Egypt: Moussa Won’t Run for President
December 23rd, 2009 by Jason
In an interview (Arabic) with al-Masry al-Youm, Arab League head Amr Moussa announced he will not run for president in Egypt’s 2011 elections. He explained, “The question is, is it possible? And the answer is, the road is closed.” The current constitution makes it nearly impossible for an independent candidate to run for president, and Moussa refuses to join a political party for pure “political opportunism.”
Meanwhile, President Mubarak met with King Abdullah in Riyadh today before heading on to Kuwait. They discussed the Middle East Peace Process and the Houthi insurgency in Yemen. Al-Masry al-Youm reports that the newly elected members of the MB Guidance Bureau swore fealty to General Guide Mahdi Akef yesterday. Sources within the MB suggest a new general guide will be named within two days.
Abdel-Rahman Hussein and Sarah Carr contend Egypt’s opposition groups are “blighted by internal divisions.” They observe that the Muslim Brotherhood has endured “heavy blows from the regime” as the media focused on the Brotherhood’s internal rifts. Meanwhile, Ayman Nour has been physically attacked, disbarred, and legally prohibited from running for office. While opposition groups banded together in October to campaign against the succession of Gamal Mubarak, the Kefaya movement has already withdrawn its support. Now Kefaya is left “trying to prove that it is still relevant” as it clamors for the election of an “alternative president” separate from the regime.
Babylon and Beyond delves deeper into the Muslim Brotherhood’s recent election, which resulted in a victory for the conservative faction. According to MB analyst Abdul Rehim Aly, “hard-liners couldn’t accept the presence of reformers within the group itself, so how can anyone expect them one day to have a dialogue with other people belonging to different religious and cultural backgrounds?”
Dalia Rabie explores several moral controversies of 2009, including the Ramadan arrests, the niqab ban and virginity kits, that “highlighted the conflict between Egypt’s so-called secular government and its age-old traditions.”
Posted in Arab League, Diplomacy, Elections, Human Rights, Islam and Democracy, Kuwait, Middle Eastern Media, Mideast Peace Plan, Military, Muslim Brotherhood, Palestine, Political Islam, Saudi Arabia, Secularism, Women | Comment »
Iraq: Iranian Troops Enter Contested Oil Field
December 18th, 2009 by Jason
Iraq officials have confirmed that Iranian soldiers have entered Iraqi territory and claimed an oilfield whose ownership is disputed by Iran. A U.S. military spokesman stated “there has been no violence related to this incident and we trust this will be resolved through peaceful diplomacy between the governments of Iraq and Iran.”
During a trip to Iraq, Admiral Mullen affirmed that the Iraq drawdown will proceed as scheduled, despite delayed elections and a recent spike in bombings. Meanwhile, Iraqi forces are on alert after threats of violence during the coming Christmas holiday.
IraqPundit relays a conversation he had with laborers from Sadr City who expressed their discontent with Moktada al-Sadr as well as the Supreme Islamic Iraqi Council. Instead, they plan to vote for Nouri al-Maliki “because he is not an extremist.” At the same time, IraqPundit reveals that many “Iraqis are disappointed in al-Maliki because he has presided over an extremely corrupt government, and he has failed to prevent terror attacks.”
The New York Times editorial staff warns that “the bitter discord between Iraq’s Kurdish regional government and the Shiite-Arab dominated central government - over land, oil and the power of the central government - is the most dangerous fault line in Iraq today.” Therefore, the situation calls for “deft and sustained American involvement.”
Finally, Peter Galbraith has written a statement clarifying his activities in Kurdistan concerning his role in advising the formation of the constitution and the negotiation of oil deals.
Posted in Afghanistan, Diplomacy, Elections, Iraq, Kurds, Legislation, Military, Oil, Political Parties, Public Opinion, Sectarianism, Secularism, Terrorism, US foreign policy, United Nations | Comment »
POMED Notes: “Democratization as a Source of Tension between the U.S. and Egypt”
December 15th, 2009 by Jason
The Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars hosted a lecture Monday by Heba el-Koudsy about American democracy promotion in Egypt and its effectiveness. According to the Center’s Middle East Program Director Haleh Esfandiari, every year the Center brings in an Arab journalist to conduct research as a resident scholar. This year’s scholar is el-Koudsy, who has over 15 years experience in Arab journalism and currently works for the Egyptian paper al-Masry al-Youm.
For POMED’s full PDF version of the notes, click here. Otherwise, keep reading below the fold.
Read the rest of this entry »
Posted in DC Event Notes, Democracy Promotion, Diplomacy, Egypt, Elections, Freedom, Human Rights, Journalism, Judiciary, Legislation, NGOs, Political Parties, Protests, Reform, Secularism, US foreign policy, Women | Comment »
Turkey: Erdogan in DC
December 9th, 2009 by Jason
Ben Katcher at the Washington Note provides an overview of Prime Minister Erdogan’s visit to Washington. Among other developments, Erdogan implied Turkey will continue to reform regardless of European “obstacles” to E.U. accession.
However, Michael Rubin at NRO criticizes President Obama for praising Erdogan despite Turkey’s recent backtracking on human rights, especially in its “war on the free press.” He cites a recent resolution passed by the World Association of Newspapers that “calls on the Turkish authorities to cease the campaign of intimidation of journalists and media.” Babylon and Beyond delves into greater detail about the clash between the Turkish government and the media mogul Dogan Yayin Holding, who has criticized the ruling AKP party. Jennifer Rubin at Commentary echoes Michael Rubin’s concerns, arguing “Obama doesn’t really have anything to say in support of human rights and democracy advocates.”
Marc Lynch observes that the Islamist government of Erdogan is a “model of workable political Islam,” but one that is “dual-edged” as Turkish secularists “continue to sound the alarm bells of creeping Islamism.” Lynch finds concerns over Turkey’s newly assertive foreign policy “overblown,” arguing it was as much a result of “the effective closing of the door to European Union membership as it was by Erdogan’s Islamism.”
Posted in Freedom, Human Rights, Islam and Democracy, Journalism, Muslim Brotherhood, Political Islam, Political Parties, Reform, Secularism, Turkey, US foreign policy, US politics | Comment »
Iraq: Will Another Election Law Stand?
November 24th, 2009 by Zack
After intense negotiations, reports the Huffington Post, the Iraqi parliament changed the basis for distributing parliamentary seats, giving preference to the Kurdish bloc rather than to the Sunnis. The decision to favor the Kurds caused dozens of Sunni lawmakers to walk out of the session. Al-Arabiyya explains that al-Hashemi is likely to also veto this legislation. According to the NY Times, this development will most certainly delay the scheduled January elections. The division underscores the depth of mistrust that remains and it does not appear that the parliament will be able to muster the necessary three-fifths majority to override a new veto.
In other news, the Daily Star has carried a story that PM Nouri al-Maliki is ramping up his public campaign against the Ba’athists before elections. Meanwhile, IraqPundit rejects Juan Cole’s argument that the Ba’athists are still going strong. The pundit claims Cole oversimplifies the complex influences facing Iraqis. including secularism, al-Qaeda, and Iran, and he concludes that, “Juan Cole thinks so little of the people who live in this region that he sees them as having only two choices: religious fundamentalism and Arab nationalism. That’s it. Someone please tell this silly man that at least in Iraq, those two choices are no longer an option. The Iraqi people have rejected both.”
Posted in Elections, Iraq, Islam and Democracy, Kurds, Political Islam, Sectarianism, Secularism | Comment »
Iraq Elections
November 17th, 2009 by Zack
As resurgent Sunni attacks threaten long-term security in Iraq, the U.N. Security Council has called on Iraq’s political parties to show “national unity” ahead of elections. The U.N. is concerned that “inside and outside forces continue their efforts to impose an agenda of division and destruction,” as such the U.N. asked that “all political blocs and their leaders in Iraq to demonstrate true statesmanship during the election campaign.”
Marina Ottoway argues the new election law is important because it will allow elections to be held before the parliament is set to expire on January 31 and because the law does not openly embed confessionalism. Despite this, “the election law is no panacea, and it guarantees a messy post-election aftermath. As in the past, the problem of Kirkuk has simply been postponed rather than solved.”
The Daily Star has an AFP article with more on the Iraqi Presidential Council’s decision to ask parliament to rework the electoral law in order to give greater representation to Iraqis outside the country. The new election law has reduced seats available to minorities and outside Iraqis from 15 percent to 5 percent. According to the article the estimated 1.5 million Iraqis living abroad are expected to boost the Sunni election showing.
In light of the proposed changes, AP reports that the Kurdish political leadership has threatened to boycott elections unless the Kurds receive more seats in parliament. Kurdistan Regional President Massoud Barzani said the current division of seats is “an attempt to reduce the number of Kurdistan Region representatives in the next Iraqi parliament and diminish their achievements.”
Posted in Elections, Freedom, Iraq, Kurds, Legislation, Political Parties, Secularism | Comment »
Threat to Iraqi Election Law
November 16th, 2009 by Zack
The Daily Star is reporting that Iraq’s Sunni Vice President Tareq al-Hashemi is demanding, under the threat of a veto, that the new election law be modified to give a voice to Iraqis abroad. His threat raised doubts over whether Iraq will be able to hold elections in January.
IraqPundit has posted a profile of Ayad Jamalaldin, a young, secularist from southern Iraq who dresses in traditional clothing and who is gaining grass-roots support for his election to parliament. IraqPundit wonders if this is the type of candidate that could make a good prime minister.
In a New York Times op-ed Frank Gunter argues the need for Iraq to encourage private business and address political graft, otherwise the country will collapse under mass unemployment. At the same time, Ernesto Londono evaluates the positive and negative impact of the Iraq war on the city of Samarra.
In a related story, Democracy Digest reports the Iraqi nonviolence network La’Onf has been awarded the 2009 Rights & Democracy’s John Humphrey Award in appreciation of its work to promote peaceful and non-violent political alternatives for Iraqis.
Posted in Elections, Iraq, Legislation, Political Parties, Reform, Secularism | Comment »
Reflecting on Afghan Strategy
November 13th, 2009 by Jason
President Obama rejected accusations of dithering yesterday, insisting that he will decide on a strategy soon that will not entail an “open-ended” commitment to Afghanistan. Secretary Gates also confirmed, “we’re getting toward the end of this process.”
That process was thrown a curve ball when someone leaked confidential cables from Ambassador Eikenberry that argued against a troop increase (see our previous post). Andrew Exum fumes that “whoever leaked these classified cables has cut the knees out from underneath the most important U.S. representative in Kabul” by poisoning the relationship between Eikenberry and Hamid Karzai (h/t Daily Dish). Michael Cohen at Democracy Arsenal contends the anger of some military officers over Eikenberry’s lack of support is ironic given that Eikenberry is doing exactly what General McChrystal’s report demands: evaluating whether we have the legitimate Afghan partner we need to succeed.
As Fred Kaplan reiterates, “if the government is particularly corrupt or incompetent, it won’t be able to build on the security wrought by a good counterinsurgency campaign, thus nullifying our success and sacrifice.” President Obama is therefore seeking ways to circumvent the central government and support provincial leaders instead. In fact, corruption runs rampant in Afghanistan, as explained by an Al Jazeera English clip linked to by Juan Cole. But there have been success in Afghanistan as well, as a New York Times article on the National Solidarity Program shows. The program provides direct grants to village councils for development projects instead of relying on the corrupt central government or overpriced foreign contractors.
Geoffrey Kemp in the National Interest warns that a counterterror strategy neglects the “fight for democratic universal values, such as women’s rights,” that has constituted the primary motivation for our European partners in Afghanistan. Therefore, if President Obama “lowers the bar on reform and universal values, then many Europeans will ask what’s the point of being there?” Citing the failures of the Soviets, Deepak Tripathi insists at Cole’s Informed Comment blog that the U.S. should forgo a counterinsurgency strategy in favor of allowing the development of democratic institutions and processes, fighting corruption, encouraging the rule of law, and building modern schools. The Soviet precedent is also on the mind of Matthew Yglesias, who posted an interesting map of the Soviet “ink spots” of control just prior to their withdrawal.
Finally, Rich Lowry at the Corner warns against the President micromanaging the Afghan war: “no plan so finely tuned from on high is going to survive its first contact with reality.” Instead, the president should support a “dumb” Afghan strategy and let the implementers be “savvy and adaptive.”
Posted in Afghanistan, Democracy Promotion, Diplomacy, Foreign Aid, Human Rights, Middle Eastern Media, Military, Multilateralism, Reform, Secularism, Taliban, US foreign policy, US politics, al-Qaeda | Comment »
Americans in Limbo in Turbulent Iran
November 10th, 2009 by Daniel
There is now some confusion about the status of three American hikers arrested in Iran. They are either “charged with” or “accused of” spying, depending on how one Persian word is translated, writes Arash Aramesh.
IAEA Director General Mohamed ElBaradei claims “the foreign policy apparatus in Iran has frozen” as he seeks to forge an agreement on nuclear programs in negotiations that some fear have not included human rights issues. Iran’s delay on a nuclear deal is not, as some have supposed, due to a lack of unity among its elite, writes Meir Javedanfar for The Guardian. Gary Sick laughs at the irony of opposition journalists now accusing Mahmoud Ahmadinejad of meeting with CIA agents after Ahmadinejad has prosecuted dissidents on false charges of collusion with the CIA. The American Spectator published an interview with Michael Ledeen, who accuses President Obama of wanting to ignore Iranian protestors to preserve chances of a deal with Iran. In another article, Ledeen argues that Iran is on the cusp of revolution. Michael Allen surveys comparisons of Iran today and East Germany in 1989.
In the new edition of insideIRAN, Hossein Askari argues that Iran’s economic instability cannot be blamed on sanctions, but is the result of domestic policies. Shane M. explores the Green Movement’s religious roots. That movement, along with international observers, needs Obama to take a stand, writes Geneive Abdo.
Posted in Iran, Reform, Secularism, US foreign policy, sanctions | Comment »
Middle East International Refounded
November 9th, 2009 by Jason
The Middle East International has restarted its printing press after a six-year hiatus, releasing a free PDF issue online in commemoration. According to the Arabist, MEI offers “long articles and analysis from writers based in-country who [know] what they [are] talking about.”
There are several articles in the first issue related to democracy in the Middle East. David Gardner explores why “the Arab world is mired in despotism” and blames America’s “morbid fear of political Islam” for its failure to promote democracy in the region. While the Bush “freedom agenda” is no more, the realization that “tyranny, connived in by the West, breeds terrorism, instability, and societal stagnation” still holds true. Therefore, “President Obama needs to rescue that insight before it is swept away in a backlash of shallow realism.” Gardner continues, “support for autocracy and indulgence of corruption in this region, far from securing stability, breeds extremism and, in extremis, failed states.” Yet while the U.S. must do more to promote democracy, Gardner reminds us that ultimately Arab citizens must lead the effort to democratize their respective countries.
Read the rest of this entry »
Posted in Arab League, Bahrain, Democracy Promotion, Diplomacy, Egypt, Elections, Freedom, Gulf, Human Rights, Iran, Iraq, Islamist movements, Israel, Lebanon, Legislation, Libya, Muslim Brotherhood, NGOs, Neocons, Oil, Political Islam, Political Parties, Publications, Reform, Sectarianism, Secularism, Turkey, US foreign policy, Uncategorized, United Nations, sanctions | Comment »
Iraq Election Law Stalls
November 5th, 2009 by Zack
The Huffington Post is reporting that the Iraqi Council of Representatives ended their session today without approving a new election law. According to the article, “the head of Iraq’s Independent High Electoral Commission, Faraj al-Haidari, earlier this week warned lawmakers that if they did not have an election deal passed by the end of the day Thursday, it would be impossible to carry out the election on January 16.” The commission will meet later Thursday to decide how to proceed.
IraqPundit has written a piece discussing the sense in Iraq that all of Iraq’s neighbors, including Iran, Saudi Arabia, Syria, and Qatar, are meddling in Iraqi political affairs at the expense of “decent” candidates. The Economist argues that despite all of this political backbiting Iraq is engaging in serious democracy and moving away from sectarianism. The article explains that out of the six main electoral blocks, the “three that look most genuinely post-sectarian may well be the strongest.” The remaining three “sport fig-leaves of diversity but are tainted with past sectarian violence.” The article goes on to analyze these new blocs and the shifting tensions within the country.
Posted in Elections, Freedom, Iraq, Kurds, Political Parties, Sectarianism, Secularism | Comment »
Islamists Want Democracy
November 2nd, 2009 by Jason
According to Marc Lynch in The National, moderate Islamist movements‘ attempts to participate in democratic processes throughout the Arab world have been stymed by secular authoritarian regimes. Despite such setbacks, moderate Islamists remain “committed to democratic participation even in the face of massive electoral fraud and harsh campaigns of repression.” However, Lynch worries that “the toll of repression is beginning to show” as the Islamist leadership have begun to disagree about how to proceed.
Using examples from both Jordan and Egypt, Lynch concludes that “the Islamist debate today is not about the legitimacy of democracy - it is about how to respond to frustrated efforts to play the democratic game.” He fears that if moderate Islamists cannot find their voice democratically, then more radical leaders will take control. Furthermore, by cracking down on moderate Islamism, Arab regimes “weaken the foundation of democracy as a whole” and diminish “public freedoms, transparency and accountability.”
Posted in Egypt, Hamas, Islam and Democracy, Islamist movements, Jordan, Muslim Brotherhood, Political Islam, Political Parties, Secularism, al-Qaeda | Comment »
Discourse in Egypt
October 30th, 2009 by Jason
According to Ashraf Khalil in al-Masry al-Youm, the upcoming National Democratic Party (NDP) convention will not look at the question of succession, but only the upcoming parliamentary elections in November 2010. The NDP was embarassed by the last round in 2005, in which the illegal Muslim Brotherhood won 20 percent of the seats in the People’s Assembly. In response, Gamal Mubarak was “placed in charge of reforming the NDP’s image, clearing away the dead wood and making the party more appealing to a younger generation.” Furthermore, the Muslim Brotherhood “has been severely affected by a steady government crackdown […] and the party faces a potential leadership struggle early next year when its Supreme Guide Mahdi Akef steps down.”
Khalil quotes a professor from the American University in Cairo, Walid Kazziha, who lamented the lack of electoral choices, ”We have no real political parties. We have been de-politicized.” Meanwhile, a growing political cyber-battle has begun to heat up between a pro-Gamal website called “Participate” and an opposition site, also called “Participate.”
In The Daily News Egypt, Nael Shama discusses the current debate over the niqab and the state of discourse within Egypt. He complains, “the worst thing about the current debate over niqab (face veil) is that it gives the impression of a ‘healthy’ and ‘free’ society that openly discusses all contending views of its most pressing problems. This is an illusion.” According to Shama, “the space for thought and expression has been tightening at alarming rates, with the mind of Egyptian society tilting towards the right.” Yasser Khalil explains how the niqab debate has further tarnished the reputation of Al-Azhar. Khalil explains that Egyptians believe Al-Azhar is “more concerned with upholding the current regime than religious principles.” To regain Al-Azhar’s prestige as the world’s preeminent center of Sunni thought, the government must “draw a clear line separating religion from politics” and let Al-Azhar reassert its independence.
Finally, Khaled Diab discusses the recent controversy over a Beyonce concert in Egypt: “Many may rightly wonder why, with all the major challenges facing Egypt - poverty, corruption, authoritarianism, overpopulation and environmental degradation - religious conservatives, and even secular Arab activists, are so obsessed with sexy women.”
Posted in Egypt, Elections, Islam and Democracy, Islamist movements, Muslim Brotherhood, Political Islam, Public Opinion, Secularism, Women | Comment »
Kuwaiti MPs Win Right Not to Wear Hijab
October 28th, 2009 by Daniel
Kuwait’s constitutional court scored another victory for women’s rights today by allowing women MPs to refuse to wear the hijab. Four voters brought a petition to the court against certain female MPs claiming they violated laws that said female candidates must comply with sharia law. The court ruled that the election law did not specify what women’s obligations were with regard to the hijab, and that the Kuwaiti constitution guarantees freedom of religion and does not discriminate according to sex. Last week, the same court ruled that women do not need their husbands’ permission to obtain a passport.
Posted in Elections, Kuwait, Secularism, Women | Comment »
POMED Notes: Engaging the Muslim World
October 19th, 2009 by Jason
The United States Institute of Peace (USIP) hosted a panel discussion about “Engaging the Muslim World” last week. The panel included Daniel Brumberg of USIP, Dina Shehata of the Al-Ahram Center, Omer Taspinar of the Brookings Institution, Palwasha Hassan of USIP and David Smock of the Center for Mediation and Conflict Resolution. Abiodun Williams moderated the panel. In addition, Congressman Keith Ellison (D-Minn.) delivered a keynote address.
To see POMED’s full notes of the events, please click here.
Posted in Afghanistan, DC Event Notes, Diplomacy, Foreign Aid, Freedom, Human Rights, Iraq, Islam and Democracy, Islamist movements, Legislation, Muslim Brotherhood, Political Islam, Political Parties, Reform, Secularism, Taliban, Turkey, US foreign policy, US politics, Women | Comment »
Censoring Moderate Arab Voices
October 14th, 2009 by Daniel
Cynthia Schneider and Nadia Oweidat argue in an essay on CNN’s website that liberal and moderate Arab voices are being shut out by censors. Contrary to popular belief, there are many Arab writers critical of religious extremism and supportive of moderation, women’s rights, and political liberalization. These voices are not heard because of governments across the Middle East destroy the books and block the websites they do not want their subjects to read. They call on the Obama administration not to “spoon-feed” democratic messages to the Middle East through programs like al-Hurra, but to condemn censorship and allow moderate Arab voices to be heard.
Posted in Egypt, Journalism, Middle Eastern Media, Secularism, US foreign policy, Women | Comment »
Journalism’s Win in Saudi
October 13th, 2009 by Jason
Writing for The Huffington Post, Faisal Abbas describes a recent clash over the new King Abdullah University of Science and Technology.
The conservative Sheikh Saad Al Shethry has recently criticized the university for allowing men and women to study together. Al Watan journalist Jamal Khashogji struck back, accusing Sheikh Al Shethry for “interrupting the progress of the nation” and providing moral support to those who live in the “Caves of Afghanistan.” An intense debate ensued, culminating with the surprise resignation of the Sheikh from the influential Council of Senior Scholars.
For Abbas, the episode is a “valuable lesson for Saudi journalists who often shy away from confronting sensitive social matters.”
Posted in Freedom, Human Rights, Political Islam, Saudi Arabia, Secularism, Taliban, Women, al-Qaeda | Comment »
U.S. and Egypt: Partners on Free Expression?
October 5th, 2009 by Daniel
The U.N. Human Rights Council, a body the U.S. only recently joined, passed a resolution on freedom of expression on Friday co-sponsored by the U.S. and Egypt. The Obama administration played up the resolution, which did not include a caveat to allow for the prohibition of religiously defamatory speech. In the past, Muslim countries have insisted on such protections. The Obama administration did try to temper expectations with the understanding that Egypt’s poor human rights record portend a delay before the enactment of change.
Some writers felt the language of the resolution still allowed for restrictions on free speech. The resolution’s condemnation of “racial and religious stereotyping” is an implicit endorsement of limits on free speech, writes Anne Bayefsky, who feels the Obama administration sacrificed too much in an effort to engage Muslim leaders. Eugene Volokh is also worried about the resolution’s anti-hate speech clauses, which he enumerates in a Huffington Post op-ed.
Posted in Egypt, Freedom, Human Rights, Islam and Democracy, Secularism, US foreign policy, United Nations | Comment »
Optimism for a Lebanese Government
September 25th, 2009 by Zack
Lebanese Prime Minister-designate Saad Hariri has embarked on a five-day round of deliberations with all factions in the parliament to build a unity government. The talks come after a suprise visit by Syrian President Bashar Assad to Saudi Arabia. Meris Lutz at Babylon and Beyond reports that Paul Salem, head of the Carnegie Middle East Center in Beirut, believes the conference focused on the Syrian-Saudi power struggles over Lebanon. Both Lutz and Mitchell Prothero, with the Nation, find optimism in the fact that Hezbollah leaders Mohammad Raad and Hassan Nasrallah continue to both call for calm and speak positively about the possibility of eventually forming a government. Additionally, the Druze Religious Council has come out with a statement urging the government “to rise above personal interests and political gains in favor of public service and national interests.”
Posted in Hezbollah, Lebanon, Political Parties, Secularism | Comment »
Deny Turkey E.U. Membership, but Support the Secularists
September 23rd, 2009 by Zack
Hugh Fitzgerald has posted a column with Jihad Watch tracing the rise of secularism in Turkey while arguing that Turkey itself should not be admitted to the E.U. Resulting from Ataturk’s systematic de-Islamization campaign, Fitzgerald recognizes the emergence of a secular class in Turkey that is tied to an Islamic identity through family and culture. These secularists “inhabit the same mental universe as do non-Muslim Westerners,” but these people are outnumbered and overwhelmed by the “primitive Muslim masses” that have migrated to Istanbul without shedding their previous devotion. This has facilitated the rise of the Islamist political ideology, spearheaded by Prime Minister Erdogan. Turkish secularists can understand the Islamists in ways the West is incapable and even though “we can’t allow them to dilute the problem by making it a matter for all the Infidels in the E.U.” what secularists “can and should be offered is understanding and support from the West.”
Posted in Political Islam, Sectarianism, Secularism, Turkey | Comment »
