MEDIA REACTION: PROPOSED MIDDLE EAST PEACE CONFERENCE,

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 MUSCAT 000716 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: PROPOSED MIDDLE EAST PEACE CONFERENCE, FINAL CLOSURE OF AL-SABLAH, ANNIVERSARY OF ISRAELI-HEZBOLLAH COMBAT, MAJLIS AL-SHURA ELECTIONS REF: MUSCAT 703 ¶1. SUMMARY: All Omani dailies welcome President Bush's call for a Middle East peace conference; youth-oriented "Al-Shabiba" reports final closure of popular online forum "Al-Sablah;" editorial in government-owned "Oman" says proposed peace conference "will not be easy, especially not if Israel is stubborn;" another "Oman" editorial lauds the anniversary of Hezbollah's "victory" over Israel; privately owned "Al-Watan" calls on Omanis to participate in October elections for the Majlis al-Shura (83-member lower house of parliament). END SUMMARY. -------------- COVERAGE -------------- ¶2. On Thursday, July 19, 2007, all Omani dailies carried text from the Omani News Agency in support of President Bush's call for a Middle East peace conference (SEE REFTEL). The articles cited an "official source at the Foreign Ministry" who said that "The Sultanate has welcomed U.S. President George Bush's invitation to hold an international peace conference in the Middle East." ¶3. On Thursday, July 19, 2007, youth-oriented, Arabic-language daily "Al-Shabiba" (privately owned, circulation 20,000) reported the final closure of "Al-Sablah," formerly the country's most popular online discussion forum before the government shut it down: "Said bin Nasser Al Rashdi, the founder of the Al-Sablah forum, confirmed that he decided to close down the site for good...he mentioned that the closure was his personal decision, taken without any external pressure, because in his view the absence of [Omani] laws regulating Internet websites makes operating an online forum too difficult." -------------- BLOCK QUOTES: PROPOSED PEACE CONFERENCE -------------- ¶4. On Wednesday, July 18, government-owned Arabic daily "Oman" (circulation 32,000) published an editorial about President Bush's Middle East peace proposal entitled "The International Peace Conference and Good Intentions": "The timing of the American invitation for a peace conference announced by President Bush is considered critical due to the many regional wars and tensions in Iraq, Palestine, Afghanistan, and Lebanon. All these clashes need radical solutions... Through the Arab League, which will have a presence at the conference, the Arab side without doubt welcomes the American step, but good intentions by themselves are not enough...this conference needs preparation and clarification so that its goals are agreed upon in advance by participating parties, and so that, unlike previous conferences, it is not merely a forum for expressing good intentions. The conference will not be easy, especially not if Israel is stubborn." -------------- ANNIVERSARY OF HEZBOLLAH "VICTORY" -------------- ¶5. On Monday, July 16, an editorial in "Oman" lauded the "First Anniversary of the Victory of Determination and Steadfastness:" "The Israeli war of July 2006 against Lebanon turned all the measures upside down...Hezbollah retaliated by striking Israeli towns for the first time in Israeli military history. The heroic steadfastness and military tactics of Hezbollah became evident to anyone who observed this war...The victory achieved by the Lebanese resistance is a lesson that we Arabs should study well in the political, cultural, economic, and military fields. If Hezbollah, with its small military abilities...is able to subdue Israel, deter it, and stop it from exceeding its proper bounds and imposing its despotism, then the Arab nation is capable of recovering its rights...by all means that utilize its abilities, power, and steadfastness." -------------- MAJLIS AL-SHURA ELECTIONS -------------- ¶6. On Thursday, July 19, privately owned Arabic-language "Al-Watan" (circulation 42,000) wrote an editorial entitled "October and MUSCAT 00000716 002 OF 002 Deepening the Experience": "On October 27, Omanis are invited to perform their election duty by selecting their representatives in the sixth round of the Majlis al-Shura (the 83-member lower house of parliament). This event is expected to lend new vitality to the Shura experience started by the leader of the country. It will let citizens participate in drafting decisions and crystallizing the country's future development strategies...The electors now are well aware that casting their votes in the elections is a guaranteed right that they should exercise in full liberty. Further, the candidates understand that winning a Shura seat is not an honor or an objective in itself as far as it is an obligation, trust, and responsibility. The person who is honored to sit in the Majlis chamber should have the competence and ability to evaluate the circumstances and opinions of the country. Educated Omanis and intellectuals are especially called to bear their responsibilities in the next elections through candidacy and voting. The country badly needs these competent people to participate and provide initiatives to fuel future visions for the country." GRAPPO