US embassy cable - 05PARIS6189

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 PARIS 006189 
 
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E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: OPRC, KMDR, FR 
SUBJECT: MEDIA REACTION REPORT - UN Summit Katrina Gaza 
PARIS - Tuesday, September 13, 2005 
 
 
(A) SUBJECTS COVERED IN TODAY'S REPORT: 
 
UN Summit 
Katrina 
Gaza 
 
B) SUMMARY OF COVERAGE: 
 
Front pages are devoted to an array of different stories, 
mostly domestic social and political. The two exceptions are 
Le Figaro which leads with "Gaza: The Palestinians Masters of 
their Destiny" and La Croix which devotes its lead to the role 
of the Catholic Church in helping the neediest in the states 
hit by Katrina. But La Croix's editorial, which is titled 
"After Gaza," comments that "the hardest task lies in the 
hands of Abbas, who can succeed thanks to the help of Sharon 
and the international community." (See Part C) 
 
The aftermath of Katrina, and what the hurricane has revealed 
about America, its poor, and the role of the Federal 
government remain major stories. A double spread in Le 
Parisien, is announced on the front page: "The Other America: 
37 Million Americans in Poverty" and begins a four-part series 
about poverty in America. Le Parisien interviews Andre Kaspi 
of the Sorbonne University: "It isn't only Blacks who are 
poor, there are many poor Whites. But the Blacks seem to 
nurture a culture of poverty leading to a rejection of too 
much education. The difference between the U.S. and France is 
that while France favors the notion of solidarity towards its 
poor, America promotes equality of chances for all. And those 
who are left behind are not necessarily helped. Fighting 
poverty is not a priority of American policy. But generosity 
in the aftermath of Katrina is coming from the general 
population; Americans do not necessarily feel that help must 
come from the federal government." In the same vein, an op-ed 
in Le Figaro is titled "After Katrina, a Stronger Central 
Government." (See Part C) 
 
UN reform and the UN summit elicit a number of op-eds and 
pessimistic commentaries in Le Figaro and Liberation as to the 
final Summit declaration. (See Part C) In Le Figaro, Benita 
Ferrero-Waldner, the European Commissioner for Foreign 
Affairs, promotes human rights in order to reduce world 
conflicts, while in La Croix former minister and vice 
president of the commission for foreign relations, Paul 
Quiles, promotes multilateralism and better North-South 
relations within the UN. 
 
(C) SUPPORTING TEXT/BLOCK QUOTES: 
 
UN Summit 
 
"The UN Reform Sinks Before It Starts" 
Laurent Mauriac in left-of-center Liberation (09/13): "Before 
the summit has even begun it appears that it is doomed to 
fail. After much effort, the negotiations appear to be at an 
impasse on two major issues: human rights and UN management. 
On Friday, a final document will nevertheless be published, 
but it may well be close to worthless. The many reservations 
imposed by the Americans turned the negotiations into an 
extremely difficult mission. As soon as he was nominated, the 
U.S. Ambassador, John Bolton, who is allergic to 
multilateralism, covered the initial text with an avalanche of 
amendments. Yet the U.S., which is mired in Iraq, engaged in a 
difficult fight against terrorism and confronted by threats 
from Iran and North Korea has never been in more dire need of 
international cooperation." 
 
"The Prospect of Failure" 
Alain Barluet in right-of-center Le Figaro (09/13): "Diplomats 
are working hard to defuse the failure which is threatening to 
befall the three-day summit. Persisting disagreements could 
lead the final text to lose a portion of its intended impact. 
Major bartering has been going on between the U.S. and a 
series of non-aligned countries who are sticking to their more 
`radical' stance. These countries, fearing a disengagement of 
the UN and their subsequent loss of power, are using America's 
intransigence to promote their own views." 
 
Katrina 
 
"After Katrina, A Stronger Central Government" 
Guy Sorman in right-of-center Le Figaro (09/13): "Bad news for 
the anti-Americans: the U.S. will not be swallowed by Katrina 
just as it was not overcome by 9/11. What will come out is the 
fact that American society has a great capacity for bouncing 
back. New Orleans will be rebuilt. While the central 
government remains weak in the face of natural disasters, the 
effectiveness of civil society and private initiative remain 
strong. Few people have noted that 500 million dollars have 
been raised from the private sector and from Churches. To 
believe that the victims expect everything from their 
government is a projection of our own ways on America. More 
important than this mix of compassion and anti-American 
jubilation is how the federal government will evolve. Katrina 
has shown the shortcomings of local governments more than 
those of Washington. After Katrina, added to post-9/11, 
internal security will dominate at the federal level. Re- 
enforced security will be at the center of the federal 
government's concern, leaving all other issues, culture, 
education and social services to civil society and the 
market." 
 
Gaza 
 
"After Gaza" 
Dominique Quinio in Catholic La Croix (09/13): "What will the 
Palestinians do with their newfound land? After the last 
Israeli soldier has left, much needs yet to be done. The 
Palestinians will be tempted to assume that the pull out is 
their military victory. and the fruit of their armed 
resistance. The destruction of the synagogues stands as a 
symbol of their feelings for revenge. that will trigger anger 
and sadness in Israel. It might have been better if the 
Israelis had destroyed them themselves. Mahmoud Abbas carries 
the heaviest load. He needs to embrace the joy of his people 
but refrain from showing excessive triumph. He must continue 
to make demands from Israel but through negotiations. He needs 
to eradicate terrorism and the extremists from his own camp. 
On both sides of the border the enemies of peace are ready to 
fan the fires of anger and hate. The task is almost 
insurmountable for a single man. But with the help of Sharon's 
political perseverance and the sustained support of the 
international community Mahmoud Abbas can succeed." STAPLETON