Letters: Democracy – the west’s missing word

It seems that western powers are slowly beginning to realise that the days of promoting freedom at home and subjugation abroad is becoming unsustainable. Statements proclaiming displeasure with the way their dictator friend in Cairo is treating his compatriots started to emanate from Washington, Berlin, Paris and London. Your report ( Polic e crackdown as protesters defy ban and take to streets , 27 January) quotes statements of world leaders. One word is common in all statements and reveals the west’s priority. We would be fooling ourselves if we think that word could be “democracy”. No, the word on the lips of all world leaders is “stability”. The US secretary of state Hillary Clinton – rather then criticising the Egyptian government – said that the country was stable and Egyptians had the right to protest. Expressing his “extreme concern”, the German foreign minister, Guido Westerwelle, said that “a country’s stability is not endangered by granting civil rights”. And the British foreign secretary, William Hague, said: “Openness, transparency and political freedom are important tenets of stability.” They are not wrong, the dictionary meaning of “stable” includes phrases such as “perpetual”. We know Mubarak rules the country of the Pharaohs, but the long-suffering people of Egypt must be wondering what could be more perpetual for a world leader than 30 years? Chowdhury Mueen-Uddin London • Like a giant that’s just come back from slumber-land, Egypt is rubbing its eyes and stretching its muscles. This uprising will prove to be a turning point in Egypt’s history and that of the whole of the Middle East ( Report , 29 January). Egypt has been taken out of the power equation in the Arab-Israeli conflict; first by Sadat and then by Mubarak. He pursued policies that were consistent with the American project for the Middle East – complete alignment with Israeli interest and scant regard to the rights of the Palestinian people. The departure of Egypt from the progressive camp created an imbalance in the equilibrium of peace that allowed Israel to act with impunity and to leave the Palestinian Authority pleading for the famous “fig leaf”. Now that the nightmare is nearly over perhaps more level-headed policies will be pursued. Jamal Sheri London • More than 30 years since the Iranian revolution, western governments have still not learned that support for despots in the Middle East is a no-win policy. All the fine words about democracy are lost when the possibility of governments hostile to Israel being elected is faced. And yet we are repeatedly told that, as Israel is the only democracy in the region, it is worthy of our support. It is the only democracy because our governments make sure it is. Until the US abandons its policy of unconditional support for Israel there will be no genuine peace. Ian O’Neill Warlingham, Surrey • After Mubarak the biggest threat to Egyptian democracy is the US relationship with the Egyptian military. In 2010 the US gave Egypt $1.3bn in military aid, plus equipment. The Obama administration has requested similar sums for 2011. An Egyptian government that deviated from the present policy of good relations with Israel would not be given one cent. The failure of the Middle East process and the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan guarantee that a freely elected Egyptian government would not have a similar foreign policy. After Mubarak, will the generals support a government whose policies threaten the loss of their aid package? It is doubtful. George D Lewis Brackley, Northamptonshire • After nearly 30 years of supporting Egypt’s Mubarak dynasty, suddenly the US and UK speak of democratic rights and reform. These are the voices of slave owners seeking to salvage influence when the end of tyranny is close. Egyptians are far beyond platitudes. Surely the western powers remain active behind the scenes, continuing to provide police and armed forces with weapons and counterinsurgency support. Bruce Lambert Stockholm, Sweden Egypt Middle East Israel Palestinian territories US foreign policy guardian.co.uk

Posted by on January 31, 2011. Filed under News, Politics, World News. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. You can leave a response or trackback to this entry