CONVERSATIONS WITH SAUDI EDUCATION OFFICIAL AND

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 03 JEDDAH 000359

SIPDIS

NEA/ARP, NEA/PPD; DRL; R, ECA

E.O. 12958: DECL: 09/06/2019
TAGS: ASEC KPAO PGOV PHUM PREL PTER SA SCUL SOCI
SUBJECT: CONVERSATIONS WITH SAUDI EDUCATION OFFICIAL AND
JOURNALIST DESCRIBING WIDESPREAD DISCONTENT AND
ANTI-AMERICANISM IN THE KINGDOM -- SPORTS AND
PEOPLE-TO-PEOPLE EXCHANGES SEEN AS ONE REMEDY

JEDDAH 00000359 001.2 OF 003


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


1. (C)SUMMARY: In separate meetings with Poloff, Jeddah
Education Ministry official Mustafa Hersi (strictly protect)
and Al Sharq Al Awsat columnist Hussein Shabokshi (strictly
protect),described what they viewed as rampant
anti-Americanism and widespread discontent with the SAG among
young and less affluent Saudis due to their poor economic
conditions and perceptions of unfair treatment, high-level
corruption, and un-Islamic government practices. Both
interlocutors felt that increasing the level of U.S.
people-to-people exchanges, cultural and sports programming
might help to address pervasive anti-American sentiment.
Despite the risks of generalizing, these negative assessments
of common Saudi attitudes by two established professionals
who have spent considerable periods of time in the United
States are troubling. END SUMMARY.


SIMMERING ANGER AMONG DISADVANTAGED SAUDIS OVER
UNEMPLOYMENT, POVERTY AND DISCRIMINATION --
ESPECIALLY THE FOREIGN-BORN, "TARSH AL-BAHR"
-------------- --


2. (C) In an August meeting with Poloff, Mustafa Hersi
(strictly protect),Assistant Director of the English
Division in the Jeddah Public Schools, described simmering
public anger over poverty and unemployment among middle and
lower class Saudis. Hersi -- who has grown fond of America
through his participation in various U.S. exchange programs
such as "Teaching English as a Foreign Language" at San Diego
State University and Seeds of Peace's "Beyond Borders: Arabs
and Americans in the 21st century" held in Amman, Jordan --
claimed that many Saudis are particularly angry with the
country's leadership over what they perceive as extensive
corruption co-existing with high unemployment and poverty
rates in the Kingdom. "There are many Saudis who live in
poverty and are unable to get a job,8 he declared. &Some
say the poverty rate is 25 percent!8 Hersi noted that as a
result of widespread hiring practices based on nepotism and
tribal identity rather than merit, a significant percentage
of the population believe they are regularly subject to
discrimination. Hersi claimed that anger towards the Saudi
government is growing in the most disadvantaged sectors
because the leadership is not seen as having attempted to
correct the problem.


3. (C) According to Hersi, the situation is worse for Saudis
of foreign origin. A Saudi of Somali descent, Hersi claimed
Saudis like himself with foreign roots are often referred to
as "tarsh al-bahr" (vomit of the sea) by other Saudis.
Although he has a job in the Ministry of Education, Hersi
says he is often discriminated against and has been passed
over for promotion in favor of less qualified candidates who
have tribal ties.


4. (C) Al Sharq Al Awsat columnist Hussein Shabokshi
(strictly protect),a graduate of the University of Oklahoma,
also cited poverty and corruption as major social problems in
the country: &The lack of transparency, nepotism, tribalism
all exist. I have no doubt that a corrupt official is just as
much a terrorist as those that blow things up, considering
the damage they inflict upon society.8 He pointed to the
justice system as a source of much discontent: &If I don,t
feel my rights will be addressed in a system that is free of
corruption there is something wrong," said Shabokshi, adding:
&Many cases in our justice system take 10)15 years to be
resolved. I,ve even seen cases that have gone for 40 years
without resolution.8


5. (C) Regarding the poverty rate, Shabokshi said that the 25
percent number is probably true but added that government
spending priorities in the Kingdom have not helped the
problem: &We have a serious divorce issue in the Kingdom.
There are many divorced women without income and in need.
The government should have funds in place to help them as
well as those who are unemployed. However, there is pressure
by the scholars (Muslim ulema) to push money in other
directions.8


JEDDAH 00000359 002.2 OF 003



SINGING THE NATIONAL ANTHEM -- AN "UN-ISLAMIC" RITUAL;
LACK OF EXTRA-CURRICULAR OPPORTUNITIES FOR YOUTH
-------------- --------------


6. (C) While some less privileged Saudis may be aroused over
allegations of corruption, others are reportedly angry at
government practices they regard as distinctly un-Islamic.
Hersi cited the singing of the Saudi national anthem as one
example. All public schools within the Kingdom hold a
morning assembly in which students and teachers are required
to sing the country's national anthem. The anthem, adopted
by the SAG in 1984, is entitled "Aash Al-Maleek" (The Royal
Salute). According to Hersi, many teachers in schools
throughout the Mecca region were skipping morning assembly or
attending but not participating in the singing of the anthem
because they regard music as well as paying homage to the
king as "haram" (forbidden under Islam). To handle the
growing problem of non-participation in morning exercises,
the Governor of Mecca, Prince Khaled Al Faisal, held a
meeting in March 2009 with Mecca Ministry of Education
officials in which he reportedly ordered all teachers to
participate in the singing of the national anthem during the
morning assembly. Hersi says there has been little push-back
from teachers who object to singing the anthem because none
want to be labeled as terrorists -- &the worst label the
government can pin on you."


7. (C) Shabokshi confirmed that there are still "extremist
Saudis" who believe the anthem to be un-Islamic because in
their eyes it praises and exalts an entity other than God.
He said what concerns him the most is the fact that many
teachers hold these extremist views. &If they are teaching
this to the children what else are they teaching them?8


8. (C) Shabokshi further argued that the Kingdom's
unemployment problem is directly tied to the lack of quality
education. This 40-something journalist said that he
regularly encounters students who are unable to write Arabic
well or speak any English and are thus ill-prepared to find
jobs upon graduation. He noted that growing up in Jeddah he
was exposed to many extra-curricular activities that enabled
him to be successful such as playing the piano and violin and
participating in the Boy Scouts. According to Shabokshi, none
of these opportunities exist or are available to Saudi youth
today.


WIDESPREAD ANTI-AMERICANISM AMONG YOUNG AND LOWER CLASS
SAUDIS: "STOP HANGING OUT WITH AMERICANS"
-------------- --------------


9. (C) Hersi spoke extensively about anti-American feelings
that he said many Saudis harbor. He noted that while the U.S.
election excited the Saudi population, quite a large number
still harbor strongly negative feelings toward the US. While
USG support for Israel remains the central reason for most
anti-American sentiment in the Kingdom, Hersi claims that
lower class Saudis, in particular, simply do not like America
or Americans because they feel the U.S. lacks basic morality:
"These Saudis believe that Americans engage in haram
(forbidden) practices."


10. (C) Hersi claims that a former co-worker who often
frequented U.S. Consulate events in past years was ordered to
stop doing so by his boss and that he himself has been warned
by friends "to stop hanging out with the Americans so much."
Despite his fondness for America, Hersi claims even his
children have a negative view of the U.S, a country both say:
&they never want to visit.8 He reasoned that the children
must have adopted this sentiment by watching Arab TV channels.


UNITED STATES STILL THE NUMBER ONE DESTINATION
-------------- --


11. (C) Regarding anti-Americanism in the region, Shabokshi
was emphatic: &the U.S.-Saudi relationship has always been
hypocritical. There have always been issues. We just don,t
discuss them. In general, Saudis believe Americans are
immoral while Americans believe Saudis are religious

JEDDAH 00000359 003.2 OF 003


extremists.8 Nevertheless: &the United States remains the
number one destination for Saudis.8 While many Saudis
harbor negative attitudes towards the United States it is
difficult to gauge a percentage: &I don,t think it,s a
majority, but no one has ever conducted any kind of survey.8


THE FLIP SIDE: "FIX MY FLAT TIRE,"
THE AMERICAN GOOD SAMARITAN
--------------


12. (C) The flip side, according to Hersi, is that
anti-American sentiment is not usually shared by (more
affluent) Saudis who have visited the United States and
interacted personally with Americans. Although they may
reject or be sharply critical of USG policy, Saudi visitors
to the U.S. generally like Americans. He commented that one
of his Saudi friends often talks about how so many Americans
stopped to help him when he had the misfortune of having a
flat tire in the state of Indiana: "If the same thing would
have happened in Saudi Arabia, no Saudi would have stopped to
help me."


APPETITE FOR MORE AMERICAN CULTURE AND SPORT --
BRING ON THE NBA, BASEBALL AND SMITHSONIAN
-------------- --


13. (C) Despite their harsh observations, both Hersi and
Shabokshi recommended the USG try to combat pervasive
anti-American attitudes, especially among the youth, by more
aggressively promoting positive interaction and
people-to-people exchanges on a larger scale. Like Hersi,
Shabokshi argued that Saudis who have visited the United
States and interacted with Americans generally hold more
favorable views and subsequently contribute to changing the
minds of other Saudis. He also suggested the development of
more cultural exchanges between the two nations such as
having the Smithsonian arrange an exhibit or bringing NBA and
major league baseball teams to the Kingdom for exhibition
games.


WORRISOME THREAT OF UNREST AMONG THE YOUTH AND THE POOR?
-------------- --------------


14. (C) COMMENT. While one should not draw sweeping
conclusions from the views of only two individuals, the
points expressed are nonetheless arresting because of their
surprising sources: established contacts among the new
generation of Saudi professionals. Their perception of
rampant anti-Americanism and simmering resentment of the SAG
among ordinary Saudis (the Saudi Arabian "street") is
troubling given Saudi youth's history of susceptibility to
extremist ideology and the dire consequences that have
followed. END COMMENT.
QUINN