MEDIA REACTION - MIDEAST - PA ELECTIONS, HAMAS VICTORY

UNCLAS SANTIAGO 000408 SIPDIS SIPDIS STATE FOR IIP/G/WHA, INR/R/MR, WHA/BSC, WHA/PDA, INR/IAA E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: KMDR KPAO OPRC CI SUBJECT: MEDIA REACTION - MIDEAST - PA ELECTIONS, HAMAS VICTORY ¶1. On February 27, conservative, afternoon "La Segunda" (circ. 31,834) ran an editorial entitled "Half-Way Democracies." Quotes: ¶2. "The political change in Palestine with Hamas' victory led Israel to declare the NPA a hostile entity.... In Iraq the attacks between Shiites and Sunnites...are threatening to turn into a civil war, while the Kurds call for autonomy, and religious leaders call for unity, but continue attacking the Americans.... There is also the case of Afghanistan, democratized by force, where the feudal lords continue to exert their influence. ¶3. "All of this has occurred in places that have held elections promoted by the West and would therefore show that democratic mechanisms are ineffective if they do not go hand in hand with the acceptance of those values that uphold it. Only an extensive and solid civic training and true acceptance of the beliefs and values of a civic culture can provide assurance that the right to vote will not be used...to grant democratic status and prestige to governments that are not democratic. This does not mean that the international community must give up promoting universal judicial principles and respect for basic rights. It means that the task must be undertaken with realism and efficiency, tailored to specific circumstances and with no false illusions based on superficial appearances." KELLY