Obama and Reforms in Middle East

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An open letter to US President Barack Obama is making news. Signed by more than 140 eminent intellectuals and opinion makers including such worthies as Malaysia’s Anwar Ibrahim, Egypt’s Saad Eddin Ibrahim and Francis Fukuyama, the letter urges the new US president to step up efforts to promote democratic reforms and human rights in the Middle East.

A drive to promote democracy and political freedom in the Middle East was launched amid great fanfare by the Bush administration. However, the Bush administration was presented with a huge dilemma when Islamist parties emerged at the forefront after elections as in Palestinian Territories. The US faced the same conundrum in the 1990’s when the Islamic front emerged a huge winner in Algeria.

The emergence of Hamas as the people’s choice has till date not been accepted by the US and other Western countries. The West refuses to deal with the Hamas on grounds that it is a terrorist organisation. The Hamas’ refusal to recognise Israel hasn’t helped its cause either.

The duality of the US actions is obvious as its fluctuating policies do not seem to be dictated by democratic principles that must respect the popular choice but by its vested interests.

Democratic reforms and greater respect for human rights in the Middle East are most welcome. But the question is who sets these parameters and whether the rules apply equally to all parties whether they are Israel or Iran.

Many of the problems the Middle East and the rest of the world face today are a result of having different sets of rules for different nations. Democracy is fine but not in the case of Hamas? Nuclear weapons are okay if they are possessed by Israel but not by others? The Middle East has greatly suffered thanks to these double standards. Let’s hope things will be different under President Barack Obama.

There has been a great deal of hope and optimism in the region over Obama’s initiatives to bridge the gulf with the Muslim world.

So far despite despatching Secretary of State Hillary Clinton on a Middle Eastern tour, Washington has only reiterated staunch support for Israel, a point the Arab street has felt poignantly after the three-week Israeli offensive in Gaza.

Let’s hope the US will adopt a more balanced policy vis-à-vis Israel and Palestine before it talks of promoting freedom and human rights in the Middle East. Presumably, democracies are first to safeguard the rights of the people and check aggression and violations of international norms. If the US fails to promote justice and peace in Palestine and does not accept the elected representatives of the people elsewhere, it cannot hope to have its lectures on democracy taken seriously by the region.