The creation of Israel and the US support for its policies in the West Bank are partially to blame for the lack of reform in the Arab world, according to a UN-sponsored report released Tuesday.
The Arab Human Development Report 2004 (AHDR) cited the creation of the Jewish state as one of the roots of authoritarianism in the Middle East, along with the discovery of oil and the support for dictators by the superpowers during the Cold War.
Pardon me while I go have the hernia I got from laughing so hard fixed up. Be right back....
That's better. So, this is a joke, right? Unfortunately, it's all too real. I will grant the point that the superpowers did support dictators during the Cold War, but it wasn't just the US doing it (hence the 's' on the end of the word "superpowers"). Also, our support for Saddam Hussein was to prevent Iran from becoming even more powerful than it was at the time. Although we were propping up a dictator who we would ultimately take down, I would say the alternative of an Iranian victory over Iraq would have been even worse.
The article continues:
Israel rebuffed the claims. "For too long too many people in the Arab world have used Israel as an excuse to justify behavior that cannot be justified," said Mark Regev, spokesman for the Foreign Ministry. "You can't have democratic elections because of Israel and you can't give equal rights to women in Saudi Arabia because of Israel. This is of course a cop out."
Israel, of course, isn't responsible for this at all. It has been the target of unrelenting aggression, and sometimes outright war, ever since it came into being in 1948.
In the most controversial part titled Towards Freedom in the Arab World, the report stated that the Israeli occupation of the territories and the US occupation of Iraq both created excuses for Arab governments to postpone democratization and they strengthened extremist groups which advocate violence.
Created excuses? Excuse me? So that somehow excuses Arab governments from their agressive actions against Israel? Huh?
Let me see if I can craft an analogy.
- I hate the guy living next door, even though he's never done anything to hurt me.
- My hatred is so complete that I can't resist the urge to beat him up whenever I can.
- Because of this, I am unable to concentrate sufficiently on my job, and am therefore not advancing in my career.
- All of this is my neighbor's fault. If only he would move, or let me kill him once and for all, all these problems would be solved.
This leads me to ask: Are these people on crack?
Well, maybe only somewhat. It's not all bad:
Despite its reproach for the US and Israel, the AHDR was ultimately most critical of the Arab governments, which earned it US praise.
"Overall we welcome the recognition reflected in this report of the challenges that Arab society faces and the need for reform," said Sullivan.
In its scathing analysis of the obstacles to legal and political reform, the report warned the leaders of the 22 Arab states that if they don't reform fast, violence could erupt. "If the repressive situation in Arab countries continues, intensified societal conflict is likely to follow."
Examples of repression include restrictions on opposition political parties, the press, free expression and the persistence of emergency legislation and military tribunals.
Pressure for political change is building in the Arab world, the report warned.
Here's another take on the situation, this time from Al Jazeera. I'm including it because it expands on the points in the previous excerpt as follows:
A UN agency has warned that Arab governments could face unrest and even revolution if they fail to move rapidly towards democracy, pinning partial blame on the US and Israel.
The UN Development Programme in a report - the third in a series of assessments of the Arab world - said on Tuesday that partial reform was no longer viable.
"If the repressive situation in Arab countries continues, intensified societal conflict is likely to follow," said the Arab Human Development Report 2004.
It also refers to some positive events that have already taken place while cautioning that it's still not enough:
"Some Arab governments have begun to open themselves cautiously and selectively to opposition forces," the report observed. The press release referred to this year's presidential election in the Palestinian territories and the municipal elections in Saudi Arabia.
It also acknowledged Egypt's decision in February to allow multi-candidate elections for president.
The release said that while there have been some "real and promising" moves towards greater freedom this year, "overall the pace of progress has been disappointingly limited".
Wow, I never thought I'd quote Al Jazeera but I guess there's a first time for everything.
Regardless of all this, the simple truth is that Israel is the only functioning democracy in the Middle East (although Afghanistan and Iraq are well on their way to joining it). If only its neighbors could put aside their ideology and learn to live in peace with Israel, the region would be so much better off. Israel has taken the desert and made it bloom. It is a hotbed of technological innovation. It is the only country in the region about which these things can be said. If it had true friends as its neighbors, can you imagine how much those neighbors stand to benefit from trade with Israel? I don't know if this will ever truly happen, but it sure is nice to dream.
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