AMMAN, Jordan, May 1 (UPI) -- Arab press roundup for May 1:
Egypt's al-Ahram commented in its editorial Monday on the Egyptian extension of the emergency law for another two years, saying the extension was not as important as how it is used.
The semi-official daily added the government has promised not to resort to the law except to "protect the nation and citizens" and that international rights organizations will be closely monitoring the use of the controversial bill.
The mass-circulation daily said the emergency law will be replaced by an anti-terrorism one in the next two years, insisting the series of bombings in the Sinai in the past 18 months requires a strict and applicable law. It called for a new anti-terrorism bill that will be "balanced between the country's interests and civil rights, one that can be implemented without violating human rights that are protected by the constitution."
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But Egypt's opposition daily al-Wafd blasted the extension of the emergency law, saying it has already failed to prevent terrorists from attacking targets in Egypt.
The paper, mouthpiece for the al-Wafd Party, accused the ruling National Democratic Party's government of extending the emergency law, already in place for 25 years, to remain in power and restrict political rights.
It insisted that only social justice, not repressive laws, can protect the country from terrorism, saying it was not justifying terrorism, but "declaring why we reject the emergency law that did not protect Egypt from terrorist attacks."
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London-based al-Hayat commented that Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas' call on all factions for a national dialogue to overcome the Palestinian crisis was timely.
The Saudi-financed daily said Abbas has nothing to lose by seeking a dialogue after he "waged a war with Hamas over authority and continued to be ignored" by the Americans and Europeans, except by French President Jacques Chirac because of the latter's concern with paying the salaries of Palestinian public employees.
It added that Abbas finally understood that the crisis is now choking all the Palestinians and it is better to start a national dialogue to defuse the internal tensions and struggles sweeping the Palestinian territories.
"But we assume that the aim is to find a working mechanism that guarantees the participation of all instead of slipping into the Israeli games that are now exposed," the paper stressed. The dialogue, it said, should be honest and determine a clear understanding of national interest, not a forum for more disagreement.
The daily, distributed in most Arab capitals, added the dialogue should be supported by the Arabs, which it said have made no effort to pressure the Israelis as they are pressing the Palestinians.
"The Arab responsibility now is to push the international community to reconsider the approach it adopted in searching for a solution (to the Palestinian-Israeli conflict)," it said. "Otherwise, everyone will be to blame for the collapse of the Palestinian Authority and subsequent chaos."
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The United Arab Emirates' al-Khaleej said in its editorial it did not understand why the Americans and French are seeking to issue a new U.N. Security Council resolution demanding that Syria draw up its borders with Lebanon and establish diplomatic relations between the two neighbors.
The pro-government daily said it was unprecedented for the United Nations to interfere in such matters between member countries or to impose diplomatic relations between them by force. It argued that even though there are Lebanese voices calling for permanent borders with Syria and diplomatic relations, "it does not call for fake zeal from Paris and Washington to exploit the conditions to transform these demands into international resolutions."
The French-American moves now and in the past, it opined, were never done for the protection of Lebanon's sovereignty and independence, but for ulterior motives that are in line with an American strategy aimed at subduing (anti-Israeli) forces.
The paper insisted the two Western countries were trying to internationalize an issue that doesn't concern them and only increasing the tension between Lebanon and Syria. It said it would be better for the region if Paris and Washington enacted Security Council resolutions against Israel if they want to serve peace and security in the world.
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Jordan's al-Rai daily published a cartoon marking Labor Day, celebrated around the world Monday, depicting the United States as exploiting the Third World.
The cartoon in the mass-circulation daily, partially owned by the government, shows an African man and an Arab man, with their sweat pouring out, bending over as they carry an enormous rock on their backs. On top of the rock, where "international labor day" is written, comfortably sits an Uncle Sam.
