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[Arab News, Saudi Arabia]

 

 

Le Quotidien d’Oran, Algeria

Democratic Islam: 'Opposed by Every Bush and bin Laden'

 

"Tunisian and Egyptian Islamists confront a historic responsibility. Up to now, they have served as a foil, permitting the powers that be to reject democracy. They are now in a position to prove that they can be agents of it. They know they're being watched, and that every Bush and bin Laden on earth is against them."

 

By K. Selim

 

Translated By Emily Jane Tomlinson

 

February 9, 2011

 

Algeria - Le Quotidien d’Oran - Original Article (French)

Egypt's Tahrir Square, 2011: Can democracy and Islam exist side by side?

 

BBC NEWS VIDEO: Comparing Egypt with Tunisia and Iran, Feb. 7, 00:09:24RealVideo

Bush or bin Laden: Since September 2001, this false, cursory choice has been imposed on Arab societies both by their own regimes and by the West. The idea that a democracy could exist among Arab nations has been confined to those naive individuals who failed to grasp that a free election happens only "once" in our countries.

Posted by WORLDMEETS.US

 

That theory is contestable and can generally be refuted by a proportional electoral system that allows for an accurate reflection of political trends. It is a hypothesis that has served as an argument for every authoritarian regime in the Arab world. The fact that Islamists were not the initiators of the movements for change in Tunisia and Egypt upsets a received wisdom that has been practically elevated to the status of dogma.

 

In the West, democracy is - feebly - defended; but Arab and Muslim societies were regarded as resistant to democracy. There was, of course, Turkey. But the latter, Westerners insisted, was a country of a very "particular" kind.

 

There has been a propagandist tendency to present Arab societies as being quite tempted by the Iranian model, when in fact the Turkish path is the more interesting of the two. In Turkey, Islamism has not only evolved so as to integrate democratic values, but the authoritarianism of the system has been forced to come to terms with and take account of the evolution of society. Turkey's transformation into an emerging economy and a regional power that asserts its views is inseparable from the movement for democracy that so inspires young Arabs. The failure of the democratic process in Algeria, which led to a decade of extreme violence, may have contributed to the anti-democratic discourse.

 

The protest movements in Tunisia and Egypt, however, have compelled a revision of opinion. No one now dares assert that Arab societies must choose between dictatorship and Islamism. These two great events will have long-lasting effects, even if they aren't automatic; and they demonstrate that Arab societies are receptive to agents of change other than Islamists. There are other forces capable of influencing how the situation evolves. The cases of Tunisia and Egypt reveal that even if Islamists are present and constitute a significant force, such societies have the flexibility to oppose the replacement of one authoritarianism with another.

 

It is a questionable assumption that a democratic election can happen only once in a Muslim country. It is founded on presupposition - and on fear. Up to now, Islamists have tended to feed that assumption. It is true that they've been gagged - along with other political movements - and that this has allowed extremists like al-Qaeda to assert a threatening vision of Islamism and even Islam.  

Posted by WORLDMEETS.US

 

Tunisian and Egyptian Islamists confront a historic responsibility. Until now, they have served as a foil, permitting the powers that be to reject democracy. They are now in a position to prove that they can be agents of it. Tunisian Islamists seem very anxious to avoid the mistakes of the Islamists in Algeria.

 

At this precise moment, Islamists in Tunisia and in Egypt know that they are being watched, and that every Bush and bin Laden on earth is against them.

 

SEE ALSO ON THIS:

Al-Seyassah, Iraq: Mubarak Who Enabled Iraq's Invaders is Gone! Praise Egypt!

Kayhan, Iran: 'Seditionist' Iranian Rioters Backed By the United States

Al-Seyassah, Kuwait: West Must Help Fund 'Marshall Plan' for Arab World

Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung, Germany: Explaining Western Hesitation on Egypt

Kayhan, Iran: Ahmadinejad: Egypt Revolution Reveals the Hand of the 'Mahdi'

Jerusalem Post, Israel: Sharansky: 'Maybe it's Time to Put Our Trust in Freedom'

Le Quotidian d'Oran, Algeria: SHAME ON YOU, MR. OBAMA!

Gazeta Wyborcza, Poland: America's Egyptian Problem: Ethics or Realpolitik?

Amal al-Oumma, Egypt: What We Egyptians Have Learned from Revolution

O Globo, Brazil: Facebook and Twitter are Just a Means to a Greater End

La Jornada, Mexico: In Egypt, Washington's Global Image is Once Again at Stake

Al-Wahdawi, Yemen: In Egypt, the 'Mother of All Battles' is Still to Come

Al-Seyassah, Kuwait: U.S. Pressure on Democracy is at Root of the Problem

Tehran Times, Iran: Egyptians and All Arabs Must Beware of 'Global Ruling Class'

Le Quotidien d’Oran, Algeria: Mubarak, Friends Scheme to Short-Circuit Revolt

Salzburger Nachrichten, Austria: U.S. Must Act or Cede Egypt to the Islamists

Sueddeutsche Zeitung, Germany: America's' 'Shameful' Faustian Bargain Unravels

Guardian Unlimited, U.K.: Mubarak Regime 'Still Very Much in Power'

Hankyoreh, South Korea: Egypt: Will U.S. Pick the Right Side this Time?

Global Times, China: Egypt, Tunisia Raise Doubts About Western Democracy

Kayhan, Iran: Middle East Revolutions Herald America's Demise

Sydney Morning Herald: Revolution is in the Air, But U.S. Sticks to Same Old Script

The Telegraph, U.K.: America's Secret Backing for Egypt's Rebel Leaders

Debka File, Israel: Sources: Egypt Uprising Planned in Washington Under Bush

 

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[Posted by WORLDMEETS.US February 17, 2:49am]

 







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