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UNCLAS AMMAN 004456 
 
SIPDIS 
 
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B/BRN, NEA/PPD, NEA/IPA FOR ALTERMAN 
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LONDON FOR TSOU 
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E.O. 12958: N/A 
 
TAGS: KMDR JO
 
SUBJECT: MEDIA REACTION ON WAR ON TERRORISM AND IRAN 
 
Editorial Commentary 
 
-- "Political issues take precedence over economic issues" 
 
Chief Editor Taher Odwan writes on the back-page of independent, 
mass-appeal Arabic daily Al-Arab Al-Yawm (06/19):  "The current 
crisis between the government and the Muslim Brotherhood about 
terrorism has re-emphasized the importance of political issue in the 
domestic and foreign policy agenda, when economic issues were at the 
top of that agenda in recent years....  It may be coincidence that 
the draft anti-terrorism law was proposed at this time, but it is a 
coincidence that only enriches the national debate.  It also 
contributes to focusing attention on the culture of terrorism, the 
difference between terrorism and resistance, the relationship with 
political reform, and the meanings of freedom, democracy and human 
rights.  I do not want to discuss the terms of the draft 
anti-terrorism law ... but I have to start by wondering whether the 
country really needs such a law, thus I join those who consider the 
Jordanian Penalties Law more than sufficient....  Combating 
terrorism is a national tasking.  It is the society's duty before it 
is the responsibility of the state.  Here I make two observations. 
The first is that there is need to have a national plan for the war 
on terror, a plan that differs from the global war on terror that 
Bush is implementing.  After all, the U.S. President's plan is based 
on turning Iraq into an international arena for attracting 
terrorists, then fighting them and winning so that the United States 
is safe - a plan that failed because it just enriched terrorism.... 
The anti-terrorism Jordanian national plan must be distinguished 
from the American plan, because we, as Arabs, believe that 
liberating Iraq from terrorism starts with liberating it from the 
occupation and the quagmire of sectarian strife....  The second 
observation is that having numerous laws and penalties and 
intensifying them is not going to stop the terrorism that is based 
on self-sacrifice weaponry....  The best weapon for combating 
terrorism is to create a social and cultural national environment 
that rejects giving cover to terrorism....  This environment cannot 
be established by numerous anti-terrorism laws, but rather by a free 
society founded on principles of democracy, freedom, citizenship and 
human rights." 
 
-- "Where is the crisis between the government and the Islamists 
going?" 
 
Columnist Fahd Khitan writes on the inside page of independent, 
mass-appeal Arabic daily Al-Arab Al-Yawm (06/19):  "All current 
scenarios for addressing the issue between the state and the 
Islamists are not going to lead to solutions, but rather to further 
complication of the crisis, that is with the exception of the legal 
solution that has to do with the arrested four deputies. As far as 
the Government is concerned, the legal option is inevitable.  But 
what about the other scenarios?  The talk about a parliamentary 
memorandum calling for the dismissal of the four deputies is not yet 
confirmed, and if such a memorandum does exist, then there are legal 
ramifications and great skepticism of its legality.  Politically 
speaking, going ahead with dismissal measures will only mean a 
serious escalation of the crisis....  The scenario of disbanding the 
Muslim Brotherhood that is indirectly being hinted at by official 
sources is not on the table, at least as far as the Government is 
concerned.  Going ahead with it means the end of decades of 
strategic alliance between the state and the Brotherhood and forcing 
the Muslim Brotherhood underground....  The path is not closed for 
solving the crisis.  Despite the hardline statements and the media 
escalation, there are strong indications from both parties towards 
reconciliation.  The Government's demand of the Islamic movement is 
legitimate and logical and does not harm the movement's reputation 
or diminish its popularity.  The Government does not expect the 
Islamists to describe resistance as terrorism, as claimed by the 
IAF.  The conflict is not about the stand vis-`-vis the Iraqi or 
Palestinian resistance, but about Zarqawi....  The Islamists too are 
entitled for the government to stop its campaign against them and 
let the law take its course in the case of the four deputies." 
 
-- "Watching reality" 
 
Centrist, elite English daily Jordan Times (06/19) editorializes: 
"The Human Rights Watch's criticism of the Government over the 
arrest of four parliamentarians after they visited the family of the 
slain terrorist Abu Mosab Zarqawi to offer their condolences 
exemplifies how international human rights NGOs can err, no matter 
how reputable they are.  By criticizing Jordan for the Detention of 
the four members of the Lower House of Parliament ... Human Rights 
Watch did a disservice to the human rights process, ignoring the 
sensitivities and peculiarities of the situation and the cultural 
context of this case....  In the eyes of Human Rights Watch, Zarqawi 
is only an 'alleged terrorist'.  Legally speaking, a suspect 
continues to be referred to as an 'alleged criminal' when there are 
doubts about his criminality.  If Human Rights Watch concludes that 
Zarqawi is only an 'alleged terrorist', it does so blindly.  The 
organization could do with some reckoning with realities and not 
only with abstract and academic ideas." 
 
Editorial Commentary on Iran 
 
-- "Where are the Arabs?!" 
 
Former Minister of Information Saleh Qallab writes on the back-page 
of semi-official, influential Arabic daily Al-Rai (06/19):  "What is 
going on between Iran and the United States is very dangerous, and 
it is certain that, once this ongoing courting between Washington 
and Tehran is concluded, the Arab countries in this region will pay 
a huge price....  There is serious talk between Washington and 
Tehran to rewrite the regional equation on the basis of America's 
acknowledgement of Iran's role in this region in return for stopping 
Iran's military nuclear project.  If this happens, then all the 
Arabs will be completely left out.  When the Americans acknowledge 
Iran's regional role, then they will already guaranteed an 
understanding, albeit indirectly, between Israel and the Iranians 
over areas of authority in the region.  If this happens, and it is 
clearly on its way to happening, then the Arabs in the region and 
all the rest of the Arabs will be like chess pawns on the 
Iranian-Israeli chessboard....  If the concerned Arabs - Egypt, 
Saudi Arabia, Jordan and the PNA at this time - do not pull in ranks 
seriously and effectively, then they will come to regret it some day 
soon." 
RUBINSTEIN