VZCZCXRO0560
RR RUEHDE RUEHDIR
DE RUEHMS #0661/01 1830320
ZNY CCCCC ZZH
R 020320Z JUL 07
FM AMEMBASSY MUSCAT
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC 8460
INFO RUEHZM/GULF COOPERATION COUNCIL COLLECTIVE

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 03 MUSCAT 000661 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SIPDIS 
 
DEPARTMENT FOR NEA/ARP, DRL 
 
E.O. 12958: DECL: 07/01/2017 
TAGS: PHUM PREL PGOV PINR KMPI KPAO SCUL SOCI MU
SUBJECT: OMANI ACTIVIST SPEAKS OUT ON AL HURRA 
 
REF: A. 05 MUSCAT 1109 
 
     ¶B. 05 MUSCAT 716 
     ¶C. 05 MUSCAT 1132 
     ¶D. 06 MUSCAT 1627 
 
Classified By: Charge d'Affaires Alfred A. Fonteneau for Reasons 1.4 (b 
) and (d). 
 
¶1. (C) Summary:  In what contacts say is a first, an Omani 
human rights activist appeared recently on the al-Hurra 
television network to criticize the Omani government's record 
on human rights.  The activist, Tayba al-Ma'wali ) who was 
imprisoned in 2005 after speaking against the actions of 
government officials - told poloff that internal security has 
been monitoring her activities since the interview aired, but 
that she had not received any threats of retribution.  While 
the main public and private news outlets ignored the 
interview, comments on Oman's internet chat rooms about 
al-Ma'wali's interview and opinions have largely been 
positive.  End summary. 
 
- - - - - - - - 
The Interview 
- - - - - - - - 
 
¶2. (C) On June 16 and 17, 2007, international television 
station al-Hurra aired a previously-taped interview with 
Tayba al-Ma'wali, a human rights activist and former member 
of Oman's Majlis Al-Shura (the directly elected lower chamber 
of Oman's bicameral advisory body), on its program 
"Equality."  Al-Ma'wali spoke about women's rights and 
personal freedoms in Oman, as well as her own experience in 
an Omani jail, where she served a six-month sentence in 2005 
on charges of insulting a public figure (ref A).  Al-Ma'wali 
largely has been out of the public eye since her 
incarceration, quietly supporting other activists while 
holding a position at the Ministry of Regional 
Municipalities, Environment and Water Resources provided by 
the government after her release.  In a discussion with 
poloff almost ten days after the interview aired, al-Ma'wali 
said that she accepted the program's invitation to be 
interviewed, and traveled to Doha for the taping in May 
without seeking government permission, in order to tell her 
story to a wider audience and to call attention to persistent 
deficiencies in the protection of women's rights, 
particularly in Oman's judicial system. 
 
¶3. (U) During the hour-long interview, al-Ma'wali directed 
her sharpest criticism toward Oman's security services and 
courts.  Al-Ma'wali claimed that after her arrest, officers 
of the Internal Security Services (ISS) and the Royal Oman 
Police's (ROP) Special Branch, as well as others who refused 
to identify themselves, interrogated her, and tried to force 
her to confess that she was a member of a secret organization 
working to undermine national security.  (Note:  Some of 
al-Ma'wali's allegedly slanderous statements were in protest 
of the government's arrest of 31 Ibadhis in 2004 for 
attempting to overthrow the government (ref B).  Al-Ma'wali 
did not/not allege that she was physically abused by security 
forces in attempting to extract a confession.  End note.) 
She also asserted that her judges in the court of first 
instance and the appeals court did "not offer (her) a fair 
chance to defend (her)self," by limiting access to 
information about the charges against her and providing her 
with only ten days to prepare her defense.  She accused the 
government of forcing her to serve her six-month jail 
sentence "with women convicted of adultery, murder, (and 
immigration violations)," and denying her family regular 
visitation rights in a conscious attempt to insult and 
demoralize her. 
 
¶4. (U) Al-Ma'wali was careful to credit the Sultan's 
leadership for establishing a legal framework for human 
rights in Oman.  She argued, however, that the government is 
not fully implementing or enforcing those rights, 
particularly the rights of women.  "The regulations 
guaranteeing women's rights are there - the problem remains 
in reality," she claimed.  Al-Ma'wali minimized the role of 
the country's 47 Women's Associations, saying that the 
government has not allowed them to perform any function other 
than that of "social organizations."  (Note: Depending on the 
local branch and its leaders, many women's associations are 
actively engaged in community life and vigorously trying to 
expand opportunities for women. End note.)  At one point, 
after joking that Omani women have equal status "to be 
arrested," she said, "I'm the first Omani woman to be jailed 
for expressing her point of view, and I'm prepared to pay 
whatever price to defend my principles." 
 
- - - - - - - - 
Visibly Nervous 
 
MUSCAT 00000661  002 OF 003 
 
 
- - - - - - - - 
 
¶5. (C) During her subsequent June 27 meeting with poloff at 
the Ministry, al-Ma'wali seemed nervous and uptight.  (Note: 
Al-Ma'wali prefers holding meetings with poloff at the 
Ministry, perhaps to avoid allegations that she is meeting 
secretly with foreign government officials.  End note.)  Her 
 
SIPDIS 
personal demeanor belied her frequent assurances that she 
does not fear retribution from the ISS for the comments she 
made on al-Hurra  Whereas she conducted previous meetings 
with poloff from behind her desk in shared office space, she 
chose to hold this meeting in a private office with the door 
closed and the blinds drawn.  She stopped the discussion at 
one point to remove the battery from her mobile phone. 
Al-Ma'wali claimed that since al-Hurra aired the interview, 
security personnel have been monitoring her movements, and 
that she has seen them near her house.  She also said that 
she is sure the ISS is monitoring her phone and internet 
usage, as it had done in the past (ref C). 
 
¶6. (C) Despite this, al-Ma'wali asserted that she has nothing 
to fear because she "did nothing wrong."  She decided to 
raise publicly her concerns about human rights in Oman in 
order to spark debate, she claimed, as this was ultimately in 
the country's best interests.  Al-Ma'wali added that she 
chose to share "only 5%" of what she could have said about 
problems in Oman in order not to appear as if she were 
disloyal to her country or the Sultan.  She stated, for 
instance, that women have told her many stories of physical 
abuse in prison, as well as accounts of humiliation and a 
lack of due process in Oman's family status courts. 
Al-Ma'wali said that she ultimately wants the Sultan to 
"exonerate" her, thereby recognizing her right to freely 
express critical opinion, and that she has sent a letter to 
the Sultan asking him to personally review her case.  She 
candidly stated, however, that she believes she has no future 
in Oman, and that she might be more effective as a human 
rights advocate from outside the country. 
 
- - - - - - - 
The Response 
- - - - - - - 
 
¶7. (C) Oman's independent internet forums, such as Sablah 
al-Omania, which the government shut down several months ago 
for publishing allegedly slanderous comments about public 
officials (ref D), received hundreds of postings about 
al-Ma'wali's interview.  Most of the comments supported her 
position, but negative responses criticized her for defaming 
the country and questioned her motives for appearing on 
al-Hurra, a USG-sponsored television station.  Barka al-Bakri 
(protect), director of the Muscat-based non-governmental 
association (NGO) Al Noor Association for the Blind, told 
poloff that while she had not seen the interview, "very few 
are as willing or as brave" as al-Ma'wali to publicly 
criticize the government.  Al-Ma'wali has a large following, 
al-Bakri asserted, and her opinions are noticed. 
 
¶8. (C) Local private and government-owned press did not cover 
the interview.  One official at the Ministry of Foreign 
Affairs (MFA) dismissed al-Ma'wali's appearance, asserting - 
in contradiction to al-Bakri - that she has very little 
domestic following.  The official told poloff that al-Ma'wali 
is "her own worst enemy," and is an outspoken woman who is 
pushing "too fast" to try to transform traditions and 
institutions that are not ready for change.  He further 
claimed that unlike al-Ma'wali, other Omani women are working 
much more effectively from within the system to promote 
women's rights, and with much greater success. 
 
- - - - 
Comment 
- - - - 
 
¶9. (C) Contacts say that al-Ma'wali's interview marks the 
first time that an Omani activist has appeared before an 
international audience to openly criticize the actions of 
government officials and the security services.  Given 
al-Ma'wali's international notoriety - Amnesty International 
posted regular status reports regarding her case and welfare 
in 2005 - most contacts believe that she is no danger of 
further incarceration.  Some speculate that the government 
will choose to quietly hem her in by monitoring her 
communication and interactions.  The MFA official with whom 
poloff spoke was adamant that al-Ma'wali would not face any 
form of retribution for her comments. 
 
¶10. (C) Comment continued:  It is difficult to assess the 
size of al-Ma'wali's following, or the impact her interview 
will have, if any.  Some contacts say that al-Ma'wali 
succeeded in conveying her message, now carried through 
 
MUSCAT 00000661  003 OF 003 
 
 
Oman's internet chat rooms, that there are human rights 
problems in Oman that need to be addressed.  Post plans to 
stay in touch with al-Ma'wali, who said that she welcomes 
continued interaction with the Embassy. 
FONTENEAU