On Libya and Syria Extrait du Tariq Ramadan http://www.tariqramadan.com/spip.php?

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On Libya and Syria

- English - ARTICLES -

Date de mise en ligne : Saturday 27 August 2011

Tariq Ramadan

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On Libya and Syria

Qaddafi's regime is collapsing. No one knows exactly when and in what statealive or deadhe will be found. But the game is over. Libya is now turning a dark page of its recent history. The Libyan regime was brutal and merciless toward its opponents. Torture, and summary execution reflected Qaddafi's eccentricity, madness and intelligence. The Libyan people thirsted for freedom; they followed in the footsteps of the Tunisians and the Egyptians. We must pay tribute to their courage, commitment and determination. No one would have thought Qaddafi would leave before his death, for his behavior was so unpredictable that he would have repressed and killed without a thought for the consequences. The end of his rule was better than expected.

Yet, some critical questions must be asked. Contrary to Tunisia and Egypt with their non-violent mobilizations, in Libya the mass movement turned into an all-out civil war with heavy weapons being used by both sides. NATO, which first justified its involvement by claiming to protect civilians, helped the resistance win battles on the ground. We know that American and European intelligence agents militarily advised the opponents on the best strategy to overthrow Qaddafi and his sons. This happened after France, followed by thirty countries, officially recognized the Transitional National Council as the legitimate representative of the new Libyan State. This Council, headed by former members of the regime, falsely announced three times that it had arrested Qaddafi's sons. The question arises: how could such a curious Council be so quickly accepted and trusted while all the signs show it to be a very curious collection of people and visions?

Dark days might well be behind but who can predict sunny days ahead? Libya is a rich and strategic country. Foreign intervention is no accident. Who is going to control its wealth, how is it going to be used and/or divided among the Western transnational oil companies (instead of the Chinese government, which had contracts with Libya and was opposed to the war)? Can we hope for a true and transparent democratic process? Nothing is less predictable and assured, for it remains difficult to assess the level of autonomy of the opposition forces. Libya was controlled by an unpredictable dictator and might remain under control through a non-transparent pseudo-democracy. Our happiness at the fall of the dictator must not overcome our caution about what is being prepared for Libya. Our moral duty is to be on the side of those claiming freedom under a democratic regime exercising full control over the country's wealth. In Libya, the game is far from over.

And it is not over in Syria either. More than 2500 people have so far been killed by the Bashar al-Assad regime, which is showing its true face. Among the victims are teenagers, women and even Palestinians refugees. By preventing international media from covering events and by stifling speech, the regime thought it would be able to repress in silence. With no Western allies, no NATO, no "international community," and no weapons, the Syrians continue to say "No! We will not give up," and day after day demonstrate and protest. Day after day they have been killed, their hands empty of weapons, innocent chest proudly thrust forward. We should not be nave about the opposition movement: it remains a strange mixture of political forces and interests (like those who gathered in Turkey to organize and coordinate the resistance). Nevertheless, it is our moral duty, as well, to tell our Western governments to stop paying lip service to democracy, not to wait six months before asking for Bashar al-Assad to leave. Six months of talking, with nothing to show for it. It would have been possible to isolate the country in an effective way without a military option. The Western powers did nothing and dismayingly, Venezuelan president Hugo Chavez called Bashar "a humanist, a brother."

We must pay tribute to the courage of our Syrian sisters and brothers in humanity. Their non-violent movement will prevail, but many more will die along the way. The non-violent Syrian movement is asking us, during this month of Ramadan, to pray for the missing and the dead on August 28. Let us pray and join with others of conscience, with faith or no faith, in remembering the fate of innocent people struggling for their freedom and dignity. Let us dignify ourselves as living human beings by supporting the dignity of their dead.

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