VZCZCXRO9426
OO RUEHIK RUEHPW RUEHYG
DE RUEHBUL #0911/01 1071114
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
O 161114Z APR 08
FM AMEMBASSY KABUL
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC IMMEDIATE 3586
INFO RUCNAFG/AFGHANISTAN COLLECTIVE PRIORITY
RHEHAAA/NATIONAL SECURITY COUNCIL WASHINGTON DC PRIORITY
RUEAIIA/CIA WASHINGTON DC PRIORITY
RHEFDIA/DIA WASHINGTON DC PRIORITY
RUEKJCS/OSD WASHINGTON DC PRIORITY
RUEKJCS/SECDEF WASHINGTON DC PRIORITY
RUEKJCS/JOINT STAFF WASHINGTON DC PRIORITY
RHMFIUU/HQ USCENTCOM MACDILL AFB FL PRIORITY

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 KABUL 000911 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SENSITIVE 
SIPDIS 
 
STATE FOR SCA/FO, SCA/A, 
STATE PASS TO USAID FOR AID/ANE, AID/DCHA/DG 
NSC FOR WOOD 
OSD FOR SHIVERS 
CENTCOM FOR CG CJTF-82 POLAD 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: PGOV AF
SUBJECT: TOLO USES PROGRAMMING TO PUSH FOR SOCIAL CHANGE; 
CONSERVATIVES AND POLITICIANS REACT 
 
Summary 
 
¶1. (SBU) Afghan conservatives and politicians anxious to 
burnish their Islamic credentials in the run-up to elections 
have reacted to TOLO television programs which test the 
limits of traditional Afghan norms.  TOLO's recent broadcast 
of conservatively dressed men and women dancing together 
during the Afghan version of the Academy Awards drew a strong 
reaction from powerful Islamic conservatives and their 
informal demand for a ban on broadcasts of women singing or 
dancing with men, but no action.  TOLO director Saad Mosheni 
describes his station as a vehicle for social change and 
claims high viewership.  Cultural and political cross 
currents during the lead up to the presidential and 
parliamentary elections will raise the stakes and sharpen the 
rhetoric in this debate.  Even moderates, including President 
Karzai, are looking for a way to affirm their support for 
press freedoms without offending powerful conservative 
interests.  End Summary. 
 
Conservative Lawmakers Object to TOLO Programming 
 
¶2. (SBU) In the National Assembly March 31, conservative MPs 
vociferously protested the dancing shown during the Academy 
Awards telecast and railed against the continued broadcast of 
Indian soap operas.  During the debate, lower house member 
and former warlord Ustad Abdurab Rasoul Sayyaf interpreted 
articles one, two, and three of the constitution as calling 
for the active defense of Islam.  He said, "Our constitution 
bans anything that contradicts Islam and we have all sworn on 
the Quran that we will protect Islam.  What is forbidden is 
forbidden."  (Articles one, two, and three state: 1) 
Afghanistan shall be an Islamic Republic, independent, 
unitary and indivisible state; 2) The sacred religion of 
Islam is the religion of the Islamic Republic of 
Afghanistan...; and 3) No law shall contravene the tenets and 
provisions of the holy religion of Islam in Afghanistan.) 
Not all MPs agreed.  When Sayyaf called for a ban on foreign 
women dancers on television, reformer Shukria Barakzai 
challenged him to show the same concern for the young male 
dancers who are frequently used as entertainment at all-male 
parties.  The heated discussion ended with conservatives 
demanding a ban on broadcasts of women singers or women 
dancing with men, but no binding action. 
 
Religion and Rights in the Context of an Election Campaign 
 
¶3. (SBU) Conservative members of the National Assembly and 
elements of the Karzai government, notably the Ministry of 
Information and Culture, consistently raise Islamic norms and 
Sharia law when evaluating bills before the legislature.  In 
recent memory, members objected to a bill on highway tolls 
because it included non-compliance fines, the moribund media 
law bill because it might protect 'anti-Islamic' programming, 
and the passport law bill because it allowed women to obtain 
their own passports without explicit permission from male 
relatives.  Religiously based analysis of legislation will 
likely increase and become more emotional with the approach 
of elections as conservative politicians compete to burnish 
their religious credentials.  Few MPs are prepared to be 
accused of being soft on the issue of religion. 
 
¶4. (SBU) Even President Karzai carefully walked the line 
between support for press freedom and respect for Islam as he 
responded to questions taken during a post-Bucharest press 
conference on April 6.  He made a clear statement in favor of 
freedom of expression when he said, "As long as I am 
president here, there will never be any interference in media 
freedom," but he also admonished television stations to 
carefully consider their content. "In cases where the 
broadcasts of Afghanistan's television channels are against 
the daily life of our people and against what the people 
accept in their daily life from the cultural point of view, 
they should not be aired.  I request the television channels 
to stop such broadcasts."  Karzai also returned to a 
familiar, populist theme, warning against outside 
interference. "I see that Afghanistan's television is deeply 
 
KABUL 00000911  002 OF 002 
 
 
influenced by foreign broadcasts. This is not in favor of 
Afghanistan." 
 
Fair Claims of Inconsistent Enforcement 
 
¶5. (SBU) TOLO views itself as a vehicle for social change in 
Afghanistan and deliberately challenges traditional norms. 
Its broadcast of Afghan Star (modeled after American Idol but 
featuring Afghan songs and music), including a female singer 
from Kandahar among the three finalists, drew criticism from 
the conservatives, but had a huge following among Afghans 
from all age groups and regions.  The station has also been 
criticized for broadcasting romantic Indian soap operas 
(popular to the point of a national obsession) and concerts 
(including a pixelated Shakira concert aired during the last 
week of Ramadan in late 2007). 
 
¶6.  (SBU) TOLO willingness to push the envelope sets it up 
for criticism, but its complaints about Ministry of 
Information and Culture's inconsistent enforcement of 
religious standards may have merit.  In fact, Indian movies 
are a longtime Afghan television staple, aired by all major 
Afghan television stations, including the state outlet, Radio 
Television Afghanistan (RTA).  Further, TOLO's The Afghan 
Academy Awards dance number which drew conservative 
parliamentarians' ire was lifted wholesale (same dancers, 
same moves, same music) from a locally-produced movie already 
approved by the Ministry and due shortly for local release. 
 
Sending a Message while Staying out of the Election Fray 
 
¶7. (SBU) We will continue to remind the government and MPs of 
the importance we attach to international standards relating 
to freedom of speech and freedom of the press, but we also 
note that the election campaign is reflected in a highly 
charged environment where provocation and double standards 
often define the terms of the debate.  Each side appears 
ready to stake out extreme positions in favor of one absolute 
- freedom of speech or Islamic values - leaving little room 
for compromise or voices of reason.  Taking a public stance 
insisting on TOLO's right to broadcast particular program 
would put us in the middle of the debate and likely prove to 
be counterproductive.  We will continue to underline to 
parliamentary leadership, the ministry, and other officials 
our commitment to international standards relating to media 
and speech freedoms and our expectation that the Afghan 
government ensure the protections included in its 
constitution are upheld. 
DELL