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An insight into Arab thinking

Yes, he may be the political and media adviser to the President of Syria, but it would be foolish to simply write-off this op-ed piece "No room for western hypocrisy" by Bouthaina Shaaba written for the Dubai Gulf News. There is more than a kernel of truth in the piece reflecting thinking in the Middle East - now the subject of so much tumult in a number of countries.

"American politicians should realise that these revolutions are against western support of despotism, occupation, corruption and submission to foreign dictates. Pro-western regimes have started to crumble under the hammer of the forces of freedom, democracy and human rights.

The West will again be surprised at the will, determination and ability of the Arab people to change their future and steer it away from those who forced occupation and humiliation on them and made up racist theories of the Arabs as ‘terrorists', unfit for democracy and "in need of despots to rule them".

The importance of what is happening today in the Arab world is the fall of the colonial dimension of the official regime which has ignored the crimes against humanity in Palestine while the American Administration was drafting its 39th veto against the Arabs to prevent a mere condemnation of Israeli colony-building which is an eternal shame for western ‘democracies'.

Now, Arab young people, in their different countries, are paying in blood in order to liberate themselves from the oppression and corruption which have been associated with western influence.

The only thing Arabs know about this influence is the brutality of its wars, the massacres of its occupation and the humiliation of Arab dignity. They only know its support of Jewish colonies, Israeli oppression of the Palestinian people and depriving them, for over sixty years, of freedom and preventing them from having their national state.

They only know America's friendship with regimes known for their humiliating submission to Washington's dictates against their own people and in support of Israel's crimes and wars.

They only know the stark hypocrisy and double standards: western societies enjoy democracy and prosperity, while American influence is preventing our people from having their freedom by the force of weapons and oppression. They are forcing poverty on our people by squandering their wealth and laundering the money of their friends, the corrupt dictators.

They turn a blind eye to the use of donkeys, camels and live bullets against young people yearning for freedom only to maintain the rule of those who keep silence about Israel's crimes.
The most recent American veto, like tens of other vetoes against the Arabs, contributed to the perpetuation of Israeli suppression of the Palestinian people, colonising their land, expelling and condemning them to life in refugee camps.

This will not be the last American veto as long as American political will is hostage to Zionism and to supporting despotism, oppression, colonies and racism in the Middle East.

For hundreds of millions of Arabs, the only thing they see in the US is this veto against their freedom. Millions of young Arabs also see that this veto is targeted at the simplest rights of the Palestinian people. They will only see it as a declaration of flagrant American hostility to the freedom of Arabs and to all those who fight for it.

The dawn of Arab democracy, created by Arab masses according to their own vision, has come; and Israeli crimes and wars against Arabs have been the catalysts of the local dimension of these revolutions. The West should not be surprised when hundreds of millions, from the Atlantic to the Gulf, chant that "the people want an end to colonies in Palestine".

What would Abrams, Rice and Clinton say then? Would they also claim that their American support to occupation and colony-building aim at bringing about the two-state solution?

This new Middle East is different from that envisioned by Rice and the neo-conservatives known for their love of war, torture, shedding Arab blood and absolute support for Israel and colony-building. It will be made by the people of the Middle East and for them in order to insure their freedom and dignity."

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