Washington Report on Middle East Affairs, January/February 2003, pages 40-42

Issues in the News

Compiled by Nizar Wattad

ARABIAN PENINSULA

Bahrain Elections Successful

Bahrainis went to the polls Oct. 24, the Khaleej Times reported, for the first legislative elections since parliament was dissolved in 1975. This time women were allowed not only to vote but also to stand as candidates. While none of the eight female candidates was elected, two made it to the second round of voting—a far better showing than in May’s municipal elections, when none of the 31 female candidates made it even that far. The Danish EU presidency issued a statement praising the elections, noting that “Bahrain and the Bahraini people have taken important steps toward the development of a democratic state.”

Kuwaiti Captives Launch Legal Bid for Freedom

The Oct. 16 Boston Globe reported that 12 Kuwaiti prisoners at the U.S. naval base at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, have mounted the first organized legal and diplomatic effort to challenge the Bush administration’s policy of holding suspected terrorists indefinitely without court hearings or charges being filed. The men—whose efforts are being backed by the Kuwaiti government—contend they are not members of al-Qaeda or the Taliban, but rather charity workers who were engaged in aiding Afghan refugees when the war broke out last fall. In attempting to flee to Pakistan, the prisoners assert, they were captured by Pakistanis who then “sold” them to U.S. troops in exchange for a bounty American forces were offering for Arab terror suspects. If their tale proves true, the men will now have spent almost a year in captivity despite Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld’s assertion last spring that “if we find someone’s an innocent and shouldn’t have been brought there, they would be released.”

Smart Cards in Oman, Saudi Arabia

The Oct. 24 Gulf News Online reported that the Royal Oman Police (ROP) is planning to issue “smart cards” to all citizens. The cards will contain data about the bearer which, the ROP claims, will remain strictly confidential. This data will include educational qualifications, employment status, work details and the individual’s medical record. The cards also can be used as ID, to vote, as driving licenses and to withdraw money. The project, which Lt. General Hilal Mawali said would open the door to e-government, will cost a total of $30 million, and should start late next year. Oman is the first Arab country to introduce such cards to the general public.

According to the Oct. 25 Arab News, Saudi citizens and expatriates will be issued similar smart cards, which they will be required to produce when making financial transactions. Saudi officials say the decision to issue the cards, which will be valid for 10 years, was made to help prevent illegal transactions and forging of IDs. The cards are unique in that the information they contain can be updated or changed—for example, when a license needs renewing or when an individual changes jobs.

Prince Naif to Morality Enforcers: Lighten Up

According to the Nov. 4 Arab News, the Saudi interior minister has urged members of the Commission for Promotion of Virtue and Prevention of Vice—who monitor morality in public places—to show “leniency” and respect people’s freedom. The commission, he said, “is a government institution and should abide by the state’s laws and regulations.” Prince Naif’s comments follow complaints that members of the commission entered private homes without legal permission. Many Saudis believe the commission’s actions to be unduly harsh in some cases, an example of which occurred in March, when commission members allegedly stopped men from trying to rescue schoolgirls from their burning school for fear of “exposing females to male strangers.” That incident evoked outrage from both press and government officials, and Prince Naif’s call for the commission to be more lenient is a reflection of growing national sentiment.

Stem Cell Center Planned

According to the Oct. 28 Gulf News Online, authorities in the United Arab Emirates are discussing the establishment of the first stem cell collection center in the Middle East—and expectant parents are showing great interest. One of their biggest concerns has been whether or not stem cell research is permitted by Islam—a concern that health specialists assert is unfounded. “I have discussed this issue with religious leaders,” said one, “and they have assured me it is not prohibited.” Stem cells can be important in treating diseases like Parkinson’s, Alzheimer’s, multiple sclerosis and diabetes.

FERTILE CRESCENT

Second Arab Women Summit Calls for Empowerment, Equality

The Nov. 4 Gulf News Online reported the opening of the second Arab Women Summit in Amman, Jordan, under the slogan “The Arab Woman—A New Vision.” Hosted by Jordan’s Queen Rania, the summit called for women’s empowerment and the establishment of an Arab organization to address their needs. Summit attendees included the first ladies of Egypt, Lebanon, and Sudan, with 14 other Arab countries also represented, along with Arab League Secretary-General Amr Mousa and others. In a speech, Mousa urged Arab countries to establish immediately an organization for Arab women “to solve the problems of women everywhere in the Arab countries…It is enough that we have received criticism and accusations that the situation of Arab women is among the main deficiencies in the Arab societies.”

Queen Rania, adding to Mousa’s remarks, reminded her audience “that we are not only here to discuss our inter-Arab experiences, but we meet in Amman to present our issues to the whole world…No Arab meeting is able to reach its intended objectives without highlighting the suffering of women in Palestine and Iraq.”

The one-daysummit ended, according to the BBC News, having achieved most of what it had promised, including the creation of an Arab women’s organization under the umbrella of the Arab League.

Rania: Jordanian Women Have Equal Rights

At the openingof the second Arab Women Summit [see above], Jordan’s Queen Rania announced amendments in Jordanian law that “will give the Jordanian woman equal rights as granted by the constitution.” The laws are geared toward making women more independent, and are in line with promises made by King Abdullah when he took the throne in 1999. According to the Nov. 4 Arab News, Jordanian women may now apply for a passport without their husbands’ permission, and retiring widows are entitled to both their own pensions and that of their deceased husbands. In addition, Jordanian women married to foreign nationals now have the right to pass Jordanian citizenship on to their children.

Posh Real Estate Booms in Beirut

On Nov. 4, Reuters reported on the state of Beirut’s real estate industry, which is flourishing despite Lebanon’s $29 billion public debt, job scarcity, and a stagnant stock market. The key to its success: wealthy Gulf Arabs who, discouraged by the post-9/11 treatment of Arabs and Muslims in the United States and Europe, are seeking vacation spots a little closer to home.

Gulf investors already have purchased every $400,000 chalet at Beirut’s five-star seaside Movenpick resort, built by Saudi Prince Waleed bin Talal. In addition to the Movenpick, Talal also is building a 250-room Four Seasons hotel in Beirut, which will compete with the luxury Crowne Plaza Hotel (opened this autumn). More five-star hotels are in the works. Analysts say Gulf investors have brought in several hundred million dollars to Lebanon this year in the form of real estate investment and tourism.

Lebanon, Canada Sign Co-Production Agreement

Lebanon’s Daily Star announced Oct. 21 the inking of a Lebanese-Canadian audiovisual co-production agreement intended to help “cultural” firms from both countries—such as television, film, and music companies—better communicate and work with one another. The deal will facilitate the financing of co-produced films as well as the transfer of education and technology in those areas.

IRAN/IRAQ

Iraq Reopens Saudi Crossing After 12 Years

According to the Nov. 1 Gulf News Online, Iraq reopened a border crossing with Saudi Arabia the previous day, allowing people and goods through for the first time since the crossing was closed during the 1990-1991 Gulf war. Witnesses reported seeing 100 Saudi trade officials and businessmen cross into Iraq to attend a 10-day trade fair in Baghdad—the largest such delegation to visit Baghdad since the two former allies broke ties following Iraq’s 1990 invasion of Kuwait. Saudi Arabia asked Iraq to reopen the border in October 2000, and Baghdad gave approval last June, so the reopening is being seen less as an Iraqi attempt to gain last-minute support from its Arab neighbors, and more as a sign of burgeoning good relations between the countries. Trade between the two states was expected to reach $1 billion in 2002, up from nothing five years ago and just $298 million in 2001.

Iranian Women Rush to Get Their Motorcycle Licenses

According to a Nov. 20 report in The Times of India, thousands of women in Iran have applied for motorcycle lessons, marking the quiet crumbling of yet another taboo in the Islamic republic. Although Iranian women have been driving cars for decades, since the 1979 revolution they have been forbidden from riding motorbikes. In recent weeks, however, reformist newspapers have printed ads featuring a woman—in proper attire—riding a scooter. As with many such quiet revolutions, authorities, have exhibited no adverse reaction, and women bikers expect to be on the streets by the spring.

ISRAEL/PALESTINE

Israeli Defense Minister Wanted in UK

Shaul Mofaz, Israel’s defense minister and former army chief of staff, is the target of a potential criminal investigation by the British Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP), after being named by British human rights activist Imran Khan on behalf of individuals and families in the West Bank who lodged complaints against the general during Mofaz’visit to the UK. The complaints cover numerous violations that amount to war crimes and crimes against humanity, specifically under Article 147 of the Fourth Geneva Convention.

The case, reports the Nov. 1 Gulf News Online, has been referred to the highest investigative authority and anti-terrorist squad in Scotland Yard. Khan and his legal team are optimistic that Mofaz will be prosecuted, citing the seriousness on the part of DPP, “who would have thrown the case in the bin from the moment it was brought to his attention if it wasn’t substantial.” Also, the fact that the DPPreferred the case to the Crimes Against Humanity Squad under the auspices of the Anti-Terrorist Squad “is quite serious in itself.” Mofaz is accused of individual willful killings of civilians, state assassinations, destruction of homes, agricultural land and crops, and torture.

Knesset Votes to Keep ‘Transfer’ On Agenda

For anyone who considers unimaginable the idea of “transfer”—ethnic cleansing by Israel of Palestinians from the occupied territories—the Oct. 24 Arab News reported that Israel’s parliament rejected the previous day a proposed bill that would ban from the assembly any party trying to incite the expulsion of Palestinians or Arab Israelis from their land. The proposal, drafted by the communist Hadash party, was voted against by 51 of the 74 members present—indicating that the majority of Israel’s parliament is not ruling out the “transfer” option. October polls showed that 20 to 30 percent of Israelis also favor some form of Arab expulsion.

Reporters Without Borders: PA Respects Press More Than Israel

According to the Oct. 23 Ha’aretz (English), the human rights group Reporters Without Borders (RWB) has published an index of countries ranked according to their respect for press freedom. The Palestinian Authority was found to have more respect for press freedom than Israel. RWB ranked Israel 92nd in the Press Freedom Index, while the PA was ranked 82nd. According to the organization, “Since the start of the Israeli army’s incursions into Palestinian towns and cities in March 2002, very many journalists have been roughed up, threatened, arrested, banned from moving around, targeted by gunfire, wounded or injured, had their press cards withdrawn or been deported.” The PA was found guilty of closing down the offices of Islamic fundamentalist opposition media and keeping the coverage of certain subjects—such as demonstrations supporting attacks within Israel—strictly taboo.

On Oct. 23, The Times of India reported that Israel released AFP photographer Hossam Abu Alan after holding him for six months without any charges. At least two other Palestinian journalists, Khalid Zwawi and Nizar Ramadan, remain in detention.

Israelis, Palestinians Living Under Different Poverty Lines

According to statistics reported in the Nov. 4 Ha’aretz (English), nearly one in five—or 1.17 million—Israelis live below the poverty line. This figure includes over half a million children, or 27 percent of all children in the country. The 2001 statistics, compiled by the National Insurance Institute (NII) and the Ministry of Labor and Social Affairs, showed that the number of Israelis living below the poverty line increased by 81,000. By the end of next year, NII researchers estimate that nearly one in three Israeli children could be living in poverty.

The working definition of “poverty” for a childless couple in Israel is monthly earnings below $584. For a couple with two children, it’s earnings below $934. According to a July 10 USAID report, 70 percent of Palestinians (2.8 million) in the West Bank and Gaza are living below the international poverty line of less than $2 per day.

NORTH AFRICA

Bibliotheca Alexandrina Opens

The Associated Press reported Oct. 16 on a gathering of presidents and royalty in Alexandria, Egypt, to inaugurate the new Bibliotheca Alexandrina—a modern version of the ancient library famed for the freedom of thought and expression it represented. Among the guests of Egyptian President and First Lady Hosni and Suzanne Mubarak were French President Jacques Chirac, Queen Sofia of Spain, Queen Rania of Jordan, Greek President Costis Stephanopoulos, and 300 others. First Lady Suzanne Mubarak is a major advocate of the project, which, thanks to a parliamentary guarantee of independence to the library administration, will help foster freedom of ideas in the region.

The new library, a $230 million project, has a capacity for 4 million books and currently houses around 240,000, in addition to a digital archive of 10 billion Web pages. It is built on what archeologists believe is the site of the ancient Bibliotheca, which was founded around 295 B.C. by Ptolemy I Soter, successor of Alexander the Great. Achievements of the original Bibliotheca included a Greek translation of the Old Testament, the editing of Homer’s works, and the discovery that the sun is indeed the center of our galaxy.

Qaddafi Hosts Beauty Pageant

The Scottish news outlet Scotsman.com reported Nov. 4 that a British woman has won Libya’s first-ever beauty pageant, conducted at the invitation of the country’s leader, Colonel Muammar al-Qaddafi. Briton Lucy Layton competed against 22 other women from around the world for the title of “Miss Net World,” in which the votes for the winner are cast by millions of people across the Internet. One photo on the competition’s Web site depicts American contestant Tecca Zendik, 23, from Los Angeles, crying as Qaddafi relates the story of a 1986 American bombing of his home that killed his adopted daughter. Before leaving the country, Layton, 20, of Hertfordshire, admitted being a bit worried on hearing where the pageant was taking place. “I was originally told it was going to be somewhere like Cannes,” she said, “but when they said Libya I was a bit concerned—you know, Col. Qaddafi, like, ouch.”

Bush Signs Sudan Peace Act

News outlet allAfrica.com reported Oct. 22 that U.S. President George W. Bush signed into law the previous day a congressional bill aimed at pressing the Sudanese government to settle the two-decade conflict that has cost two million lives. The new Sudan Peace Act requires President Bush to certify every six months that the government and the Sudan People’s Liberation Movement are negotiating in good faith. The government’s failure to do so may result in the U.S. seeking sanctions from the United Nations that include an arms embargo, actively opposing loans and credit, and denying oil revenue. The act also calls on the president to end the Sudanese government’s manipulation of humanitarian relief efforts, and authorizes donating $300 million over three years “for assistance to areas outside government control.”

THE SUBCONTINENT

130,000 Licensed Weapons Threaten Bangladesh

According to the Nov. 19 Saudi Gazette, over 129,000 legal arms possessed by “terrorists and criminals” in Bangladesh have been declared illegal after a 10-day deadline for turning in all arms expired Nov. 15. Roughly 50,000 licensed arms were turned in during the 10-day period, during which amnesty was promised to anyone who turned in an illegal firearm, while those in legal possession were urged to turn their weapons in before they were declared illegal. Police have attributed the serious breakdown in law and order in Bangladesh to the gross misuse of legal firearms.

Daily Atrocities in Kashmir

According to statistics compiled daily by the Kashmir Media Service, Indian paramilitary forces in Kashmir killed a total of 1,108 Kashmiris from August through October 2002. Of those deaths, 220 occurred while the individual was already in the custody of the Indian army. The killings left 355 women widowed and 948 children orphaned.

In addition, as a result of firing guns and during army crackdowns, 2,679 citizens were tortured or critically injured, 280 women molested or gang-raped, and 463 houses or shops were burned down, rendering hundreds of families homeless and economically ruined.

CENTRAL ASIA

Indian Wheat Goes to Afghani Kids

According to the Nov. 5 Khaleej Times, the U.N. World Food Program (WFP) has announced that some 40,000 tons of Indian wheat, part of a one-million-ton donation, will be made into biscuits to feed children in Afghanistan. WFP executive director James Morris was “pleased and proud to welcome India into our family of donors,” adding that “the donation will enable WFP to move forward with an important investment in the future of Afghanistan—its young people.” The school feeding program, which will be fully operational by March, will distribute biscuits to one million school children in rural Afghanistan. The donation is the second gesture of Indian support for the Afghan nation: last year, Indian Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee announced a $100 million grant toward Afghanistan’s reconstruction.

Turkey’s Jews Select New Leader

The Oct. 29 online Turkish Daily News reported that Turkey’s Jewish community has selected a new religious leader, following the death last July of former chief rabbi Rav David Asseo, who had served the community for 41 years. An election process involving 121 community-appointed civilian delegates and 12 religious delegates resulted in the selection of Rav Isak Haleve as Turkey’s new chief rabbi. Born in 1940, Haleve graduated in 1961 from Jerusalem’s Porat Yosef Theology Academy. Turkey’s Jewish community is estimated to number around 27,000, of whom 24,500 live in Istanbul.

Children’s Rights Lacking in Turkey

On Nov. 19, just one day before World Children’s Rights Day, the online Turkish Daily News reported that Turkey is far from meeting some basic children’s rights criteria—a category crucial to the country’s European Union aspirations. The report cited a panel of experts involved in child welfare work, including Mustafa Sirin, chairman of Turkey’s Children Foundation. Sirin noted that “Turkey has failed to incorporate basic criteria of children’s rights—such as prevention of discrimination against children, child protection, and consultation with children in matters that concern them—into effective policies.” According to Prof. Oguz Polat, chairman of the Foundation for Protecting Children From Abuse, institutions set up since 1995 to help children subjected to physical or sexual abuse are not yet fully operational. Also problematic is the issue of child labor, which affects some 1.25 million Turkish children, only 250,000 of whom benefit from social security facilities.

ISSUES IN BRIEF

Bahrain’s reform-minded King Hamad has named a Jew and six women (one of them Christian) to the country’s Consultative Council, a legislative body with powers equal to the elected parliament; Shaikha Hossa bin Hamad, newly-appointed vice president of Qatar’s Supreme Council for family affairs, is Qatar’s first female minister; The electrification of Saudi Arabia is nearly complete, with over 7,000 villages now provided with power; Diabetes is becoming a serious risk for Saudis (25 percent of whom have the disease) and UAE nationals (26 percent); About 1.1 million children live in the UAE, comprising fully one-third of the country’s population; A total of 4,200 AIDS victims have been identified in Iran; State chief secretaries in India will now be held responsible for any future deaths due to starvation, according to a new Supreme Court ruling; Some 87 percent of university students applying for scholarships in Turkey are living on the hunger line; Environmentalist Hayrettin Karaca warns that 86 percent of the land in Turkey is threatened by erosion due mainly to poor farming practices.