US embassy cable - 05KUWAIT3057

UNCLAS KUWAIT 003057 
 
SIPDIS 
 
STATE FOR NEA/ARPI, NEA/PPD 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: PGOV, KPAO, KMDR, KU 
SUBJECT:  INFORMATION MINISTER CALLS FOR "RESTRUCTURING" OF 
INFORMATION MINISTRY 
 
Reftel: Kuwait 1493 
 
1. SUMMARY: Dr. Anas Al-Reshaid, Kuwait's information 
minister, said his ministry requires "restructuring" in a 
July 1 interview on the sidelines of Prime Minister Shaykh 
Sabah Al-Ahmed Al-Jaber Al-Sabah's recent visit to 
Washington, DC.  While the term "restructuring" does not 
itself suggest radical change, Al-Reshaid also said that 
Kuwaitis do not need an information ministry, and said that 
he had formed a committee to study the "restructuring." Al- 
Reshaid also used the interview to reiterate his dedication 
to a free media, and his determination to navigate through 
parliament a new, media-friendly draft press and 
publications law. END SUMMARY. 
 
2. The July 1 interview with Al-Reshaid, broadcast on Al- 
Hurra TV, contained some of the first public statements 
made by the minister, who was appointed in April, detailing 
his specific intentions for the ministry (reftel). While 
Kuwaitis need access to radio and television, he said, they 
do not need an information ministry. He said that a state 
media monopoly has no place in a country governed by a 
constitution, and that the media market must be opened for 
full private sector participation. 
 
3. Al-Reshaid said that while the state would likely 
maintain a role in regulating media, the way to improve 
media performance is through more freedom, greater 
democracy, and better education for journalists. He said 
that increased media competition, from satellite television 
and, increasingly, the Internet, also meant that the 
ministry needed to embrace change. He said that he had 
formed a ministry committee to explore how to accomplish 
the restructuring. 
 
4. Much legislation would be required to carry out his 
vision, the minister said, but stressed that his top 
priority now is the passage of a draft press and 
publications law. (Note: The Cabinet approved the 
ministry's latest version of the draft law on June 4. 
Parliament has adjourned for the summer, and will not 
consider the law before the next session opens, in October. 
End note.) Al-Reshaid said that the press, several members 
of parliament, and several national political blocs have 
approved his draft. The law, which underwent several drafts 
in the last session, will determine regulations for media 
ownership, outline rules under which media outlets can be 
shut down, and delineate taboo topics, such as reportage 
about Islam and the ruling family, and the penalties for 
breaking these taboos. 
 
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