 |
Al-Ahram Weekly 18 - 24 May 2000 Issue No. 482 
|
||
Published in Cairo by AL-AHRAM established in 1875 |
| ||
|
Al-Ahram Weekly 18 - 24 May 2000 Issue No. 482
|
||
| Published in Cairo by AL-AHRAM established in 1875 |
| ||
Egypt Region International Economy Opinion Culture Focus Features Heritage Travel Living Sports Profile People Time Out Chronicles Cartoons Letters Looking to the future
RE-ESTABLISHING normal relations with Iraq was discussed last week in a three-day seminar organised by the Kuwaiti parliament. In the midst of the lively debate generated by the seminar it became clear that there is a growing tendency in Kuwait to look to the future of its relations with Iraq rather than to the past, reports Salah HemeidParticipants in the seminar included dozens of politicians, thinkers and writers from Kuwait, Qatar and the United States along with figures from the exiled Iraqi opposition.
Addressing the opening session of the seminar, Kuwait's Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Sheikh Sabah Al-Ahmed Al-Sabah said, "The two neighbouring countries have no other option but to live in peace and security away from war and conflict." Al-Sabah insisted that normal bilateral relations would only be possible if Iraq complies fully with all UN resolutions censuring it for its 1990 invasion of Kuwait.
Qualifying the Kuwait position, acting speaker of the Kuwaiti parliament, Mishari Al-Anjari, stressed that the seminar discussions should not be understood as "an act to rebuild bridges with the current Iraqi regime." He added, "It is rather an attempt to build a strategy for cooperation with Iraq in the future."
For its part, the Iraqi opposition spoke out strongly against any cooperation with the current Iraqi regime.
Royal visit
JORDANIAN King Abdullah's visit to Saudi Arabia on Saturday aimed at reviving Amman's regional role and seeking Gulf assistance to improve the kingdom's economy, Lola Keilani reports from Amman"Jordan does not want to feel isolated, again," said a political analyst referring to the 1991 Gulf War when Iraq occupied Kuwait and Jordan's position on the war led to its political isolation.
Recent events re-kindled Jordan's concerns about being marginalised. Representatives of the kingdom were not invited to a meeting held in Syria two weeks ago in which Egyptian, Saudi and Syrian foreign ministers discussed the prospects of a unilateral Israeli pull out from south Lebanon.
On several occasions Abdullah reaffirmed Jordan's support for Syrian and Palestinian efforts to regain their lands from Israel and emphasised that Jordan supported convening an Arab summit or meeting at any level to discuss this matter.
"We will support such moves with all our energy so that the Arabs can come out with a joint plan that reflects the aspirations of the Arab nation," Abdullah said.
While in Saudi Arabia, the king discussed with his Saudi counterpart, King Fahd Bin Abdul-Aziz, what the two countries could do to save the peace process. He later visited the United Arab Emirates where he held similar talks with President Sheikh Zayed Bin Sultan Al-Nahyan.
Jordan was promised a generous aid package following the death of King Hussein 14 months ago. However, words of support for Jordan's stability and prosperity have not been translated into actual provision of assistance so far, thereby forcing the young king to make another Arab tour to remind the area's leaders of their earlier pledges.
Hunger strike ends
TUNISIAN journalist Tewfik Bin Braik, who arrived in France two weeks ago, having fled alleged harassment in Tunisia, said on Monday he had ended a 42-day hunger strike."I feel well," Bin Braik told Reuters, speaking from the Paris hospital where he has been under observation since his arrival in France.
The 39-year old reporter began his hunger strike in Tunisia to protest the seizure of his passport. Bin Braik's papers were eventually returned and Tunisian authorities dropped charges accusing him of defaming the country's institutions in articles critical of the government.
But much to the anger of the French government, Bin Braik continued his protest in Paris to highlight the plight of his brother, Jelal, who was sent to prison beginning in early May with a three-month sentence for allegedly assaulting a police officer.
Shortly after Bin Braik ended his hunger strike on Monday afternoon, Jelal was released from jail, Bin Braik said. He added that he had not known that Jelal's release was imminent when he resumed eating.
Bin Braik, a correspondent in Tunisia for the French daily La Croix, said he wanted to return to Tunis in time to cover municipal elections on 28 May.
"I do not want to live in exile. That would be unthinkable. To live outside Tunisia would be like asking Fellini to make films in America. I have never spent more than a month outside of Tunisia," he said.
Bin Braik had hoped to end his hunger strike in Algeria last week, but Algerian authorities barred him from entering their country.
