http://www.memri.org/bin/latestnews.cgi?ID=SD83504
THE MIDDLE EAST MEDIA RESEARCH INSTITUTE
Special Dispatch Series - No. 835
December 28, 2004 No.835
The Arab Silence on Darfur
In an article titled "The Arab Silence on Darfur Revisited," Abu
Khawla, a human rights activist and former chair of the Tunisian
section of Amnesty International, points out that pan-Arabism is the
chief culprit for the lack of Arab reaction to the "horrendous crime
being committed by their fellow Arabs in Sudan." In his view, the only
effective way to counter the pan-Arab "propaganda of hate-mongering
and deceit" is to mobilize the Arab liberal movement. The f ollowing
are excerpts from the article: [1]
'A Deafening Silence was Observed Throughout the Arab World on the
Horrendous Crime Being Committed by Their Fellow Arabs in Sudan'
"The catastrophe unfolding these days in Darfur, Western Sudan, is
considered to be the worst humanitarian crisis in the world. According
to all credible reports, nearly a quarter million people are already
lost, and one million more will follow suit in the coming months,
unless urgent action is taken.
"UN Secretary General Kofi Anan described the matter as a collective
massacre of civilians� In contrast, a deafening silence was observed
throughout the Arab world on the horrendous crime being committed by
their fellow Arabs in Sudan. This 'puzzle' was explained by Kamel
Labidi, in an Op-ed article in the Wall Street Journal of July 5,
2004, by the fact that the voices of the Arab human rights community
remain of little influence due to lack of access to the official
media. The fact of the matter, however, is that official media is of
no relevance to Arabs today, thanks to the advent of independent TV
channels and the Internet."
'The Arab Silence Can Only Be Explained Once We Understand the True
Nature of the Twin Fascisms of Islamism and Pan-Arabism'
"In our judgment, the Arab silence could only be explained once we
understand the true nature of the twin fascisms of Islamism and
pan-Arabism that continue to wreak havoc on Arab land, and the impact
they are having on the ignorant masses.
"To obtain credible information, Arabs turn nowadays to satellite TV
channels, especially Al-Jazeera and Al-Arabiya, a tool of
communications that is so far completely monopolized by
Fundamentalists. In the case of Al-Jazeera, Preacher Youssef
Al-Qaradhawi (a leading figure of Egypt's Muslim Brotherhood) is one
of its most influential founding members. And Fundamentalists are in
charge of its news programs and talk shows�"
'The Matter Wouldn't have Raised an Eyebrow Among Muslim Public
Opinion had the Slaughter Targeted Non-Muslims'
"Why did these fundamentalist havens try to hide the truth about the
Darfur massacre? For starter, we should notice that the matter
wouldn't have raised an eyebrow among Muslim public opinion had the
slaughter targeted non-Muslims. Fighting infidels until they either
convert to Islam or submit to Muslims as 'Dhimmis,' i.e., citizens of
second class status under Islamic rule, and pay the 'Jezya' (a poll
tax), is still considered by Islamists to be a religious duty. And the
above-mentioned status of Dhimmitude is exclusive to the 'peoples of
the book,' namely Christians and Jews. Animists, Hindus and other
'heretics,' are all considered 'Najus' (filthy), i.e. fit for
extermination. Today's animists in Southern Sudan as well as Bah'ai
and Ismailite sects in most Islamic countries are learning about it
the hard way.
"But Darfur is different, since it is a slaughter of Muslims even
though they are non-Arabs of African descent. Why? In order to be able
to answer this question, we need to make a difference between theory
and practice. In theory, Muslims aren't allowed to slaughter other
Muslims. The much-vaunted reference here is the Koranic verse stating
that 'only faith and piety will make a difference between an Arab and
an 'Ajami' (non-Arab).' This explains to a large extent the historic
animosity between Islamism and pan-Arabism. While the latter refers to
the Arab nation, Islamists refer to the Islamic 'Ummah,' considering
Arab nationalism as a source of 'fitnah' (sedition).
"The practice, however, tells a very different story. Slavery is among
the most horrendous means by which Arabs subjugated non-Arab Muslims,
especially those of African descent. The practice was widespread in
Saudi Arabia until the mid-1960s when it was abolished due to intense
international pressure."
'Arabs Knew About What was Going On in Darfur, but They Didn't React'
"But despite all these facts, there are no reasons to believe that
Islamism is responsible for Darfur. To their credit, both Al-Jazeera
and Al-Arabiya ended up reporting on the massacre� So the fact of the
matter is that Arabs knew about what was going on in Darfur, but they
didn't react. Why?
"The chief culprit in this particular case seems to be pan-Arabism,
the fascist movement that rose to power half a century ago through
military coups. Nasserism took over Egypt, Sudan, Algeria, Northern
Yemen, and Libya, while Baathism took care of Syria and Iraq. In all
these countries, the previous reformist-modernist attempts of the
first part of the 20th century came to an end. The whole social strata
of people of liberal leaning was decimated. Through intimidation and
terror, its members were either silenced at home or forced to emigrate
abroad.
"And despite pan-Arabism's crushing military defeat in 1967, and its
failure to deliver on economic and social matters, the so-called Arab
street is still captive to its propaganda. A propaganda that, in many
instances, seems to have the support of Arab governments, with the
hope that anti-Western diatribes may help deflect the attention of the
masses from their own failures.
"The only effective way to counter this propaganda of hate-mongering
and deceit is to mobilize the Arab liberal movement. That hasn't been
very successful so far, especially given the lack of support of the
Western democracies. As a result, the ignorant Arab masses will
continue to be kept hostage to charlatans of pan-Arabism and Islamism,
and other Darfurs may be forthcoming."
[1] http://www.metransparent.com/texts/abu_khawla_darfur.htm, December
22, 2004.
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