'Only bad news' for democratic reforms

Last Updated: Oct 15, 2008

DUBAI // Democratic reform in the Middle East is being hampered by regional governments and a lack of interest and support from the West, activists have claimed. Representatives of NGOs and pressure groups from more than two dozen countries, including Iran, Pakistan, Afghanistan and Arab countries, are meeting in Dubai to debate issues including the progress of political reform, human rights and education.

They will present their conclusions and recommendations to foreign ministers from the region and the G8 group of industrialised nations at this weekend's Forum for the Future in Abu Dhabi. "I have only bad news regarding democratic reform in the region," said Hafez Abu Seada, the secretary general of the Egyptian Organisation for Human Rights, addressing delegates yesterday. "Political parties work in a very complex environment, where they are subject to imprisonment and the denial of civil liberties. Political systems come to power without any elections, and there is no framework to give any rights to political parties and movements."

He was critical of Arab parliaments and also a proposed media bill currently being debated by the Arab League. He said the bill would impose censorship and prevent the media asking legitimate questions under the guise of maintaining order in society. He also said reform was impossible in a number of countries because of continuing conflict and occupation, including the Palestinian Territories, Iraq, Sudan and Somalia.

Slaheddine Jourchi, a writer and activist from Tunisia, said there had been no genuine reform of Arab political systems since the 1960s. "Arab political systems can adapt to pressure for democracy without giving any real compromises." Mr Jourchi was one of a number of speakers to argue that political reform in the Middle East had suffered severe setbacks since the September 11 attacks and the subsequent wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.

"Western policies are to support democracy, but they are also supporting hegemony and are trying to protect their interests," he said. "Regimes benefited from support after September 11 and the war on terrorism, and use world events to show that the state will always prevail." Ezzedine al Asbahi, from Yemen, told delegates reform would come about only through a constructive dialogue between governments, civil society and the private sector, and said the Forum for the Future could encourage a "quantum leap" in democratic reform in the region.

"This forum will be the engine of reform, opening closed doors for the civil society in more than one capital of the Arab world. These countries cannot progress unless they have free human beings enjoying full human rights." Some members of the audience were not so confident the forum would achieve its aims, however. "It is useful to meet our counterparts from other countries, but I do not know if the governments will listen," said one human rights activist from a GCC state who asked not to be named.

"In the last few years things seem to be going backwards. The governments talk about democracy, but it is just cosmetic." The civil society groups are to hold a number of workshops before presenting recommendations to the assembled foreign ministers on Saturday. This will be the fifth annual meeting of the forum, which is being co-chaired this year by the UAE and Japan. Condoleezza Rice, the US secretary of state, has announced she will not be attending the event because of the continuing financial crisis. Her deputy, John Negroponte, will represent the US instead.

gmcclenaghan@thenational.ae