. If the promoters of this picture want to say that this is rare behavior by the Marines, facts and daily incidents prove otherwise... Those Iraqi youths were dragged from their homes, not from a battlefield. The proof is that they were wearing winter clothes usually worn by Iraqi men at home... Human rights organizations, journalists' trade unions and photographers' associations all over the world must take a strong stance against such ugly practices of the American invasion forces in Iraq. These organizations have thousands of photographs that constitute conclusive evidence of these criminal practices in Iraq. In this bad time, the bad deeds are documented, without any objection from anyone." -------------- CRIMINALS VS. TERRORISTS -------------- ¶8. On October 29 a columnist in "Al-Watan" wrote a (by local standards) less-than-usually coherent editorial on "Criminality, Not Terrorism": "What is the difference between criminality and terrorism, and the criminal and the terrorist? The dictionary definition points out that terrorism is a synonym for intimidation and fear-inducing. Criminality means criminal actions such as killing, stealing, cheating etc., and causing death to thousands of innocent civilians in Bosnia, Afghanistan, Iraq, Palestine and Lebanon, besides making other thousands homeless, destroying the infrastructures in these countries and causing pollution to the environment, which might remain for many years to come. All these acts are nothing more than flagrant evil and inhuman deeds, whatever veils are used to hide them. Those who perpetrate such acts should be subject to criminal laws and human rights conventions... The current international system, with its imbalanced standards, might prevent bringing true criminals to justice. But it is more probable than ever before that this will change, since most members of the world community are moving towards a safer, fairer, and more secure global system. When this phase is reached, everybody will be accountable for his own deeds... The court of history will publish many black books about those who pride themselves on their sin... The seasons of lament are coming soon. Someone might deceive others for a while, but cannot continue that role forever. When he is discovered, all the false veils will fall, and his ugly face will appear." GRAPPO