Why do they hate us? [Archives:2006/919/Opinion]
By:Ali Al-Garadi
Since the 9/11 terrorist attacks on the United States, people throughout the world have sought an answer to the question: “Why do they hate us?” Answers to this question have varied, except for a relevant one saying, “The U.S. and Europe have been responsible for supporting dictatorships in the Arab region for 60 years now.” As a result, millions of youths have become frustrated.
The political scene began as if the U.S. Administration had been briefed to spread freedom and support comprehensive reforms in the region. But the situation still is unclear. The U.S. does not want to abandon any everlasting totalitarian regimes and dictatorships breeding numerous cancers that dominate lands stretching between the Atlantic Ocean and the Gulf.
U.S. support for these regimes is clear-cut evidence and its acceptance of formal reforms engenders the same personalities and instruments once again through counterfeit polls. Then people will have to face a new fact: that is, the arrival of oppressive regimes through the polls.
With their formal democracy, Arab regimes resort to using power and employing public money, army, media and basic services to their advantage in any poll, coupled with executive authority employees choosing to form committees responsible for running elections.
For instance, Yemen has experienced a plural political regime and formal democracy for 15 years based on an individual constituency system allowing the ruling party to win elections, in addition to a supreme electoral committee authorized by the regime to breach voting regulations.
On the other hand, opposition parties pursue their roles hesitantly and risks increase significantly when the supreme committee acknowledges practicing such infringements publicly in favor of the ruling party. Moreover, a committee spokesman said, “Why does the opposition criticize us now since we practiced such violations in previous electoral rounds?”
There is an obstacle facing election progress while international organizations and Yemeni parties become synonymous with oppression and dictatorship, resulting in a fake image of democracy no longer tolerated by Yemeni citizens. Development-related damage follows spending billions of Riyals on electoral processes and vote result appeals, in addition to other billions of Riyals spent on vote-buying and gaining political and social allegiances in favor of ruling party candidates.
Our democracy never yields peaceful transfer of power – even in elections for sports club presidents. So, will Westerners bear in mind this question: “Why do they hate us?”
As far as I know, Arabs never hate anyone. They only look for a happy life. But when Western countries support dictatorships and fake democracies, Arabs will raise a question similar to the above.
Ali Al-Garadi is a Yemeni journalist and the head of the media committee of Yemeni Journalist Syndicate.
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