How beautiful is freedom

كيف جميلة هي الحرية

Since December 2010 there has been revolutions in Egypt and Tunisia, a pending change of government in Yemen, a civil war in Libya, and an insurgency in Syria, along with significant protests in Algeria, Bahrain, Djibouti, Iraq, Jordan, Kuwait, Lebanon, Morocco, Oman, Saudi Arabia, Sudan, and Western Sahara. Yet there is a disturbing distrust among some towards what has become known as The Arab Spring (although it is not limited to Arabs), a mistrust that can only be characterised as a racism towards Arabs and a bigotry towards Muslims. With the benefits of liberal democracy, some are questioning the motives of the revolutionary protesters suggesting that they will institute governments as despotic as those that currently exist, or that they will seek to establish theocratic dictatorships.

On one level such attitudes are the result of an apparent inability to consider life from the perspective of a person living in such countries. For decades these countries have been ruled by absolute monarchs, dictatorships, or regimes with only a pretence of democracy, all of which have engaged in gross violations of basic human rights. At the same time there has been economic development in the Arab world; living standards have improved (especially in those countries with exploitable natural resources), as has education levels. Yet the people remain poor, with the price of staple food increasing along with a long-standing high Gini coefficient in the region. Technology and demographics have played their role as well, the region having a relatively high youth population and with increased knowledge of government corruption and nepotism identified through avenues such as the Wikileaks diplomatic cables.

It is extraordinary to think that anything else could have happened; a young population, educated in the ways of the contemporary world, aware of the wealth of their countries, aware of the lack of democracy and civil rights, aware of the degree of corruption and painfully aware of the level of economic insecurity. When one considers the arab as being a normal flesh-and-blood human being, with the same existential desires as any other member of the species, why is it all surprising to witness these revolts? Is it surprising to see the importance of Internet technologies in these uprisings? If these basic human conditions are insufficient surely then the empirical evidence should serve; rather than taking the path of repression, successful revolts have achieved not insignificant improvements in civil and democratic rights, and none have taken the path of religious fundamentalism.

Consider the victories to date; in Tunisia the government has been overthrown, the hated political police abolished, political prisoners released and free elections are due on July 24. In Egypt, every demand has been met or is being implemented; the government has been overthrown, the state of emergency is being cancelled (after 44 years), with the State Security Investigations Service abolished, a new constitution has been approved by the largest plebiscite ever held and free elections will be held later in the year. In Algeria the 19-year state of emergency has been lifted, the King has dismissed the prime minister and cabinet of Jordan, in Oman ministers have been sacked and economic concessions have been announced by the Sultan. In Yemen the President will be stepping down, although protests continue. Even in Saudi Arabia, the most medieval of dictatorships, an announcement has been made of (male only) municipal elections in September. Quietly, the monarchy of Morocco has announced political reforms with a referendum on constitutional reforms.

But hand-wringing has still occurred, none more obvious than the NATO-led military intervention in Libya, following UN Security Council Resolution 1973. This resolution "authorises all necessary means to protect civilians and civilian-populated areas, except for a 'foreign occupation force'". Tariq Ali makes the unsurprising point that the western powers are selective in who they target. Others, who are barely worth spitting upon, still support the Gaddafi dictatorship on the grounds that it was "socialist" (read: engaged in corrupt nepotism), "anti-imperialist" (read: supported international terrorism) and has supported Palestinian self-determination (sorry, one out of three simply isn't good enough). What is forgotten is that it is the Libyan civilians in rebel-held territory themselves who have been making the call for intervention - rather like the call for intervention in Timor Leste (and very much unlike the invasion of Iraq in 2003). The loyalist forces have superior arms and have shown little concern against targetting civilian areas to the point of allowing mercenaries to kill without provocation, and using cluster bombs against population centres.

One can certainly criticise the Libyan rebels for attempting to fight a conventional war against an enemy with superior weapons and training, but that's their choice, not ours. Certainly rebels in the loyalist-held west are learning the advantages of a guerrilla campaign with support of locals. What must be rejected is the claim that international solidarity for the rebels is somehow illegitimate because those carrying out the military actions may have ulterior motives. This is most certainly insufficient justification when it comes to protecting civilian lives and the political self-determination of the population who, it is emphasised again, are requesting the intervention. Clarity is necessary at this point as it must be realised that in the near future intervention may be requested in Syria and Yemen where government forces have already deployed lethal force against democratic protesters.

It must be understood that the political events in North Africa and the Middle-East as the most significant changes since the downfall of the totalitarian dictatorships of the European eastern bloc in the late 80s and early 90s. Like the people of those countries they seek nothing less than the basic freedoms that have been denied to them, the right to free expression and assembly, the right to choose their own rulers, and the right to have a fair share of their commonwealth. No matter where we are in the world, we can help; Amnesty International has provided a guide for supporting freedom and democracy in North Africa and the Middle East and the Red Crescent is seeking donations for refugees from the conflict. These are practical tasks will have real effect for those who are seeking the basic rights that we take for granted.

How to Help

http://www.amnestyusa.org/all-countries/middle-east-uprising/page.do?id=...
http://www.redcross.org.uk/About-us/News/2011/March/Red-Crescent-help-fo...