KAUST: GREAT EXPECTATIONS AND LABOR PAINS

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 03 JEDDAH 000342

SIPDIS

DEPARTMENT FOR NEA/ARP (JHARRIS),NEA/PPD (PAGNEW),R
(WDOUGLAS),ECA/A/E (RSWENSON),ECA/A/E/NEA (DIVES),DRL

E.O. 12958: DECL: 09/08/2019
TAGS: ECON KISL KPAO PGOV PREL SCUL SOCI TPHY SA
SUBJECT: KAUST: GREAT EXPECTATIONS AND LABOR PAINS

REF: JEDDAH 0047

JEDDAH 00000342 001.2 OF 003


Classified By: Consul General Martin R. Quinn for
reasons 1.4 (b) and (d)


SUMMARY
--------------


1. (C) In September 4 pre-opening ceremony of King
Abdullah University for Science and Technology
(KAUST),the university administrators and event
organizers aimed to project a modern image of Saudi
Arabia by aggressively promoting themes of
multiculturalism and green energy. Classes started
on September 5, and the official inauguration
scheduled for September 23 (Saudi National Day) is
expected to attract extensive media coverage, and
will be attended by a number of international
leaders. While most of the highly restrictive
social, cultural, and religious norms of Saudi
Arabia were not to be enforced within the walls of
KAUST, American graduate students, who appear to
be suffering their own cultural adjustment issues,
reported many signs of conservatism among other
KAUST students who appear to have lobbied
successfully to reverse some of the university's
promised liberal policies. END SUMMARY.

PRE-OPENING EVENT -- CHAOTIC EFFORT TO PROJECT A
MODERN, MORE TOLERANT IMAGE OF THE KINGDOM
-------------- ---


2. (U) KAUST organized a pre-opening ceremony on
the eve of the September 5 first day of classes.
The diplomatic missions of all the countries
represented in the KAUST student body were invited
to participate in a fair that provided
country-specific displays, and were encouraged to
hand out flags, educational materials, and cultural
brochures. The American booth was managed by PD
officers and LES from the US Consulate in Jeddah.


3. (U) Oil Minister and Chairman of KAUST board of
trustees Ali Ibrahim Al-Naimi was the senior Saudi
presence at the pre-opening ceremony along with
KAUST founding president, Professor Shih Choon Fong
(former National University of Singapore president
and Harvard-Ph.D. engineer). Nobel Laureate and
founder of Grameen bank Muhammad Yunus delivered the
keynote speech that focused on ending global poverty
through empowering women, the economically
disadvantaged, and residents of rural areas.


4. (C) Under the overarching themes of
multiculturalism and green energy, the university
administrators and event organizers clearly aimed to
project a modern, more tolerant image of Saudi Arabia.
The event promoted KAUST as an international
university and not a Saudi university through flag
displays of all the countries represented in the KAUST
student body, a recording of multiple KAUST students
saying "knowledge" in their native language, and a
multiethnic dinner served after the ceremony. During
the event, an elaborate pre-recorded modern dance
performance was projected on a giant screen, but only
the silhouette of the performers appeared, though the
performers were of both genders. Photography was not
permitted during the ceremony.

CONSTRUCTION -- AN ARAMCO WORK IN PROGRESS
--------------



5. (C) Despite ARAMCO's 6-month, 24/7 efforts to
finish building the campus prior to the official
inauguration on Saudi National Day (September 23),

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about half the campus is still under construction,
with many roads on and around campus still unpaved
and poorly lit. The event's organizers steered
visitors away from the unfinished parts of campus,
and only allowed movement within the pre-opening
celebration area. With about 2,000 invitees, the
atmosphere was generally cheerful but chaotic due
to the ongoing construction and lack of coordination
among the event organizers. A senior ARAMCO project
manager explained that visitors face difficulties in
finding KAUST due to the series of fences that were
built to shield the KAUST community from the
construction workers who are still on site.

MULTI-NATIONAL STUDENT BODY -- CAMPUS HOUSING
AND FACILITY PROBLEMS
--------------


6. (C) September 5, 2009 marked the official start
of classes. The university kicked off its first
semester with about 400 graduate students from 70
countries. There are 100 Saudi students currently
enrolled at KAUST, and a total of 80 female students
from different countries. The largest contingent of
international students comes from China with 40
students, followed by the U.S. with 33 students, a
lower number than the previous estimate of 60-70
reported in February 2009 (reftel). (Japan has three
students while Korea has two at KAUST.) American
students are mostly enrolled in Master's programs,
but there may be one or two Ph.D. students. Only one
American student is accompanied by a spouse, and most
are recent graduates of major universities such as
Cornell, Johns Hopkins, Penn State, University of
California at Santa Barbara, Rice, and the University
of Massachusetts to name a few. Female students
reported that their "apartment-style" housing
accommodations were comfortable and reasonable.
On the other hand, several male students complained
about rats, lack of running water, and in some cases
missing beds within the male student housing district
-- consisting at least partially of dormitories.


7. (C) Many American students seem to have been
attracted to KAUST due to its free tuition policy, the
stipends paid, and the promise of state-of-the-art
educational and research facilities. The students have
a generally positive first impression of KAUST's
faculty members who are mostly recruited from the U.S.
However, students noted that as of the first day of
classes, textbooks were unavailable and the university
library shelves were mostly empty.

CROSS-CULTURAL ENCOUNTERS -- GENDER SEGREGATION
-------------- --


8. (C) Some American students take the view that even
if the academics do not quite meet expectations, their
time at KAUST will be an "all-expense paid cultural
experience." It appears that most of the students are
unaware of the basics of Saudi culture. Initially,
the students were promised very limited gender
segregation on campus and that women could drive within
the walls of KAUST. In response to complaints
submitted by KAUST conservative Muslim students, the
university decided to segregate swimming pools and
sports facilities into male, female, and family
facilities. In response, the American students are
petitioning to allow mixed gender sports facilities as
originally promised. Gender segregation is strictly
enforced in student housing as well. This policy has
prompted the American students to request to be
transferred to temporary housing on campus where the
social rules will be less strictly enforced.


9. (C) On one occasion, a conservative Syrian student
prevented the American students from singing

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"Happy Birthday" to a fellow student on a university
shuttle on the grounds that singing is "un-Islamic" or
"haram." Another American female student reported that
Saudi women students refused to doff their abayas
(long black cloaks) during a female- only university
organized boat trip on the Red Sea.

INAUGURAL EXPECTATIONS AND MEDIA
--------------


10. (C) The official inauguration ceremony will be held
on Saudi National Day, September 23, the date being a
clear message from King Abdullah about his vision for
KAUST's role in shaping the future of Saudi Arabia.
The university has invited many heads of state. Only a
few have confirmed attendance (the presidents of
Lebanon, Turkey and the Philippines and the kings of
Jordan and Bahrain) although a number of Arab leaders
(including so far the Minister of Higher Education of
Egypt and the Ruler of Sharjah, UAE) are expected to
attend. With KAUST's invitation of reporters from the
70 countries represented in the student body, the
inauguration is expected to receive extensive media
coverage. A senior inauguration coordinator informed
post that CNN, the New York Times, the Wall Street
Journal, and possibly FOX News were planning on
covering the ceremony.

COMMENT -- CHALLENGING SOCIAL EXPERIMENT
--------------


11. (C) KAUST is regarded as a bold, earnest attempt
by King Abdullah to transform Saudi society from
within. The university's remote location, vast
resources, and independence from the Saudi Ministry
of Education reflect the King's desire to create a
world-class academic institution while keeping the
religious authorities at bay. The fact that the
university has already bent to the demands of some
conservative Muslim students illustrates the challenge
the King faces with his social experiment. The ability
of KAUST to transform Saudi society beyond its walls
and the future of the university after King Abdullah
are two key issues that are hard to predict. Post will
continue to monitor the experiences of American
students and professors at KAUST. END COMMENT.
QUINN