Al-Manar in the dog house
Al-Ahram, Weekly On-line, 23 - 29 December 2004, Issue No. 722
Al-Manar television station has become the latest
independent Arab broadcasting corporation to be hounded by the West,
reports Cilina Nasser from Beirut
The Hizbullah-affiliated Al-Manar satellite television channel is
considering taking legal action against the US State Department for
designating the Lebanese channel as a "terrorist organisation",
according to a senior official at the Beirut- based channel.
"We are studying the possibility of filing a suit in the US against
the US State Department," Ibrahim Mussawi, the head of political
programmes at Al-Manar, said in an interview with Al-Ahram Weekly on
Monday.
"We are still in the process of doing legal consultations and have
no clear plans yet, Al-Manar was only included on the terrorist list
three days ago," he added.
Al-Manar, which is the mouthpiece for the Lebanese Shia Hizbullah
group, was placed on the State Department's Terrorist Exclusion List
(TEL) on Friday 17 December, "because of its incitement of terrorist
activity," said State Department spokesman Richard Boucher.
Hizbullah has been designated by Washington as a "foreign terrorist
organisation" for many years now. According to the State Department
website, an organisation can be placed on the TEL if the secretary
of state finds that the organisation "commits or incites to commit,
under circumstances indicating an intention to cause death or
serious bodily injury, a terrorist activity; prepares or plans a
terrorist activity; gathers information on potential targets for
terrorist activity; or provides material support to further
terrorist activity."
Placing Al-Manar on the State Department's TEL means foreigners
providing support to or associated with the channel, which is widely
followed in the Arab world, may be prevented from entering the US or
deported if discovered there. "For example, an alien would be found
inadmissible... if the alien is a member of Al-Manar, if a person
solicits funds or other things of value for Al-Manar, if he provides
material support to Al-Manar or solicits any individual for
membership in Al- Manar," Boucher said.
Consequently, Washington has banned Al-Manar from broadcasting
through satellite operator Intelsat which covers North America.
Mussawi criticised Washington for designating Al-Manar as a
terrorist organisation and banning its broadcasts, saying, "the
simplest explanation for such an action is that the US is slamming
freedom of speech."
"Washington preaches freedom of expression, the free flow of
information and democracy, but it is clear that it does not want to
apply these principles in the Arab world. It only wants to hear its
own voice."
He added, "any opinion that differs from that of the US is condemned
as terrorist."
But Boucher did not agree. "It's not a question of freedom of
speech, it's a question of inciting to violence. And we don't see
why here or anywhere else a terrorist organisation should be allowed
to spread its hatred and incitement through the television
airwaves."
Al-Manar reacted by issuing a strong condemnation of the US
decision, vowing defiance after the ban.
"This is no more than intellectual terrorism practised to muffle
voices that do not agree with US and Israeli policies," the channel
said in a press release sent to the Weekly in Arabic.
The statement said the ban on Al-Manar broadcasting discredited all
the US administration's other "alleged attempts to advance democracy
in the Arab world."
The US move against Al-Manar came only a week after France's highest
administrative court, the Council of State, ordered the Paris- based
Eutelsat satellite operator to shut down Al-Manar broadcasts.
The court ruled that the programmes broadcast "were in a militant
context, with anti- Semitic connotations."
Lebanese retaliatory action was swift. About 50 private cable
operators in Lebanon carried out a quick reprisal, stopping the
distribution of the French channel TV5 in solidarity with Al-Manar.
Lebanese Information Minister Elie Ferzli said that Lebanon might
well re-open old files on France's misdemeanours in the country,
such as those associated with the sale of a batch of what were
claimed to be French Puma helicopters to Lebanon in the late 1980s.
It was later discovered that the helicopters were made in the
Ukraine and had actually cost much less than the official prices
charged.
Ferzli threatened to renew investigations into the issue to counter
any political escalation by Paris, saying that the Puma issue was
not dead in Lebanon and that it could still embarrass France.
Reporters Without Borders (RSF) issued two separate statements.
"Some of the anti-Semitic statements broadcast on Al- Manar are
inexcusable, but putting this station in the same category as
terrorist groups worries us and does not strike us as the best
solution," the Paris-based press organisation said on 20 December.
In another statement a few days earlier, RSF had accused France's
Higher AudioVisual Council (CSA) and the French authorities of
rushing to judgement without allowing enough time for reflection.
The International Federation of Journalists also issued a statement
on 15 December, saying that the move by the French court was "a rash
decision with serious implications for free expression".
"Censorship just adds to intolerance and breeds further resentment
and incomprehension," said Aidan White, IFJ General Secretary. "If a
broadcaster was turned off every time someone made offensive and
unacceptable remarks, there would be precious little television in
the world."
Meanwhile the US move drew angry responses from American watchdogs
and activists. "It is another intimidation by the US administration
targeting groups that are independent from Washington's influence,"
Stanley Cohen, a US lawyer and activist, told the Weekly. Cohen
referred to the broad popular support for Hizbullah inside and
outside Lebanon which had enabled it to drive out the Israeli
occupation forces in May 2000.
"The US has now succeeded in completely convincing Americans that
Hizbullah is a terrorist organisation," Cohen said.
The French moves seem to have had a similar impact. Following
concerns earlier this summer about an anti- Semitic soap opera
broadcast during the holy month of Ramadan, the CSA had renewed Al-Manar's
licence on 19 November on condition that it strictly adheres to
French anti-racism laws. According to Mussawi, Al- Manar had totally
complied with these conditions. The hard-line station had stopped
using the Star of David on clips highlighting Israeli aggression, as
requested by France. "We were told that the Star of David is a
religious symbol and, therefore, we cannot use it to promote a
political message against Israel," Mussawi told Al-Ahram Weekly.
He said Al-Manar and French officials did not discuss the
terminology used by the television station, and the channel
continued referring to Israel as "the Zionist entity".
However, sound bites of people referring to Israeli soldiers as
"Jews" also had to be removed by Al-Manar editors at France's
request, according to Mussawi. He admitted that his station had
softened its stance and complied with French wishes, saying, "we did
not want to give them any excuse that would prompt them to take any
steps against us."
But then on 23 November, a Damascus- based analyst, Omar Saade,
warned in a telephone interview with the channel's "Al- Yawmiya"
programme against trade between Arab countries and Israel, saying
that Israelis might disseminate AIDS in the Arab world.
The CSA moved swiftly against Al-Manar and ordered the ban on its
broadcasts from Eutelsat. "To show our good intentions, we deleted
that part of the interview when we aired the programme a second
time," said Mussawi. He complained that the CSA had not given Al-Manar
officials the chance to explain that they had no idea what the
interviewee was going to say.
"That's why we believe the reason behind the ban is political, and
that France is submitting to Israeli pressure," said Mussawi.
Reporters Without Borders voiced their concern over the CSA's
"high-speed procedure", which they described as "worrying".
Nevertheless, the US and French decisions have irked international
media watchdog organisations, and it is widely expected that they
will ultimately play in Hizbullah's favour. The Federation of Arab
Journalists meanwhile warned that other Arab channels could soon
find themselves on the same "hit list".
However, both Western and Arab analysts say that the US and French
moves against Al-Manar may stimulate the Lebanese channel to review
its editorial policy. "Al-Manar should have directly apologised --
which is normal practice in the Western media -- after the AIDS
slur, in order to distance itself from any potential blame or
criticism," said Kamel Al- Tawil, a correspondent with Al-Hayat in
London. "Arab media outlets broadcasting in the West should be well
aware of the laws by which they have to abide," he added, slamming
the Hizbullah screening of the AIDS rumour as "by no means
justified".
Meanwhile, Al-Manar continues to reach viewers in Europe through
Saudi and Egyptian satellite operators, Arabsat and Nilesat. "The
only difference is that they are of lower broadcast quality,"
Mussawi concluded.
Additional reporting by Mustafa El-Menshawy
