SOUTH SULAWESI: IRANIAN PUBLIC DIPLOMACY, REACHING OUT ONE

UNCLAS SURABAYA 000011 SIPDIS SENSITIVE SIPDIS DEPT FOR EAP/MTS, EAP/MLS, INR/EAP, DRL, EAP/PD E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: PREL KIRF KISL IR ID PGOV KPAO SUBJECT: SOUTH SULAWESI: IRANIAN PUBLIC DIPLOMACY, REACHING OUT ONE "IRANIAN CORNER" AT A TIME REF: 07 JAKARTA 2556 This Message is Sensitive But Unclassified. Please Protect Accordingly. This message was coordinated with Embassy Jakarta. ¶1. (SBU) Summary: The Iranian Embassy in Jakarta increased its public diplomacy efforts in Indonesia by establishing five "Iranian Corners" in 2007. The first Iranian Corner outside West Java was established at Hassanudin University in Makassar, South Sulawesi, in November, reaching out to students both though language courses and discussions of Islam. Whether Iranian Corners will build positive attitudes about Iran more broadly among university-educated Indonesians remains to be seen. If Shia theology is to be the cornerstone of their outreach efforts, Iranian diplomats must somehow overcome the underlying suspicions and even physical hostility shown by some of Indonesia's primarily Sunni Muslims toward minority Shiite communities. End Summary. ¶2. (SBU) Surabaya's Pol/Econ officer took advantage of a trip to Sulawesi to visit the Iranian Corner at Makassar's Hassanudin University, which also houses an American Corner. The Indonesian Director of the Iranian Corner, Mr. Supratman provided a short tour and discussed the corner's objectives during the January 17 visit. The Iranian Ambassador to Indonesia formally opened the corner on the first floor of the University Library on November 28, 2007. Primarily a lending library with books in Farsi, Indonesian, Arabic and English, the vast majority of the roughly 4000 volume collection is in Farsi, with multiple copies of books on Islam stocking the shelves. The Iranian Embassy provides the materials and funds Supratman's position. ¶3. (SBU) The overabundance of religious texts at Makassar's Iranian Corner seems intended to recuperate the reputation of Shia Islam among a population that -- at least at the local level -- has proved deeply skeptical and, on occasion, violent. In 2006 and 2007, local Sunni populations in Madura and East Java launched violent protests against the presence of Indonesian Shiites in their community (reftel). When asked about the potential for Iranian Corners to serve as a resource for Indonesia's Shia community, Supratman stressed that Hassanudin's Corner serves the general student population, whatever their faith. He admitted that there is tension between the Shia minority and the Sunni majority and said that average Indonesians are inclined to lump Indonesian Shiites together with Ahmadiyah and other so-called "heretical" Islamic sects. ¶4. (SBU) Despite the heavy representation of religious texts (and a portrait of Iran's Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei looking down on the main reading area),Supratman said that religion is not what the Corner is about; "We avoid talking about ideology and preaching to the students here. We discuss science." For the thirty-odd students who reportedly browse the Corner's collection every day, language classes in English, French and Farsi are also key attractions, "because language is the key to understanding the sciences," he explained. Supratman said he earned an M.A. in Persian literature in Iran and teaches Farsi language and literature. Many of his students wish to study in Iran and he works closely with the Cultural Office at the Iranian Embassy in Jakarta to assist in placing them in appropriate universities. MCCLELLAND