May 4, 1995

 Analysts from all corners of the globe again offered their thoughts on

 why the bombing last month in Oklahoma City occurred.  They worried

 about how the U.S. will deal with the issue of domestic terrorism, and

 pondered the wider implications for the U.S. and the international

 community as nations face violence from within and without.  President

 Clinton received praise worldwide for his leadership and "earnestness"

 as he dealt with the tragedy.  Some pundits were also quick to point out

 that the president stands to benefit politically from the Okhlahoma

 incident, with one daily in London reporting on his rise in opinion

  polls conducted by Time magazine and CNN.  

 

Searching for underlying causes, several editorialists focused on anti-

 government rhetoric that has been reportedly showcased on a variety of

 far-right talk show programs and other fora.  Writers asked how far such

 talk should be allowed to go if it appears to encourage extremist

 elements--present in all societies.  Moscow's reformist Kommersant-Daily

 had a rather bleak answer as to why violence seems to flourish not only

 in emerging democracies, but in established ones as well:  "In the

 absence of vivid, 'natural'--political and economic--irritants, of which

 there are plenty in Russia...residents of well-to-do and, hence,

 'boring' nations come looking for an excuse to vent their--often

  aggressive--energies."

 

Opinionmakers said that there are difficult choices facing the U.S. as

 it comes to grips with Oklahoma.  Belgium's independent Catholic De

 Standaard echoed the concern of others in the media:  "The question is

 whether individual freedoms will be sacrificed in order to exercise more

 surveillance of the citizenry."  Editorialists were mixed in their

 answers, with some advocating greater gun control and anti-terrorist

 measures, while others warned governments against any tendency to

  overreact with policies that would infringe on rights and freedoms.  

 

Media voices in the Arab and Muslim world again criticized the U.S.

 media harshly for its apparent rush to blame the bombing on a Middle

 Easterner.  However, while the media were universally condemned, other

 dailies expressed appreciation for President Clinton's voice of

 restraint and admiration for the American people's response to the

  bombing as a "human tragedy," rather than a political one.

 

A few journalists were optimistic that some good would come of the

 tragedy, hoping that the world community would be galvanized into taking

 steps against violence.  Some were encouraged that America would, in the

 end, demonstrate its greater strengths as it grapples with its problems.

 Saudi Arabia's influential Al-Sharq Al-Awsat remarked, "The sort of

 dialogue that is going on about the crisis in American society is a sort

 of diagnosis that will allow the possibility of realizing one's

 mistakes, and thus curing the problem at its source....  We can see

  that...the chance of a full recovery from its ills will be more likely."

 

 This survey is based on 59 reports from 26 countries, April 25-May 5.

 

 EDITOR:  Diana McCaffrey 

                                      EUROPE

                                         

 BRITAIN:  "Clinton Not Finished Yet"

 

William Rees-Mogg commented in the conservative Times (5/4), "The

 Republicans have been forcibly reminded that Mr. Clinton is not finished

 yet; some of them are starting to see him as a sort of Dracula in the

 White House, who walks again each time he seems to have been disposed

  of.

 

"The political impact of Oklahoma has certainly made President Clinton

 more formidable; it has not made ordinary Republicans like him any

 better or trust him any more.  It is strange to have to compare Mr.

 Clinton with Franklin Roosevelt, yet the hostility of Republicans to the

 president is probably greater than it has been since the 1930s.  For

 obvious party reasons, Republicans do not like Democratic presidents,

 but we are now back to the total hostility which led ordinary

 Republicans of the 1930s to talk angrily about 'that man in the White

 House.'  Most Republicans think that a second Clinton term would be

 'disastrous for America,' and, as one of them added grimly to me,

  'disastrous for the world.'"

 

 "Clinton Benefitted Politically"

 

The conservative Daily Telegraph held (5/1), "President Clinton has

 benefitted politically from the terrorist attack in Oklahoma City.  His

 standing has risen to a record level.  In the aftermath of the bombing,

 which has claimed at least 125 lives, a poll by Time magazine and the

 CNN television network showed 60 percent of Americans approved of him. 

 Until the bomb...his ratings had seldom moved out of the 40 percent

  range....

 

"The bomb rekindled bitterness at Mr. Clinton deciding to receive Gerry

 Adams, the Sinn Fein leader.  Lady Thatcher, speaking in his home state

 of Arkansas last week, likened it to Britain receiving the bombers.

 (Oklahoma Senator) Nickles called the Adams visit a mistake.  'What kind

  of signal is that sending?' he asked."

 

 "Some Room For Demoacrat-Republican Agreement"

 

The independent Financial Times commented (5/1), "As members of Congress

 trickled back into Washington over the weekend after a three-week

 recess, many are bracing for a debate they believe could become the

  sharpest clash over the direction of U.S. budget policy for a decade.  

 

"Both Republicans and Democrats have planned retreats to rural resorts

 in Virginia and Maryland to confer on strategy before the new session

 begins in earnest, but already clear disagreements are emerging between

  and within the parties over the path of government spending.  

 

"At the same time, last month's car bomb in Oklahoma City and its link

 to extremist 'patriotic militia' movements has turned attention to the

 issue of counter-terrorist legislation--one area on which there seems to

 be room for agreement between the Democratic administration and the

  Republican-controlled Congress."

 

 FRANCE:  "Encouraging Murderous Acts"

 

Sara Daniel wrote in weekly left-of-center Le Nouvel Observateur (5/2),

 "America just realized that one cannot always denounce the Washington

 bureaucrats' corruption and claim the right of citizens to bear weapons

 without encouraging drifts that led to one of the most murderous attacks

  ever experienced." 

 GERMANY:  "Clinton's Answer To Prophets Of Hatred"

 

Washington correspondent Leo Wieland observed in right-of-center

 Frankfurter Allgemeine (5/2), "When America is facing dark days, it is

 up to the president to find the right words to express national

 mourning, console the victims and express a feeling of solidarity and

 confidence for the time after the disaster.  Following the Oklahoma City

 bombing, President Clinton fulfilled this task with credible earnestness

  and eloquent urgency....  

 

"Clinton's appeal to the Americans' democratic duty to offer audible

 resistance to the prophets of hatred had something cathartic about it.

 But now the social theory must be put into practice.  With Clinton's

 support, those in Congress who made a modest attempt to eliminate an

 American evil when they imposed conditions for the possession of semi-

  automatic weapons, must win the day.... 

 

"In insisting that tougher anti-terrorism laws are needed first, the

 Republicans have postponed the planned revision of the Brady Bill--a

 welcome gift for the National Rifle Association.  In this debate,

 Clinton has not only the right of veto but also the better arguments. 

  People are listening to him again after the bloodbath in Oklahoma."

 

 "Making Sense Of Oklahoma"

 

Right-of-center weekly Rheinischer Merkur of Bonn carried a front-page

 editorial (4/28), "If Oklahoma makes any sense at all, then only in the

 sense that the United States is now dealing with its own contradictions.

 Many questions must be answered:  How far can the denouncement of the

 federal authorities go?  What about right-wing extremism in the United

 States?  Must radio talk shows really be that harsh...and what about the

  wave of violence on TV?...

 

"The implications for these debates in Congress are hardly foreseeable.

 Will dominating Republicans circles now rein in their rhetoric?  Over

 the past weeks and months, the bureaucrats and the 'waste of taxpayers'

 money' had been criticized.  The civil servants were abused as

 beelzebubs and used as scapegoats.  If the discussion concentrated more

 on details, something would have been won.  What is necessary would be a

 discussion about the contents of the reform packages that both parties

  have submitted."

 

 "Democratic Societies Must Rely On Rule Of Law"

 

Joachim Geiger noted in centrist Protestant weekly Deutsches Allgemeines

 Sonntagsblatt of Hamburg (4/28), "This crime would have been easier to

 explain if Islamic fundamentalists had been responsible....  But,

 because this is not the case, U.S. politicians, with President Clinton

 at the helm, are glossing over their helplessness with sympathetic

 words, but also with populist pleas for tougher laws, for capital

 punishment.  As if fanatic terrorists could be deterred by the death

  penalty....

 

"Democratic societies must defend themselves against terrorists

 exclusively by relying on the rule of law.  It is not decisive whether

 law enforcement officials or intelligence services can bug suspects, but

 it is decisive that such investigations can be controlled to avoid

  arbitrariness and misuse....

  

"But the use of police does not replace politics.  Pithy calls for law

 and order may reassure some people, but terrorism can be countered only

 with a policy that prevents an increasing number of people from looking

 for jobs and apartments, perspectives and integration, and helps these

  people not to experience an open society as a closed one."

 

 RUSSIA:  "Agressiveness In U.S. Society"

 

Yekaterina Akopova and Ippolit Pak judged in reformist, business-

 oriented Kommersant-Daily (4/29), "The Oklahoma tragedy...drew the

 attention of the whole world to the following:  Aggressiveness, it

 seems, becomes increasingly rooted in people's lives in developed

 countries....  Growing aggressiveness is due not so much to the

 propaganda of violence on television as to the human spirit, which is

 forever in combat against something or somebody.  In the absence of

 vivid, 'natural'--political and economic--irritants, of which there are

 plenty in Russia...residents of well-to-do and, hence, 'boring' nations

 come looking for an excuse to vent their--often aggressive--energies.... 

 Despite the emotionally charged atmosphere...it will not be easy for the

 president to get anti-terrorist measures through Congress.  Too many

 people tend to see them as an encroachment on the sacred, constitutional

  rights."

 

 AZERBAIJAN:  "The Terrorist (Criminal) Has No Nationality, Religion"

 

Independent Maarifci stated (5/2), "The events that have taken place

 recently in Japan, South America and the United States itself--Oklahoma

 City--have proven that, just as a criminal...does not have a nationality

 or motherland, neither does he have any religious identity.  The most

 depressing thing is that, instead of struggling mercilessly and

 resolutely against this scary phenomenon, officials of a number of

 states keep referring to the nationality and religious identity of those

 culprits and show an 'inclination' to accuse other countries of

  'fundamentalism,' 'religious fanatism,' etc."

 

 BELGIUM:  "How Far Will U.S. Go To Protect Itself Against Terrorism?"

 

Lucas Ligtenberg wrote in independent Catholic De Standaard (5/2), "How

 far is the United States willing to go to protect itself against

 terrorism?  The debate on more powers for the FBI and on anti-terror

 measures is at its height.  The question is whether individual freedoms

 will be sacrificed in order to exercise more surveillance on the

 citizenry.  Civil rights groups are calling for moderation and are

 expressing their concern over the proposals.  President Clinton has

 already proposed far-reaching measures while the Republicans in Congress

 are also working on a proposal of their own.  The Congress is expected

  to take a series of measures before the end of this month."

 

 CANADA:  "U.S. Democracy On Trial After Terror In The Heartland"

 

Stephen Handelman wrote in the liberal Toronto Star commented (4/27),

 "From the assassination of John Kennedy to the kidnapping of Patty

 Hearst, political violence...is 'as American as apple pie.'  All the

 same, there is a qualitative difference in the menace stalking America's

 towns and cities today....  The horror of Oklahoma City has plunged the

 United States into a crucial debate over redefining democracy.  It will

  be closely watched around the world."

  

 "Frightening Images Of America"

 

Jennifer Robinson commented in the liberal Montreal Gazette (4/27),

 "There are other images of America, more ominous and frightening, that

 have emerged since the bombing.  They have focused public attention like

 never before on aspects of U.S. violence and homegrown fanaticism....

 Oklahoma is a tragedy of overwhelming proportions.  But if there is any

 enduring political good that comes from it, it will be to chill, at

 least for a while, the excesses of the right and encourage fair-minded

 silent Americans to speak up for tolerance.  And right now in America,

  that is sorely needed."

 

 ESTONIA:  "Republican Congress Supports Clinton During Disaster"

 

Top-circulation, center-right Postimees observed (5/2), "President

 Clinton, pushed into the background after the November elections,

 received support from the Republican-controlled Senate during the days

 of mourning.  Opposition leaders Robert Dole and Newt Gingrich, who

 usually wing arrows of criticism toward the president, acknowledged

 publicly that Clinton behaved in this difficult moment in a way that was

 proper...for a head of state.  The Republicans...moved rapidly on the

 president's draft legislation on fighting terrorism and promised to

  approve it in the Senate by the end of May."

 

 SWEDEN:  "After Oklahoma"

 

Conservative Svenska Dagbladet observed under the headline above (4/30),

 "Following the public outcry over the bombing in Oklahoma, suddenly

 there was an interesting Supreme Court decision which tries, for the

 first time in decades, to limit the power of the federal government. 

 For years, Washington has tried to regulate the affairs of individual

 states by stretching the paragraphs that regulate economic relations

 between the states.  This specific Supreme Court decision declares a

 five-year-old law unconstitutional.  The issue at stake is a law

 prohibiting anyone to carry weapons close to a school building. 

 However, the Court's decision may be of greater importance when it comes

  to the future demarcations between federal and state powers.

 

"The fact that anti-Washington forces can win a victory like this one at

 a time when the attention of the media and the politicians moves in the

 opposite direction may to some extent indicate the strength of a

  political system based on a division of power."

 

                                   MIDDLE EAST

                                         

 BAHRAIN:  "Beneficial Lessons Of Oklahoma"

 

Semi-official Al-Ayyam argued (4/29), "Regardless of the American

 media's hastiness in accusing Middle East 'elements' of being involved

 in the explosion...it cannot be denied that the American citizenry has

 dealt with the explosion as a human tragedy and disaster more than as a

 political one....  The Americans did not hesitate to condemn the

 incident and consider it dangerous violence threatening their future as

 citizens, threatening their lives and playing with their destinies.... 

 It seems that we are in need of benefiting from the lesson of the

 American citizens vision of the Oklahoma violence and to have a clear

  common position against violence in the community.

  

"If the Americans are angry about the violence in Oklahoma, it is

 because they see it from the point of view of being a danger threatening

 the stability and security in the community...  Therefore they asked

 officials, the policemen and federal intelligence, to move quickly to

 arrest those who committed the act.  They consider these authorities to

 be devoted to their service in such missions....  All this is because

  violence can be placed in one category, and they do not justify it."

 

 "Evidence Of U.S. Backwardness"

 

Semi-official Akhbar Al-Khalij held (4/30), "Principally, even if it

 were not confirmed that those who committed the Oklahoma incident are

 white Americans, even if it were established that the perpetrator is a

 citizen from an Arab Islamic country, even if this were the case, it

 obviously does not mean that all Arabs and Muslims are terrorists, or

 that they are all responsible for what happened.  If America is unable,

 officially and on the public level, to realize this simple axiomatic

  fact, this is without argument a backwardness in the civilization."

 

 JORDAN:  "Lesson For West, U.S."

 

Center-left Al-Dustur columnist Fakhri Saleh wrote (4/30), "The Oklahoma

 bombing is an opportunity to reconsider the issue of Islamic extremism,

 a cliche repeated often in Western addresses about Islam and the region.

 The Western citizen is now convinced that religious extremism is indeed

 Islamic extremism....  The ugly Oklahoma bombing should be a lesson for

  the West and the United States."

 

 "Time Has Come To Stop Accusing Arabs And Muslims For Every Explosion"

 

Yaqoub Jaber opined in Al-Dustur (4/30), "What happened in the United

 States following the Oklahoma city bombing should not pass without

 receiving the best attention from Arabs and Muslims.  The hysteria that

 prevailed and the ready-made accusations against Muslim and Arab

 Americans require analysis....  The Americans realized that the enemy is

 among them and that terrorism is not a phenomenon confined to a certain

 race of people.  They may realize that the time has come to stop

 accusing the Arabs and Muslims every time there is an explosion in the

  world."

 

 KUWAIT:  "Strange American Freedom Of The Press"

 

Top-circulation, opposition Al-Qabas held (5/1), "None of the American

 media apologized to the Arab and Muslim community in the United States

 for the false accusation, but had that accusation been directed at

 Jewish terrorists, hell would have been raised.  Strange is the American

 freedom of press; one is free so long as one avoids criticizing Jews,

 and one is free to direct whatever charges and abuse against Arabs and

  Muslims.  So much for responible journalism."

 

 "Wise U.S. Administration; Guilty U.S. Media"

 

Weekly Al-Majaless commented (4/30), "We would like to commend the wise

 position adopted by the American administration and Clinton personally.

 Calling on the American people not to rush and direct accusations

 against Islamic organizations and Middle Eastern persons.  Here we blame

 the American media for rushing and issuing verdicts against Arabs and

  Muslims."

  

 MOROCCO:  "U.S Entering Era Of Dismemberment?"

 

Opposition, Arab nationalist Al-Alam said (4/29), "This terrorizing

 octopus of heavily armed militiamen is determined to torpedo

 Washington's current political regime.  Is the United States entering an

 era of real internal dismemberment and collapse, like Yugoslavia and

  even Rwanda?"

 

 SAUDI ARABIA:  "What Is And Is Not Extremism"

 

The pro-government, English-language Arab News observed (4/30), "There

 is a growing consciousness of an Islamic identity in the Muslim world.

 Refusing to accept an inferior status, an assertive generation has

 rejected the theory that Western postulates and prejudices represent the

 last word in values and systems.  They are seeking their roots, are

 struggling to rediscover their own values.  That, by no definition, is

  extremism.

 

"The Arab media has yet to describe the Oklahoma city bombers as part of

 a growing American extremist movement that threatens the regime or the

 world.  To do so would be unfair and inaccurate.  Equally unfair and

 inaccurate it is for the Western media to label a region or a society

  extremist."

 

 "Oklahoma, Occupied Palestine:  America's Responsibility"

 

Ahmad Abou Al-Fath filed this commentary in influential, Islamic

 moderate, internationally circulated Al-Sharq Al-Awsat (4/30), "Where is

 the new (world) order?  Yes, where is the new order that America has

 trumpeted?  Where is the stability and where are America's efforts in

 order to achieve that stability and to stop the attacks that threaten

  it--indeed demolish all the bases for the wished-for peace?

 

"The injustice, the occupation of land, the humiliation of people, the

 bombing of houses in order to build settlements for those coming from

 other countries while denying the sacred rights of the Muslims, the

 Copts and the Christians--that and other issues have engendered this

  revolutionary psychology and lead young men to give their lives.

 

"There is an enormous difference between those who are demanding their

 just rights and do not get them, and those groups like the Michigan

 Militia who are left by Washington and the various security forces to

 arm themselves, knowing their enmity toward the country and the

  government.

 

 "Does America understand that difference? I don't think so."

 

 "Signs Of Health In U.S. Society"

 

Fahmi Howedi commented in Al-Sharq Al-Awsat (5/1), "The sort of dialogue

 that is going on about the crisis in American society is a sort of

 diagnosis that will allow the possibility of realizing one's mistakes,

 and thus curing the problem at its source.  Such dialogue is a sign of

 health, a positive sign, because finding the right diagnosis to a

  problem carries one half the way toward finding a cure.

 

"If we compare a society where dialogue can take place about its ills

 and crises no matter their enormity with another society that is

 shutting its eyes and ignoring that ills exist, leaving them to fester

 and nibble at its bones like a cancer, we can see that the former will

 be in far better shape, and the chance of a full recovery from its ills

  will be more likely." 

                              EAST ASIA AND PACIFIC

                                         

 AUSTRALIA:  "Government Duty:  Gun Control"

 

In the view of the liberal Sydney Morning Herald (5/5), "It is

 impossible to control the number of people with silly ideas.  Not only

 that; it is wrong to interfere with their freedom to think as they

 please.  It is, however, possible to control the number of guns in the

 community, as well as how they are stored and how they are used.  Not

 only that; it is part of the duty of governments to exercise such

 control....  The United States suffers terribly because of the perverted

 interpretation of a constitutional provision of two centuries ago--the

 so-called 'right to bear arms'--and the political power of its gun

  lobby."

 

 "Lesson Of Oklahoma For All"

 

Melbourne's liberal Age commented (5/1), "We have been a relatively

 lucky country in our peaceful multicultural development, prevailing

 democratic consensus and reasonably shared prosperity, but we cannot

 afford to be complacent.  The lesson of Oklahoma is that terrorism is

  not only a foreign threat.  There are also enemies and dangers within."

 

 CHINA:  "Western Countries Should Look To Themselves For Blame"

 

The official Communist Party People's Daily opined (5/4), "In the past,

 whenever a terrorist attack took place in a Western country, they

 generally looked first at other countries in seeking the source of the

 terrorism, some times even launching military attacks against certain

 countries in the name of 'punishment.'  The preliminary investigation

 shows that the terrorist sources come from Japan's and America's own

 lands.  It seems that the Western countries should first of all look for

 the causes of the terrorist activities within their own countries.  The

 developed countries must guard against outside terrorist activities and

 at the same time must also guard against terrorist activities from

 within their own countries.  They must not always fix their eyes on the

  outside." 

 

 INDONESIA:  "Americans Cannot Wholly Be Faulted For Kneejerk Reaction"

 

The nationalistic, English-language Indonesian Observer commented (5/5),

 "When the Oklahoma bombing took place last month, the American mindset

 went to work by immediately suspecting person(s) of Middle Eastern

 origin of being behind the despicable act.  One can imagine (the

 Americans') strong but concealed disappointment when U.S. law

 enforcement officers arrested a white person as a prime suspect in the

 hideous crime....  On balance, however, Americans...cannot wholly be

 faulted for their kneejerk reaction of associating acts of terrorism

 with (persons) who have chosen the Middle East region as their domicile. 

 It is noteworthy that in the past, the same group of people have openly

 acknowledged that they were behind what the civilized world see as acts

  of terrorism."

 

 THAILAND:  "Life Or Individual Rights"

 

The mass-circulation Daily News commented (4/30), "Americans must choose

 between life and individual rights....  One should not waste time

 pondering over the fears that the United States might become a police-

 state under (President Clinton's proposed) new law and that individual

 rights might not be observed with the enhanced FBI power. Choose

  yourself between your personal rights and the right to live longer." 

                                    SOUTH ASIA

                                         

 IRAN:  "Hellish Rule Of Hegemonistic Rulers In America"/

 

Official Jomhuri-Ye Eslami held (4/25), "Let us not forget that

 immediately after the explosion and at a time when even initial

 information on the explosion was not available, some American officials

 and mass media aimed the sharp edge of their propaganda and

 psychological war at the Muslims, alleging that they knew the

 perpetrators of the explosion and that they should be sought among the

  Muslims.

 

"Let us not forget that attributing blame for any incident without

 carrying out the slightest investigation in a bid to fan the flames of

 public hatred for their rivals is an old propaganda ploy used by the

 West, especially America.....  Today, Washington is trying to portray

 Islam as the major culprit in every incident....  Today the lie-

 disseminating mass media have no alternative but to apologize for the

 sake of their prestige and to express regret for their initial

  positions.

 

"The Oklahoma blast and other incidents throughout America show the

 extent of the American public's dissatisfaction, protests and rage.

 These incidents cannot simply be ignored....  In realistically assessing

 this situation, the American public should conclude that the American

 people are the major victims of the U.S. administration and of the

 crimes and injustice that are being imposed on them, followed by other

 nations that are also suffering from the hellish rule of the

  hegemonistic rulers in America."

 

 NEPAL:  "The Whole World's Fight"

 

Semi-official, top-circulation Rising Nepal opined (4/28), "Demented and

 destructive minds don't seem to care about borders, nor barriers, or

 about sentiments and sacrilege.  They strike according to their whims

  and according to their crooked thinking.

 

"This makes such terrorists enemies of not just one sect of people,

 society or even a country, but enemies of the people of the entire

 world.  If we are to go by the attacks recorded even just last week,

  then it means no place in the world is safe....

 

"The positive side, because of the meticulous media coverage, is that

 the bombing has drawn the attention of not only the people of the United

 States, but of the entire world in anger against such criminal minds....

 Terrorism is the ugly reality of the present day world.  And as long as

 there are those deformed minds ticking, it is hard to see a complete lid

 being put on terrorist acts....  This is a fight of the entire world

 against the ugly acts of a few, and though the battle may be tough, all

 will have to join hands to stop such activities that cause anguish and

  tragedy to so many."

 

 PAKISTAN:  "Dealing Fairly"

 

The centrist News remarked in a piece by Anwar Ahmad (5/2), "In its

 general sense every society has its extremists--like Timothy McVeigh.

 But if the amorphous term is confined to the obscurantist Islamic

 clergy, it is a threat to Islam, not to the West.  Western attempts to

 suppress them, seen in the context of its discriminatory policies, only

 swell their ranks and strengthen their resolve.  The most potent weapon

 against them is for the West to be seen as fair in its dealing with the

  Muslim world.  

"Then, the contest will shift to its natural arena--within each Muslim

 society, between progressive and retrogressive forces.  The outcome will

 determine the future of each Muslim society, without affecting the

  West."

 

                                      AFRICA

                                         

 GHANA:  "Specter Haunting The USA"

 

The government-owned weekly tabloid Mirror commented (4/29), "A specter

 is haunting and threatening the United States of America today.  And

 this specter is not so much the prohibitive levels of crime...as it is

 with the advent of growing destructive and home-grown urban

  terrorism....

 

"But in an outstanding display of rare leadership qualities in the face

 of such an emotion-laden crisis, President Bill Clinton in his White

 House address to the American people on the incident...urged his

 countrymen and women to resist the temptation of jumping to conclusions

 about who was responsible for the bomb attack even as they all shared

  the pain and grief of the relatives and friends of the departed souls.  

 

"But like every nasty incident that rocks nations and leaves many with

 years of grief, the Oklahoma incident brings to the fore the stark

 reaility that Americans as a people, would need to do more in order to

  overcome this menace which is increasingly trying to entrench itself."

 

                                  LATIN AMERICA

                                         

 ARGENTINA:  "Heated Debate"

 

Economic Ambito Financiero's Washington-based correspondent Abel Dimant

 commented (5/4), "The suspension of some right-wing extremist radio

 programs due to comments on the bombing in Oklahoma City, including one

 which said that the atrocious attack was 'a work of art,' has revived

 heated controversy regarding freedom of expression, censorship and

  responsibility in the communications media in the United States."

 

 COLOMBIA:  "How Will U.S. Deal With Internal Terrorism?"

 

Liberal Party-oriented El Tiempo asked (4/30), "The big question is: 

 How will the United States face its internal terrorist threat?  How much

 freedom are its citizens willing to sacrifice for the sake of more

 security?  To what extent could the most open and dynamic democracy of

 the world be restrained?  Demonstrating that the cancer of terrorism can

 be extirpated without hurting the body of democracy; proving that an

 intelligent force is more effective than indiscriminate repression is

  the best lesson the United States could offer to the world right now."

 

 CUBA:  "Clinton Should Push Forward On Anti-Crime Program"

 

Official Radio Havana held (4/25), "The neo-Nazi groups, which are being

 protected by ultrarightists that predominate in U.S. political and

 economic circles, are composed of extremists capable of the worst kind

 of atrocities.  President Clinton should take advantage of this occasion

 to see whether he could push forward his anti-crime program despite the

 presence in the U.S. Congress of a Republican majority headed by the

 most extremist people of the ultraright, the ones protecting the worst

  kind of terrorist."

  

 JAMAICA:  "Oklahoma Is Our Tragedy Too"

 

The independent Jamaica Observer opined (4/28), "The bombing in Oklahoma

 City is not a priority on our list of outrage at this time.  It occurred

 just around the same time as [Jamaican Finance Minister] Omar's budget

 [presentation] and that is occasion enough for damning and blasting.  We

 don't need other people's horrors.  We have our own havoc to wreck right

  here....

 

"But there are some who have seen the images of Oklahoma City and have

 made the connection for our own future....  Madness knows no

 boundaries....  Preoccupied as we are here with our own problems...we

 really don't seem to care too much about what's going on in the so-

 called 'heartland.'  And yet, we ignore it to our peril.  The cold-

 hearted, self-righteousness which typifies the right-wing political line

 now rampant in America will reach us sooner than we think for it is in

 our historic nature to pick up anything that's going, especially

 foreign. Actually, it has started to some extent.  All this fixation

 with the sins of the government, not so much to correct them, but to

 recite them as a daily litany and to convince ourselves that the

 solution is someone else's problem....  The terror of a small boy who

 will forever carry the events of last week deep in his innermost mind is

 the price which society pays when, in the name of freedom, some people

 feel that it is their right to demonstrate in whatever way they want, to

  protect their rights, but not that of others."

 

                                        ##