Identifier
Created
Classification
Origin
08MUSCAT443
2008-06-15 12:28:00
CONFIDENTIAL
Embassy Muscat
Cable title:  

FUELED BY MEDIA, POPULAR RESENTMENT GROWS OVER TIP

Tags:  PHUM PREL KCRM KWMN KPAO OIIP SMIG ELAB MU 
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VZCZCXRO9745
PP RUEHDE RUEHDIR
DE RUEHMS #0443/01 1671228
ZNY CCCCC ZZH
P 151228Z JUN 08
FM AMEMBASSY MUSCAT
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 9701
INFO RUEHZM/GULF COOPERATION COUNCIL COLLECTIVE
C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 MUSCAT 000443 

SIPDIS

DEPARTMENT FOR NEA/ARP, G/TIP

E.O. 12958: DECL: 06/15/2018
TAGS: PHUM PREL KCRM KWMN KPAO OIIP SMIG ELAB MU
SUBJECT: FUELED BY MEDIA, POPULAR RESENTMENT GROWS OVER TIP

REF: A. MUSCAT 434

B. MUSCAT 286

Classified By: Ambassador Gary A. Grappo for Reasons 1.4 b/d.

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Summary
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C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 MUSCAT 000443

SIPDIS

DEPARTMENT FOR NEA/ARP, G/TIP

E.O. 12958: DECL: 06/15/2018
TAGS: PHUM PREL KCRM KWMN KPAO OIIP SMIG ELAB MU
SUBJECT: FUELED BY MEDIA, POPULAR RESENTMENT GROWS OVER TIP

REF: A. MUSCAT 434

B. MUSCAT 286

Classified By: Ambassador Gary A. Grappo for Reasons 1.4 b/d.

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Summary
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1. (SBU) Local media have stepped up coverage of the Omani
government's strong reaction to the 2008 Trafficking in
Persons (TIP) report, with an increasing number of government
officials and offices publicly adding their statements to
those made initially by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs
(MFA). In addition to the mainstream media, comments on
Arabic-language internet discussion sites have shown strong
anti-U.S. sentiment. Although somewhat belatedly, regional
media outlets have begun to report mostly verbatim accounts
of Oman's official reactions to the TIP report. Post expects
that intense discussion of the TIP report will persist in the
context of a negative discussion of U.S. policy in the Middle
East. End summary.

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TIP: Example of "Malicious" U.S. Policy
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2. (SBU) The press conference convened on June 10 by the
Secretary General of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MFA),
Sayyid Badr al-Busaidi, brought the topic of the 2008 TIP
report to a new level of attention in the local media, which
before the event had run only five articles on Oman's Tier 3
ranking. Following blanket media coverage of Sayyid Badr's
remarks (ref A),TIP has remained the lead story on
state-owned Oman TV and radio, as well as in almost all
Arabic-language papers, which have run daily commentaries
that often are highly emotional and defensive. Local press
even has begun to place Oman's Tier 3 ranking in the context
of what is characterized as a broader, malicious U.S. policy
agenda in the Middle East. A recent political cartoon in
independent daily "al-Shabiba" presents the figure of a
fanged man wearing Uncle Sam's hat and a grass skirt, with
bloody hands and a string of skulls around his waist. On his

arm, which holds a blood-tipped spear, are the words
"Vietnam" and "Afghanistan." "Iraq" is written across his
abdomen and a nearby sign points the way to Iran. A bemused
man in Omani dress standing nearby queries, "How do they dare
be unfair to people and accuse them of TIP?"

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Government Officials Close Ranks
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3. (C) Government officials have closely lined up behind the
MFA. Oman's Attorney General, Hussain Ali Zaher al-Hilali,
argued in the June 12 edition of the Arabic-language
state-run paper "Oman" that "the laws of the Sultanate are
sufficient to combat the TIP phenomena," pointing
specifically to an ongoing case involving four Asian
nationals accused of prostitution and a 1999 case in which
the Public Prosecution won convictions against 54 people
complicit in a prostitution ring. (Note: The Attorney General
referred to the current case in a private conversation with
the Ambassador on April 14, during which he stated that the
Public Prosecution's case is both against women accused of
engaging in prostitution and their alleged pimp (ref B). End
note.) Minister of Manpower Juma bin Ali al-Juma, who has
been attending the International Labor Organization's (ILO)
annual conference in Geneva, was quoted in local press as
saying, "The Ministry has not received any complaints
regarding TIP from expatriates or their embassies... and the
ILO has praised the Omani Labor Law and its enforcement
numerous times."


4. (SBU) In a separate press article, the Chairman of the
Oman Chamber of Commerce and Industry (OCCI),Khalil
al-Khonji, sounded a common refrain in asserting that the
report is based on "inaccurate information about a few
personal practices." He added, "There are 40 labor unions
(currently) protecting the rights of workers in Oman." Khonji
offered the OCCI as a reliable source of information about
labor conditions for future reports. On June 14, the Majlis
al-Shura, the elected lower house of Oman's bicameral
advisory body, took an unprecedented leap into the realm of
foreign policy by issuing a strong statement "rejecting and
condemning the false allegations stated in the report." Post
is reporting on the significance of the Majlis al-Shura's
statement septel.

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Discussion Enters Blogosphere

MUSCAT 00000443 002 OF 002


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5. (SBU) Discussions on Oman's "Al-Sablah," an on-line
locally based Arabic discussion site, also contained strong
reactions to the TIP report. Initial responses following
publication of the report on June 4 often directly attacked
the U.S., with contributors complaining about what they
perceived to be political motivations behind the report -
particularly the decision to give the UAE a better ranking
than Oman - and the report's alleged lack of proof to support
its claims. Others argued that the U.S. lacks the political
or moral authority to publish such a report, citing examples
of prostitution and labor problems in the U.S. in order to
question American authority on trafficking issues. Though
some contributors have recognized the existence of
prostitution and long working hours for some laborers in
Oman, anti-U.S. sentiment continues to dominate most
discussion threads. Few acknowledge that trafficking could
be a problem in Oman or that the government has a
responsibility to address it.


6. (SBU) While the Arabic-language chat rooms like
"Al-Sablah" burned with anti-U.S. postings, contributions to
three of the most prominent English-language blogs have been
tempered and even supportive of Oman's Tier 3 ranking. "The
only entities surprised by this are the ministries in charge
of fixing it and perhaps the courts," wrote an expatriate
blogger on the site "Muscatconfidential." "I, personally, am
ashamed and embarrassed because I thought Oman was actually
going to DO SOMETHING about human trafficking," said another
on-line commentator. In a rare and somewhat risky comment
about a high-ranking public official, one blogger even
characterized Sayyid Badr's press statements on June 10 as "a
classic CYA move."

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Belated Regional Coverage
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7. (SBU) Media outlets throughout the Gulf initially reported
only on the Gulf Cooperation Council's (GCC) June 10
statement dismissing the 2008 TIP report as "unjustified."
Although regional media routinely cover statements by high
ranking officials such as Sayyid Badr, the broader Arab press
was, at the outset, notably quiet in its lack of coverage of
Oman's loud protests over the TIP report. Regional media
began to take notice on June 15, however, with the UAE's Gulf
News reporting the statement of OCCI Chairman al-Khonji, and
the UAE News Agency (WAM) carrying on its official web site
the Majlis al-Shura's statement in its entirety.

- - - -
Comment
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8. (C) Post expects media discussion of the TIP report and
USG policy to continue, particularly now that regional
outlets have started to pick up Oman's anti-U.S. charge. The
MFA's initial response accusing the U.S. of insulting the
country has touched a national nerve and sparked a larger,
popular response that may be gathering its own momentum. One
contact informed poloff that even Omanis in the country's
interior, normally far removed from foreign affairs, are
angrily discussing the report and believe that the U.S. is
accusing them of "having slaves." It appears that Oman is
willing to stoke this popular resentment in its drive to get
the Tier 3 ranking retracted. End comment.
GRAPPO