VZCZCXRO6333
OO RUEHBC RUEHDE RUEHKUK
DE RUEHKU #2447 1721520
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
O 211520Z JUN 06
FM AMEMBASSY KUWAIT
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC IMMEDIATE 5343
RUEKJCS/SECDEF WASHDC IMMEDIATE
RHEHAAA/WHITE HOUSE WASHDC IMMEDIATE
RUEHEE/ARAB LEAGUE COLLECTIVE IMMEDIATE
RHWSMRC/USCINCCENT MACDILL AFB FL//CCPA// IMMEDIATE

UNCLAS KUWAIT 002447 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SIPDIS 
 
STATE FOR NEA/ARP, NEA/PA, NEA/AIA, NEA/PI, INR/NESA, R/MR, I/GNEA, 
B/BXN, B/BRN, NEA/PPD, NEA/IPA FOR ALTERMAN 
LONDON FOR TSOU 
PARIS FOR ZEYA 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: OPRC KMDR KPAO KDEM PGOV KU MEDIA REACTION
 
SUBJECT: KUWAIT MEDIA REACTION - ELECTIONS: REDISTRICTING, 
CORRUPTION, ALLIANCES 
 
 
Block Quotes 
------------ 
 
Wednesday, June 21, 2006 
 
-- Under the headline "We Want It One" columnist Mr. Nabeel 
Al-Fadhel wrote in the conservative Arabic daily Al-Watan: "Local 
events make us believe more in the need to reduce the number of 
electoral districts. What we hear and see locally makes us even more 
determined to call for only one district. We want MPs that would 
represent the nation, not just their small districts. We are asking 
for one district to avoid going through a period of mistakes where 
we would discover that ten or five were wrong and then have to have 
another referendum to change from five to one. We need to take a 
leap into the future and be proactive... If young people are the 
ones who are leading the orange movement, as some people claim, then 
let us lower the qualifying age to vote and let all youth decide 
whom they want to represent them. It is also time to allow our 
brothers in the armed forces to vote. Who is more qualified to vote 
on national issues than those who put their lives at risk defending 
this country? Some people are asking for ten; others want it five; 
we say we want it one to represent one country." 
 
-- In his daily column headlined "Slogan Merchants" Secretary 
General of Kuwait's Journalists Association Mr. Faisal Al-Qanai 
wrote in the pro-government Arabic daily Al-Seyassah: "The talk 
about the spread of vote buying and political financing harms not 
only the accused candidates, but it also ruins the image of the 
whole country; this is unacceptable. When we talk about vote buying 
then presumably there is a buyer and seller. If all the rumors are 
correct, then we have amongst us thousands of people who are selling 
their votes, and this is something that we can not accept. We are 
against this shameful act.  However, we do not want to hear baseless 
accusations without any proof. Instead, we want to hear clear 
agendas and election programs. People do not want food fests after 
long speeches full of empty promises. The upcoming National Assembly 
must be ready and equipped to serve the needs of the nation, not 
become another arena to fight personal battles between MPs at the 
cost of national interests." 
 
-- Saud Al-Samaka, a liberal academic and columnist in the daily 
moderate Al-Qabas, wrote an article under the headline "Let Us Say 
It Again: This Is an Extraordinary Election" where he commented on 
speeches at the election campaign of Mr. Ahmed Al-Sa'adoun. Mr. 
Al-Samaka said: "Mr. Nasser Al-Sanai began his speech by reassuring 
Mr. Al-Sa'adoun that the Islamic Constitutional Movement (Muslim 
Brotherhood - ICM) is standing behind him all the way. Mr. Al-Sanai 
was not speaking on behalf of all political Muslim groups in Kuwait. 
He was only stating the position of his group. This I think is a 
good indication. Because when the ICM declares its support to 
reformists and people with good intentions, regardless of whether 
the movement's ideology agreed with these reformist or not, then 
this by itself is an achievement." 
 
-- Conservative Arabic daily Al-Watan published an Op-Ed by Mr. 
Hassan Ali Karam carrying the headline "The Stupidity of Liberals" 
where he opined: "Perhaps the first and biggest mistake that 
liberals have committed today is their coalition with Islamists in 
the electoral district battle, and the fight against corruption and 
reform.  The demands of Islamists have never included a fight 
against corruption.  But they are now riding this wave with the 
liberals after realizing that corruption and reconstruction of the 
political system are the two most popular topics in this election. 
Since Islamists and especially the Muslim Brotherhood group are 
opportunists, they took advantage of the circumstances and adopted 
fighting corruption and electoral redistricting as their main goal. 
They even put on the orange shawl. Some people might excuse the 
liberals for their coalition with the Islamists, based on the 
premise that liberals feel a weakness in their public support in 
some districts that are predominately controlled by Islamists and 
where liberals stand no chance of gaining votes. This might be true, 
but the liberal's fatal mistake was handing over the keys for this 
election battle to the Islamists." 
 
********************************************* * 
For more reporting from Embassy Kuwait, visit: 
http://www.state.sgov.gov/p/nea/kuwait/?cable s 
 
Visit Kuwait's Classified Website: 
http://www.state.sgov.gov/p/nea/kuwait/ 
********************************************* * 
 
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