VZCZCXYZ0004
RR RUEHWEB

DE RUEHIN #0721 1680938
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
R 170938Z JUN 09
FM AIT TAIPEI
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC 1768
INFO RUEHBJ/AMEMBASSY BEIJING 9243
RUEHHK/AMCONSUL HONG KONG 0675

UNCLAS AIT TAIPEI 000721 
 
SIPDIS 
 
DEPARTMENT FOR INR/R/MR, EAP/TC, EAP/P, EAP/PD - NIDA EMMONS 
DEPARTMENT PASS AIT/WASHINGTON 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: OPRC KMDR KPAO TW
SUBJECT: MEDIA REACTION: IRAN 
 
Summary:  Taiwan's major Chinese-language dailies focused news 
coverage June 17 on the murder of two Taiwan businessmen in mainland 
China Monday; on the upcoming KMT chairman election; and on a 
statement co-signed by around 150 media academics in protest at the 
Want Want China Times Group for threatening lawsuits against 
reporters and commentators who criticized the conglomerate's 
acquisition of the China Times Group last November.  In terms of 
editorials and commentaries, a column in the mass-circulation "Apple 
Daily" discussed the chaos in Iran in the wake of its presidential 
election.  The article said that, despite the grave disappointment 
of the United States and other countries at the results of Iran's 
presidential election, Iran's democracy remains a mirror for 
totalitarian countries in the Middle East.  A column in the 
centrist, KMT-leaning "China Times," on the other hand, described 
Iran as now standing at a political crossroad.  End summary. 
 
A) "A Rogue or a Model Student After All?" 
 
Apple Daily Publisher James Tu wrote in his column in the 
mass-circulation "Apple Daily" [circulation: 520,000] (6/17): 
 
"The results of Iran's presidential election have disappointed many 
people. Key government officials of various countries felt 
frustrated, as they originally expected that a [more] moderate 
president would be elected in Iran; voters in Iran, particularly 
those who aspired for change, were even more despairing. ...  The 
disappointed United States refused to acknowledge the election 
results, but what else can it do?  Is [U.S. President Barack] Obama 
planning to close his door and retrieve the olive branch that he has 
just proffered?  Is it possible that the victory of Mahmoud 
Ahmadinejad was entirely out of [the United States'] expectations? 
If the answer is yes, then the U.S. intelligence system as well as 
hundreds of [American] experts in the academic circle specializing 
in the Middle East must be truly derelict of their duties. ... 
 
"Campaign rallies in Iran were full of excitement and passion, and 
the supporters were glowing with enthusiasm.  The intensity of the 
[presidential] race [in Iran] was not inferior to that in any other 
mature democracy, whereas the 85 percent of voter turnout rate was 
much higher than that in the major elections ina majority of 
countries.  Despite its limitations, Iran's democracy was far ahead 
of other Middle Eastern countries.   For Western countries such as 
the United States, many of their allies in the Middle East either 
hold no elections at all (such as Saudi Arabia), or their elections 
are a mere formality (such as Egypt).  Given time, the limited 
democracy in Iran, if it does not regress, will have a profound 
impact on the entire region.  Isn't it true that the United States 
hopes to promote democracy in the Middle East?  Regardless of its 
immaturity and insufficiency, democracy in Iran remains a mirror for 
the totalitarian nations of the Middle East." 
 
B) "Post-Election Iran Has Become a Time Bomb" 
 
Columnist Lin Po-wen wrote in the centrist, KMT-leaning "China 
Times" [circulation: 120,000] (6/17): 
 
"... Iran is standing at a political crossroads.  Should Mahmoud 
Ahmadinejad continue to rule [Iran] and insist on pursuing nuclear 
weapons, Israel will surely bomb the nuclear facilities in Iran. 
Israel, under the leadership of its bellicose Prime Minister 
Benjamin Netanyahu, will certainly walk toward the brinkmanship of 
war, and Iran will very likely be his touchstone.  Should the chaos 
in Iran caused by its presidential election continue, the prospects 
for this Persian empire will truly be worrisome." 
 
YOUNG