US embassy cable - 05TUNIS1092

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 TUNIS 001092 
 
SIPDIS 
 
STATE FOR ECA/PE/V/R/N (KOTOB/MOODY); NEA/PPD (GLAZIER); 
NEA/MAG (LAWRENCE) 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: KPAO, OEXC, SCUL, TS 
SUBJECT: Mixed Tunisian reactions to Foreign Policy 
Program 
 
 
1.  SUMMARY:  While both of the Tunisian participants in 
the April 2005 Foreign Policy IV program were favorably 
impressed by American society, their impressions of the 
content of the program were quite varied.  Ahlem ben Ali, 
a Tunisian journalist, related that she had learned many 
interesting and instructive things about the U.S. 
government, the role of the media, and civil society; 
Ahmed Idriss, a Tunisian university professor who teaches 
international relations, noted that he had not learned 
much from the substantive program that he did not already 
know and was disappointed at the level of interlocutors 
with whom they met.  End Summary. 
 
2.  ACTIVITY:  FY-05 RP "Foreign Policy Decision-Making 
Process"; EVDB Project number 2005-0009. 
 
3.  DATES: April 18 - May 6, 2005 
 
4.  OBJECTIVE: To expose participants to the 
constitutional and historical relationship between the 
executive, legislative, and judicial branches of 
government and to provide a clear understanding of the 
process of foreign-policy decision-making in the U.S.  In 
the case of Ms. Ben Ali, the goal was to provide her with 
context for her coverage of U.S. foreign policy.  For Mr. 
Idriss, the goal was to improve his knowledge of how 
foreign policy is determined in the U.S. 
 
5.  MPP GOAL: Democracy and Mutual Understanding. 
 
6.  IMPACT: Outstanding for Ms. Ben Ali.  Ms. Ben Ali 
noted that the entire program, including all of the 
meetings and all of the interaction with the American 
people, were informative and helped her to better 
understand both American government and society.  She was 
most impressed with the openness of all of the people she 
met, whether they were official interlocutors or people 
on the street, and remarked that she was surprised how 
interested Americans were in understanding the Arab 
viewpoint.  She was also thankful that the official 
interlocutors made every effort to answer all of the 
participants' questions.  She particularly appreciated 
the visit to an elementary school and the opportunity to 
present Tunisia to American children. Her one negative 
comment was that she noted that "civil society in the 
U.S. was not capable of influencing the government." 
When pressed, she stated that she was disappointed to see 
that money was the main factor that seemed to effect U.S. 
government decision-making, alluding to the relative 
strength of AIPAC versus the Arab-American organizations. 
 
Good for Mr. Idriss.  Mr. Idriss mentioned that certain 
meetings were very useful, in particular the meeting with 
A/S Rodman at the Pentagon and the visit to the 
university in Columbia, Missouri.  The rest of the 
meetings he found disappointing, particularly given the 
fact that the interlocutors with whom they spoke were 
often "of a lower quality" than those originally promised 
in the program given to them prior to their departure. 
It would appear, that given Mr. Idriss' pre-existing 
knowledge of U.S. government systems, he was hoping to 
have a more profound discussion on foreign policy issues, 
rather than the more introductory look at U.S. systems 
that he received. 
 
7.  CONSTRUCTIVE FEEDBACK: Both participants complimented 
the program organization and the quality of the 
translators.  Both participants suggested that 
participants be provided at the outset with a list of how 
much they would have to pay for each night's stay, 
including the costs of breakfast if not included in the 
rate, so that they can better budget their stay in the 
U.S. They were both disappointed at not having had the 
opportunity for home hospitality.  (Mr. Idriss was 
disturbed that a Meridian official had "tried to tell us 
that the visit to the farm in Missouri was home 
hospitality.")  Both participants also regretted not 
having met with any think tanks in the U.S.  Mr. Idriss 
stated that the participants did not quite understand the 
health insurance coverage provided in the program and 
noted that this confusion troubled some participants who 
became ill during the program.  Given Mr. Idriss' 
disappointment in the change in the level of 
interlocutors, Post suggests that names of officials be 
left out of the program so as not to raise false 
expectations. Neither participant experienced airport 
delays. 
 
8.  BRINGING LESSONS BACK HOME: Despite the negative 
feedback on the program contents, Mr. Idriss did return 
with a profound respect for the openness and kindness of 
the American people and for the organization skills of 
American society.  He is sure to pass these impressions 
on to his students.  Ms. Ben Ali's important exposure to 
the context in which U.S. foreign policy is made will 
inform her writings.  She is in the process of preparing 
a series of articles for the bilingual weekly magazine 
for which she writes. 
 
9. QUALITY OF ECA AND PROGRAM AGENCY SUPPORT: Excellent. 
 
HUDSON