Human rights in the Middle East is simply a joke. The West looks, laughs and continues to support ill-advised dictators with nothing better to do than to suppress their populations. Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak, who has been the authoritarian leader of Egypt since 1981 (yes, 28 years), is today meeting American President Barack Obama at the White House. Yes, change can happen, except this time it is to reward a president who has done more to curtail freedom and real progress than most leaders can boast. The meeting between the Pharaoh and Obama seems to have told the region it doesn't really matter what happens, as long as you support and follow through on America's policies, you will be on the good side. Maybe Obama will discuss the human rights situation in Egypt, the constant crackdowns on Muslim Brotherhood leaders, secular activists, journalists, bloggers and so on. Washington has made it a point in recent years to “talk” a big game in terms of their “concerns” over the situation on the ground in the region. Whether it be Egypt, or Lebanon or wherever, the new Obama administration is “looking” into what is happening. Unfortunately, they simply don't care and have never put the effort into securing a new way for the region. International human rights groups have tried, over and over again, to get Western governments to care about the Middle East – more than Israel – but it hasn't happened. Yes, we understand that Israel is the “natural” ally of the United States and must be protected against the “crazy Islamists” who were, ironically, democratically elected to lead the Palestinian people. If a democratically elected government is shunned by the global community, does not that tell us Washington has no desire to support human rights, unless it serves their own, narrow national interest? Most certainly. New York-based Human Rights Watch – arguably the leading human rights organization that covers the region – issued a statement calling on Obama to”highlight” these issues with Mubarak. “President Obama needs to convey a clear message that human rights in Egypt are a central concern of his administration,†said Joe Stork, deputy Middle East director at HRW in the press release. “Egypt is approaching a time of transition and has the opportunity to make real reforms.†Doubtful much will come from it, unfortunately. There is no faith left in American policy in the region. Talk is great, but it does nothing to change the situation on the ground. Israel, the US's number one aid recipient, continues to develop settlements that alienate and radicalize Palestinians; Egypt, the number two aid recipient, has a leader in power for three decades, regularly imprisons its critics and stifles any opposition group; Saudi Arabia are much the same. Yet, Washington looks at these three nations as allies in the region. All American adminstration officials are worried that an Islamist party would come to power if free and open elections were allowed. The question is: so what? It can't get any worse for Arabs in the region. They suffer from lack of money, lack of water, health care, etc. There are no national projects allowed to be developed in the region due to the continual disrespect for human rights by Arab dictators and their Western conspirators. This enables radical Islamic groups to manifest that give a tiny semblance of hope to the peoples in the region. “At least they are doing something,” one Egyptian analyst told me recently. Without hope, and an America that continues to support idle dictators, the people in this region will suffer. If Obama wants to truly win hearts and minds, he must make a stand. End the support for Mubarak, Saudi Arabia, honestly and effectively pressure Israel. These are simple. The Democrats now complain the health care lobbies are strong and causing much frustration in trying to pass health care reform. Well, the Jewish lobby and other “pro-American” groups are not helping create a better world, one where the United States can regain the respect it held in this part of the world before the 1967 war. Human Rights are at the heart of this matter, but if they continue to be a joke in Washington, they will remain so here, where it counts. BM
