US embassy cable - 05CAIRO7792

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 03 CAIRO 007792 
 
SIPDIS 
 
DEPARTMENT FOR R, P, AND NEA 
 
E.O. 12958: DECL: 09/28/2015 
TAGS: PREL, KDEM, KPAO, EAID, PHUM, KMPI, PTER 
SUBJECT: COMBATING EXTREMISM: STREET-LEVEL COMPETITION IN 
THE MARKETPLACE OF IDEAS 
 
REF: STATE 159129 
 
1.  SUMMARY:  The USG, GOE, and a wide range of non- 
governmental organizations in Egypt are vigorously engaged 
in efforts to combat extremism.  In response to reftel 
request, this message describes efforts in Egypt to reduce 
the sources of extremism, counter extremism in the media, 
create a political and social space for competing 
ideas, and promote religious tolerance and lawful 
resolution of conflict.  END SUMMARY. 
 
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BACKGROUND 
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2.  Extremism in Egypt is a product in part of domestic 
political, economic, and social systemic shortcomings, as 
well as historic opposition to USG foreign policy in the 
region.  Although extremism has tended to arise from 
disadvantaged areas of the Sinai, Upper Egypt and the slums 
of the larger cities, it has also affected middle and 
upper-class youth.  Extremism has expressed itself most 
dramatically in attacks that killed tourists as well as 
Egyptians in Taba, Sharm el Sheikh and Islamic Cairo and 
were clearly intended to strike at the existing regime by 
crippling the tourism industry.  Though most Egyptians 
vehemently reject the indiscriminate killing, extremist 
ideologies have taken root among significant segments of 
disaffected youth. 
 
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PUBLIC AFFAIRS PROGRAMS AIMED AT YOUTH 
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3.  In recent years the Mission has shaped its Public 
Affairs activities to target a younger, broader audience of 
non-elites, taking our message to the streets and 
universities and out of Cairo in order to combat extremism 
and promote other mission objectives. 
 
4.  In December Al-Azhar University, one of Islam's most 
influential learning centers, will host Imam Bashar Arafat 
of Baltimore for discussions with students and scholars. 
This is the first Embassy-sponsored speaker in recent 
memory to deal directly with religious extremism.  The 
program grew out of contacts nurtured by the Regional 
English Teaching Office (RELO), which supported Al-Azhar's 
English teaching program.  The Mission will lay the 
groundwork for Imam Bashar and other activities aimed at 
Islamic opinion leaders through iftars and other Ramadan 
events. 
 
5.  From the Ambassador to junior officers, the Mission 
engages in frequent contact with groups of students, young 
professionals and journalists through public speaking and 
informal contact aimed at highlighting the benefits of our 
binational partnership for ordinary Egyptians. 
 
6.  Featuring book-discussions and DVC's with U.S. authors, 
the post's Arabic book translation raises awareness and 
promotes tolerance among youth by exposing them to young- 
adult literature as well as economic and political non- 
fiction.  Among the titles this year are "Politics and 
Religion in the United States" and Fareed Zakaria's "The 
Future of Freedom: Illiberal Democracy at Home and Abroad". 
 
7.  A few steps away from Alexandria University, the 
American Center in Alexandria and our Cairo Information 
Resource Center counter extremism through youth outreach, 
offering Internet workshops and free Internet to the 
library patrons and conducting monthly school visits.  The 
Alexandria center hosts an active Voice of America club, 
which includes several hundred students and young 
professionals; it also offers student counseling and 
English instruction conducted by the NGO Amideast. 
 
8.  Key to the anti-extremist effort is the Mission's 
Information Office in the Public Affairs Section, which 
ensures that the message of official USG spokespersons is 
made clear in the Egyptian media.  Cairo remains an 
information hub for the Arab world, serving as the home 
base for many regional correspondents.  The Public Affairs 
section regularly works with them to counter extremist 
information. 
 
9.  Monitoring hate-speech and incitement are likewise 
primary missions of the Information Office.  The Embassy 
demarches the GOE and contacts chief editors to raise our 
concerns about hate speech in the Egyptian media whenever 
warranted. 
 
10.  The Mission also supports efforts by Egyptian NGOs to 
counter extremism through a civil society grant program. 
In FY05, we issued $1 million in 632(a) funds from USAID to 
Egyptian civil society organizations such as the Ibn 
Khaldun Center the Center and the Coptic Evangelical 
Organization for Social Services, which support community 
self-help and civic awareness. 
 
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EXCHANGES 
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11.  Exchange visits to the U.S. are among our most 
important tools in the fight against extremism.  They 
provide first-hand exposure to the tolerance and 
hospitality of American society, countering the myth that 
Americans are anti-Islam. In FY05 the exchanges unit 
assisted 414 visitors on USG-sponsored programs, including 
Fulbright scholarships, the International Visitor 
Leadership Program (IVLP), Citizens' Exchanges, and 
Partnership for Youth Learning.  A growing pool of exchange 
alumni participates in follow-on activities such as the 
Model U.S. Congress at Cairo University.  Recently a group 
of exchange alumni met with Undersecretary Karen Hughes, 
providing frank feedback on our public diplomacy in the 
Muslim world on her first trip as Undersecretary. 
 
12.  Equally valuable are visits to Egypt by Americans, 
especially youth, who not only represent our values and 
diversity and put a human face on America, but also 
demonstrate our desire to engage with Arabs and Muslims. 
Living with Egyptians and attending universities and 
schools, they have a great multiplier effect.  These 
ordinary American citizens, many of whom are studying 
Arabic, deflate the myths about American violence and 
arrogance conveyed by the action films and a hostile news 
media. 
 
13.  Of special importance are Egyptian religious figures 
like the GOE-funded Islamic scholars from Al-Azhar whom the 
Consular Section and Public Affairs helped visit the U.S. 
during Ramadan to carry out interfaith dialogue and meet 
with American Muslim communities.  This year the Public 
Affairs section will arrange programs with the imams after 
their return. 
 
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USAID ACTIVITIES 
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14.  By their very nature most USAID activities in Egypt 
help counter extremism by providing youth with hope for the 
future via education, jobs, a sound infrastructure and 
opportunities for democratic participation.  Certain 
projects aim specifically at populations vulnerable to 
extremist influence. 
 
15.  For example, a $273,000 grant to the Tur Sinai 
Investors Association provides economic opportunities for 
Bedouins and migrants to South Sinai -?the scene of the 
Sharm el Sheikh and Taba terrorist bombings in 2004 and 
2005.  Similar support for community organizations 
encourages the development of leadership skills, 
constituency relations and human rights awareness among 
marginalized groups in poor districts of Cairo and regional 
towns like Minya and Beni Sweif. 
 
16.  USAID?s 5-year, $14.4 million Professional Media 
Development Program will assist print, television, radio, 
and other electronic media to present a more balanced 
picture of regional and national affairs, countering the 
sensationalist news presentation that panders to religious 
prejudices and chauvinism. 
 
17.  To address the widespread unemployment among Egyptian 
youth, one of the chief economic factors behind extremism, 
USAID's assistance strategy for 2004-2009 includes 
significant support for small and micro enterprises, which 
employ 60 percent of the Egyptian labor force.  USAID has 
been the largest financer of microfinance initiatives in 
Egypt since 1990, supporting more than 70 percent of 
activities in this sector and providing about $530 million 
to more than 600,000 small and micro enterprises. 
 
18.  Likewise, the establishment of Qualifying Industrial 
Zones and negotiations towards a Free Trade Agreement will 
create thousands of jobs, creating hope for the future and 
taking the edge off of the despair that haunts so many 
Egyptian youths and drives some of them to violence. 
 
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GOE ACTIVITIES TO COUNTER EXTREMISM 
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19.  Through the Ministry of Islamic Endowments (Awqaf) and 
other government bodies, the GOE regulates and monitors the 
practice of Islam in Egypt with the aim of identifying and 
isolating propagators of extremism in mosques and 
theological institutions.  Spiritual leaders appointed by 
the GOE, including the Sheikh of Al-Azhar, the Mufti of the 
Republic, and the President of Al-Azhar University, speak 
out frequently against extremist deviations from Islam. 
Their credentials as Islamic scholars underscore their 
credibility throughout the Islamic world. 
 
20. In the wake of recent terrorist attacks, these scholars 
redoubled efforts through the media, lectures, and other 
fora, to affirm Islam's commitment to peace and tolerance 
and debunk extremist theologians.  The clerics' efforts are 
supplemented by a broad spectrum of commentators in both 
the state-controlled and independent broadcast and print 
media, who lay out detailed cases against extremist 
ideology and violent acts. 
 
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COUNTERING EXTREMISM: BEST PRACTICES 
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21.  There is no silver bullet for extremism spawned by 
complex historical and social factors.  But the approaches 
mentioned above have had an impact by stressing the true 
message of peace and tolerance in Islam, by debunking the 
myth of an arrogant, anti-Islamic America, and by providing 
hope to youth who face a dead-end in their careers and 
personal lives. 
 
RICCIARDONE