The FINANCIAL — According to Today's Zaman, US President George W. Bush on May 18 gave the Arab world a stern lecture, urging them to give their citizens more freedoms, and offered praises for democracy in Turkey as well as for democratic advances in other countries such as Afghanistan and Iraq.
"This region is home to energetic people, a powerful spirit of enterprise, and tremendous resources. It is capable of a very bright future — a future in which the Middle East is a place of innovation and discovery, driven by free men and women," Bush said in an address to hundreds of global policymakers and business leaders gathered in the Egyptian Red Sea town of Sharm el-Sheik for the World Economic Forum on the Middle East.
"In recent years, we have seen hopeful beginnings toward this vision. Turkey — a nation with a majority Muslim population — is a prosperous modern democracy. Afghanistan under the leadership of President [Hamid] Karzai is overcoming the Taliban and building a free society. Iraq under the leadership of Prime Minister [Nouri] Maliki is establishing a multi-ethnic democracy," Bush said. "The light of liberty is beginning to shine."
Bush's speech came after his address before the Knesset, the Israeli parliament, on May 15. In that speech, Bush showered Israel with praise, strongly reiterating its right to defend itself and only gently urging leaders to "make the hard choices necessary," without mention of concrete steps. He did not mention the Palestinians' plight, except to say that Israel's 120th anniversary — in 2068 — would see it neighboring an independent Palestinian state.
The speech fueled widespread belief in the Arab world that Bush leans too far Israel's way in the long-running Middle East dispute and that Washington doesn't push the country hard enough to give way on issues that anger Palestinians and stymie a deal. His speech at the World Economic Forum was meant by the White House as the twin to his address before the Knesset and was expected to address Arab concerns over US policy in the Middle East. While in Egypt, Bush has tried to counter that by talking more about the Palestinians' plight than he did in Israel. But his criticism of the Arab world was sharp.
"Too often in the Middle East, politics has consisted of one leader in power and the opposition in jail," Bush said at the World Economic Forum. "The time has come for nations across the Middle East to abandon these practices, and treat their people with the dignity and respect they deserve."
His message was aimed at the countries in the region where the political and civil systems are far from free, including Egypt, the host of the gathering which was almost alone in being singled out for criticism. Delivered in person in the heart of the Middle East, the speech was a follow-up to Bush's promise in his second inaugural address to work in every nation for "ending tyranny in our world."
"I continue to hope that Egypt can lead the region in political reform," Bush said. One of the largest recipients of US aid, Egypt has nonetheless seen rollercoaster relations with Washington in recent years. It held its first multi-candidate presidential elections in 2005. But then the Mubarak government regressed by jailing the most prominent secular opposition leader, going after the editors of the independent press and waging a heavy crackdown on its strongest domestic opposition, the Muslim Brotherhood.
Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas told Bush directly about his concerns with the Knesset speech when the two met on Saturday at the Egyptian resort, according to Palestinian negotiator Saeb Erekat. "We said that it was disappointing, and a missed opportunity, because you [Bush] could have said that the Palestinian people should have their freedom and independence in order to achieve peace in the entire area," he said.
Erekat said Bush responded in the private meeting by saying he was the first American president to endorse an independent Palestinian state and that he would spare no efforts to achieve the goal. Bush also asked the Islamic world in his speech to join the United States in its determination to stop Iran from acquiring a nuclear weapon. "To allow the world's leading sponsor of terror to gain the world's deadliest weapon would be an unforgivable betrayal of future generations," he said.
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