How Bahrain’s Progressives Lost Their Shadow: New Age Islam's Selection, 28 March 2017
New Age Islam Edit Bureau
28 March 2017
• How Bahrain’s Progressives Lost Their Shadow
By Sawsan Al Shaer
• Turkey Vs. Europe — Why The Escalation?
By Dr. Khaled M. Batarfi
• Don’t Be Fooled by Khamenei’s Machiavellian Speech
By Dr. Majid Rafizadeh
• War on Daesh: Poke The Nest And The Hornets Disperse
By Linda S. Heard
• Citizenship Rules Expose Double Standards In Lebanon
By Diana Moukalled
• Travelling Without My Laptop
By Abdulrahman Al-Rashed
• Westminster Attacker, The WhatsApp Fan
By Mashari Althaydi
• What to Expect From The Arab Summit
By Osama Al-Sharif
• We Must Act To Sponsor Goodness
By Khaled Almaeena
Compiled By New Age Islam Edit Bureau
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How Bahrain’s Progressives Lost Their Shadow
By Sawsan Al Shaer
27 March 2017
The Ministry of Justice in the Kingdom of Bahrain has filed a lawsuit seeking to dissolve the National Democratic Action Society (Waad) on grounds that it committed legal violations. Waad is one of the political groups, which has based its work on the principles of democracy and the civil state. It is part of the progressive enlightenment movement that struggled since it was in exile under the name of the National Liberation Front, a leftist and communist party. After it was established, Waad declared it was one of the opposition groups.
Practices are what test any political group’s speeches and loyalty to principles. Political elites are always preaching us when they criticize “authoritarian acts,” practices of individuals, and stances of other political parties. Actions are also supposed to reflect the principles on which these parties were formed and the latter are thus supposed to devote themselves to serve these values often conveyed through their speeches.
Daily practices should strive to harmonize rhetoric of the political groups and influence how they choose their alliances and electoral lists. Their rhetoric should also match their position vis-à-vis regarding laws and regarding women-related affairs, expatriates’ civil rights and pluralism, diversity and non-discrimination.
“The perfect speech” must harmonize with the civil state that these parties – including religious ones – aspire for. Even religious parties’ doctrines claim that they will not monopolize authority and that they accept pluralism, support women’s civil rights and reject discrimination.
During the past 14 years, since the formation of political parties was allowed, and permitted them to fully engage in political activities in Bahrain. We have witnessed varying degrees of schizophrenia related to groups’ rhetoric and practices. Many groups simply made statements that contradicted with their performances.
Progressive of democratic
The most shocking of these were the practices of movements that promote themselves as “progressive” or “democratic.” Bahrain was shocked by this just as much as the Lebanese people were shocked with the stances of the Free Patriotic Movement (FPM), which allied with Hezbollah – which is loyal to Iran.
With this alliance, the FPM contradicted the principles and values on which it was formed. The Bahraini group Waad has done the same. During an event announcing its vision, Waad said: “We, in the National Democratic Action Society, Waad, adhere to the concept of the democratic civil state which is the constitutional national state that’s based on the diversity of political groups and the diversity of ideological movements. This civil state is the opposite of the single-party state which practices are based on forced discrimination among citizens based on their tribal affiliation, religion and sect.”
Based on all this, we must ask where are all these civil principles when it comes to the alliance with religious parties, which operate based on narrow sectarian basis? For instance, a Shiite group has rejected other Shiites because their religious reference does not harmonize with the reference of the founders of Al-Wefaq National Islamic Society. How can you aid and help groups, which have been formed upon principles that violate and oppose your own principles?
Waad also claimed that it is the state’s duty and right to intervene to put an end to whatever breaches the country’s security. “Since maintaining security is one of the state’s essential tasks, then it’s also the state’s right to intervene to stop whatever harms security and to reinforce the principle of ‘security for all’ according to the principles of human rights,” it said.
Then it glorified all those killed while clashing with security forces and called them “martyrs,” thus contradicting its internal system and principles which it had previously announced. Let’s bear in mind that those who clash with the state and take up arms against it are preachers of a religious state that’s led by an Iranian religious reference whom they view as infallible.
Winning seats
Look at these contradictions or rather this schizophrenia related to these movements that claim they are progressive and civil. These movements have gone astray and fell apart while working hard to gain popularity or win parliamentary seats in the future. The rhetoric of religious parties contradicts with their practices in terms of pluralism and civil state-related matters. We understand this contradiction despite the fact that it is flagrant.
The first thing these religious groups greatly failed at was related to their partisan formation. These groups’ founders belong to the same sect or rather belong to the same part of the same sect but still failed to be diverse. For instance, the Islamic Minbar, i.e. the Muslim Brotherhood, is made up of Sunnis but the group failed to include a single Salafist among their ranks.
The Salafist movement did the same when it established its political party. Shiite parties, including Al-Wefaq and the Islamic Action Society, have done the same as they are both Shiites but there are sharp disagreements between them. However, why do groups which claim to end religious, ethnic and sectarian differences, throw themselves in the midst of religious groups? What else makes them do so other than the fact that they are movements which have lost their shadow.
Sawsan Al Shaer is a Bahraini writer and journalist.
Source: english.alarabiya.net/en/views/news/middle-east/2017/03/27/Progressive-movements-without-their-shadow.html
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Turkey Vs. Europe — Why The Escalation?
By Dr. Khaled M. Batarfi
March 28, 2017
“Is it in the interest of Turkey to strain relations with Europe?”, was the title of an article posted on a Turkish-affairs WhatsApp group. A member commented: “Yes, it is in our best interest to make Turks aware that the West is an enemy of Muslims and therefore Erdogan must succeed so we could resist and defeat them.”
Another replied: “Turkey should not gather so many enemies. We need to be patient in dealing with provocations. Time is in our favor because the arrival of extreme right-wing movements to power in Europe is a sign of its ruin. The Turkish Renaissance Project is progressing successfully and is the hope of Arabs and Muslims.”
A third commented: “Good politics is to seize opportunities in the fine area between friendships and enmities … to mediate between moderation and antagonism. This is a stage in history of high competitiveness among arrogant superpowers … and every error has a hefty price.”
I answered the first commentator who thought escalation was useful:
Yours is a jihadist, not a political speech. What is the difference between that and the logic of Al-Qaeda and Daesh (the so-called IS)? Turkey needs to reconcile with the whole world — not just with Israel and Iran — in order to continue its Renaissance Project.
By the way, if Europe is any devil, Russia is definitely not an angel. Still, Turkey has reconciled with Moscow despite its Syrian war crimes in cooperation with Iran, Israel, Hezbollah and Bashar regime. If we recall the tone of hostility after the downing of the Russian fighter jet and the Ship of Liberty incident, we’d find it similar to the speech against Europe, today. In time, interests and new realities changed that tone, and made former enemies good friends.
Wise leaders do not burn bridges with partners, or bypass logic, sense and sensibility to excite public emotions, and ride their waves for personal gains or electoral victories. There might come a time when you need to change tracks, return back or eat your words.
And lets not forget the hefty price paid by the European Muslim communities, in general, and Turkish, in particular, as a result of such escalation. The clash between a Muslim nation and Christian countries is fuelling religious differences, hateful rhetoric and racism, beside recalling Euro-Ottoman enmity. When we put this in the context of the Daesh terror attacks and the rise of the extreme right in the West, the escalation is evoking the wounds and justifying the stands of the religious and nationalist parties hostile to Islam and Muslims.
We urgently need to return to the pre-Al-Qaeda era, when the world was more open to Islam and Muslim communities, accepting their religious activities and respecting their human and national rights. As if all losses in this regard was not enough, here we are risking the their remaining rights of citizenship and residence.
I do not know the rationale behind the recent escalation with Europe, and whether the purpose of inflaming Turkish nationalism is to gain more votes in favor of the new constitution, or for other reason. But I fear for the future of Turkey, its security, stability and rise.
I also cannot comprehend the insistence on holding political rallies led by Turkish ministers in foreign countries without the consent of their authorities. Would Turkey accept if, say, Iran organized its presidential and parliamentary elections in Turkish cities for the Iranian community led by Iranian ministers without official invitation or approval? And what the response would be if Iran didn’t take no for an answer and called Turkey dictatorial?
Others respect our sovereign rights as much as we respect theirs. The world needs to close ranks to face the political, security and cultural dangers that threaten us all; to build bridges of cooperation, development; and to raise the spirit of tolerance and brotherhood. The escalation of conflicts and disputes in all directions, especially with partners and allies, does not serve us or help our cause.
Dear Turkey: How about going back to the “zero problems” strategy? It certainly makes more sense (and bring higher returns) than the politics of “problem escalation.»
Dr. Khaled M. Batarfi is a Saudi writer based in Jeddah.
Source: saudigazette.com.sa/opinion/turkey-vs-europe-escalation/
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Don’t Be Fooled by Khamenei’s Machiavellian Speech
By Dr. Majid Rafizadeh
27 March 2017
For nearly three decades, Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei has delivered speeches for Nowruz, the Iranian New Year.
This year, Khamenei’s speech was slightly different. It highlighted several crucial issues and contained some Machiavellian tactical shifts.
First of all, a large part of Khamenei’s speech focused on the nation’s economy. Khamenei repeated his underlying modus operandi, which is dodging responsibility by throwing the blame on the “government,” aka the president and his team.
Iran’s unemployment and inflation rates are at record highs, which can be a perilous source of unrest ahead of the presidential elections in early May. That is why Khamenei is attempting to show the people that he is their supporter, a sympathizer; that he is on the side of the people and against the “government.”
Khamenei stressed that “I and people” demand a better economy from the officials.
“I call the New Year a year of resistance economy, production and employment… The economy of resistance is a general term which is accompanied by production and employment. These are the sectors that everyone should focus on. I and the people demand that the dear and honorable officials focus on these two sectors, carry out tasks with planning and report the results to the people at the end of the year, God willing,” he said, according to Iran’s Tasnim News Agency. “The government has taken positive steps but they do not meet people’s expectations and mine.”
The idea that Khamenei is with the people and against the government is totally absurd. The government and Khamenei are not two distinct entities; Khamenei is the government. He is the final decision-maker in Iran’s domestic and foreign policy. There is no critical policy or law that passes without the blessing, order or approval of Khamenei. He manages the economy and holds the nation’s wealth and natural resources. He, his family members, his gilded circle, and the senior cadre of Iran’s Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) are among the wealthiest people in Iran. Khamenei is the richest man in the world, controlling a financial empire worth at least $10 billion more than Bill Gates’ fortune, according to some reports.
Another intriguing issue is that Iran’s President Hassan Rouhani, and the so-called moderate camp, are more than willing to play Khamenei’s game. This is the classic bad cop, good cop routine; they feed off each other. But when it comes to the economy, the real victims are the poor people who are being played by the moderates and the hard-liners.
What Khamenei left out is critical
On the other hand, while many media focused on Khamenei’s sympathetic view toward the people’s economic hardship, they failed to observe that it was what Khamenei left out of his speech that was more critical.
Every year, Khamenei uses the Nowruz speech to lash out at the US and the West. Last year he mocked then-President Barack Obama, even though Obama pursued an unprecedented appeasement toward Iran, which gave Tehran critical relief from sanctions, global legitimacy, allowed it to rejoin the global financial market, and provided billions of dollars in additional revenues.
Surprisingly, this year Khamenei did not even mention the US, the so-called “Great Satan.” This is because Khamenei is again, tactically and masterfully, attempting not to draw renewed pressure from Washington.
Ironically, whenever Khamenei feels that the American administration might take a robust stance against Iran’s aggressions, he tones down his rhetoric. On the other hand, whenever the US uses appeasement policies, Khamenei ratchets up his anti-American rhetoric or attacks against other countries in the region. From Khamenei’s perspective, President Trump might be sensitive and might react to anti-American rhetoric. As a result, for Khamenei it is crucial to temporarily tone it down until Trump is out of the White House.
Nevertheless, policymakers should not be tricked by Khamenei’s tactical shift. Iran’s real policies — including militaristic and expansionist schemes, interventions in the domestic affairs of other nations, the pursuit of regional hegemonic ambitions, violation of international laws, the rapidly advancing ballistic missile program, and anti-Americanism — have all been strengthened since January 2017.
• Dr. Majid Rafizadeh is a Harvard-educated, Iranian-American political scientist. He is a leading expert on Iran and US foreign policy, a businessman and president of the International American Council. He serves on the boards of the Harvard International Review, the Harvard International Relations Council and the US-Middle East Chamber for Commerce and Business.
Source: arabnews.com/node/1075066
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War On Daesh: Poke The Nest And The Hornets Disperse
By Linda S. Heard
27 March 2017
Daesh’s territorial gains are shrinking fast. The eastern side of Mosul has been liberated. It is only a matter of time before the western areas of Iraq’s second-largest city are cleansed of vicious barbarians whose only relation to humanity’s norms is their outer appearance.
Civilians are fleeing in droves. Their initial relief at leaving a giant prison is palpable but their misery is far from over. Hastily erected reception camps are full to overflowing. All that awaits women and children, often separated from husbands and sons undergoing investigation, is hunger, cold and mud.
Tragically, those who remain risk falling victim to coalition bombs and tank shells. The UN has registered its concern about the high number of civilian casualties. The Pentagon is investigating allegations that as many as 300 were killed in Iraq and Syria, including women and children, resulting from US-led airstrikes. Unfortunately, such mistakes serve as grist to Daesh’s anti-Western mill.
A major US-backed thrust to free the Syrian city of Raqqa, Daesh’s self-declared capital, is imminent. Reports indicate that Kurdish militias partnered with Arab tribes have been transported to the city’s periphery by helicopter in order to block Daesh’s escape routes.
On Friday, France’s minister of defence announced that “Raqqa is surrounded and the battle will begin in the coming days.”
Daesh’s bloodthirsty following
US President Donald Trump vowed to crush the so-called “Islamic State.” He has signed an executive memorandum directing the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, the director of the CIA, the treasury secretary among other senior team members to formulate strategies pinpointing new coalition partners, mechanisms to cut off Daesh’s financial support and ways of delegitimizing the group’s radical ideology.
But once the dust has settled and Iraqis and Syrians can set about rebuilding their lives, the concern is that Daesh’s battle-hardened minions, those who survive or are not captured, will attempt to return to their homelands bent on spilling innocent blood to provide the group’s bloodthirsty following with the illusion of victory.
Indeed, Daesh’s head honchos have long been preparing for the day after, encouraging “lone wolves” to kill as many as they can using guns, knives, lorries, cars, poison; basically anything that can be turned into a weapon. Returnees from Mosul and Raqqa will act as recruiters, directors of operations and weapons procurers. European capitals are particularly vulnerable, as Paris, Brussels, Berlin and London have learned to their cost.
Terror in Europe
Western governments would be wise to balance their liberal democratic values with the need for more intrusive border controls, increased security measures, tougher laws and expanded profiling.
It is worth noting that many European nationals turned terrorists have criminal backgrounds; others, including the British-born killer Khaled Masood, were at one time under investigation by intelligence agencies.
At the same time, efforts should be made to counter the spread of Daesh’s sick ideology. That is easier said than done and could take decades. Its propaganda disseminated on social media and via its own magazine is sophisticated and slick.
Bans targeting Muslim-majority countries will not cut it. On the contrary, they can be used to solidify Daesh’s arguments. An essential component of counter-terrorism is the winning of hearts and minds.
Authorities should work closely with local Muslim communities. Prominent Muslims who have been successful in various sectors could act as role models inspiring youth who feel they have been marginalized, deprived of opportunity or discriminated against.
Religious leaders should encourage family members to express any concerns they may have about the direction a brother, husband or son might be taking. If families speak up as soon as they notice a change in the personality of a love one, many young men could be rehabilitated before they destroy lives.
There are no quick fixes to this insidious phenomenon, a culture of death and will to power hiding under Islam’s cloak and warping the faith’s true messages of peace and tolerance. This is a global problem requiring global solutions and should be taken as seriously as climate change. Otherwise, Samuel Huntington’s hypothesis on a coming “clash of civilizations” could well manifest itself, impacting us all.
• Linda S. Heard is an author and columnist specializing in Middle East affairs.
Source: arabnews.com/node/1075061
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Citizenship Rules Expose Double Standards In Lebanon
By Diana Moukalled
27 March 2017
“My parents are from Lebanon, but I have never visited it. I want to be in touch with my family’s homeland.”
This is a line from a promotional website set up by the Lebanese Foreign Ministry, which aims to encourage expats of Lebanese origin to obtain citizenship.
The Foreign Ministry’s new online campaigns are targeting millions, and come after the country passed a law allowing expatriates who descend from Lebanon to be granted citizenship.
The carefully-written statements on the website attempt to camouflage the hidden sectarian message: The ads target mainly Christian Lebanese expats, in the hope their votes will come in handy in the upcoming elections.
It is a known fact that the majority of Lebanese in the diaspora, particularly in South America, are Christians. We can understand the efforts being made by President Michel Aoun and his son-in-law Gebran Bassil to attract Lebanese expats, as it is an attempt to bridge the demographic gap in Lebanon that is threatening the Christian presence.
With decades of immigration, the number of Christians has dropped so that they now do not comprise more than 36 percent of Lebanon’s population.
Yet this decline has not been reflected in the sectarian-based political quota system, which still splits the power in half between Christians and Muslims. There have reportedly been calls by some Islamic parties to bring about a political change, to reflect the current demographic situation.
It is still impossible to know the appetite among Lebanese expats to get citizenship, but a careful examination of the campaign’s Facebook page shows that there is scant enthusiasm for it.
What was the Foreign Ministry expecting?
This ministry is currently under the administration of Bassil, who was responsible for a series of positions that brought tensions to Lebanon’s relations with other Arab countries.
Bassil has also received negative reactions domestically over his hostile attitude toward Syrian refugees, his stance on the issue of giving Lebanese women the right to grant citizenship to their children, and many other problematic topics, particularly those involving the electoral system.
So, who are those entitled to citizenship under the program advertised by the government ads? The website says: “If you have a father or grandfather of Lebanese origins who left Lebanon without registering their children as citizens, or if you are a foreigner woman, married to a Lebanese man.”
But what about the rights of the children of Lebanese women? The website provides no mention of this.
This is a controversial issue, and one usually discussed behind closed doors. Many Lebanese married Syrians or other nationalities, and granting those husbands citizenship irks the Christian forces, the main opponents of Lebanese women having the right to pass citizenship to their children.
Sectarian and gender discrimination carried out by the Foreign Ministry is not a secret. Individuals aspiring for freedom informed by social justice and equality have no place in Lebanon yet.
• Diana Moukalled is a veteran journalist with extensive experience in both traditional and new media. She is also a columnist and freelance documentary producer.
Source: arabnews.com/node/1075056
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Travelling Without My Laptop
By Abdulrahman Al-Rashed
27 March 2017
Traveling by plane used to be a beautiful personal experience in the past as we used to welcome dear ones and bid them farewell at the airport gates. Those days are long gone as airports today are like military barricades packed with armed personnel and surveillance cameras. Security forces also board planes as innocent passengers to counter any potential threats.
Truth be told, threats posed by unstable people, from mentally ill patients to terrorists, are as old as flying by plane. In 1955, an American airplane on a domestic flight in the US was blown up. It is believed that someone put a bomb in his mother’s luggage to kill her and obtain the insurance payout. There are those who have discovered how easy it is to hijack planes and how it is the best and easiest way to make news across the globe, once the plane crashes.
In the 1960s and afterwards, most airplanes were hijacked by Cubans and not Arabs. Later in the 1970s, Arab and Palestinian leftist organizations realized the efficiency of hijacking planes to attract global attention to their cause. However, this tactic backfired and turned the perpetrators into terrorists in the world’s eyes.
The recent ban on carrying laptops and tablets in cabin baggage during flights from some countries in the Middle East to the US does not mean anything to me and perhaps to most passengers. Banning laptops is an addition to a long list of banned items, which include creams, perfumes and water bottles. We can live without all of these during the 13-hours flight to New York.
Gadgets onboard
Since we’re allowed to carry our cellular phones, our tool of connecting with the world, in the cabin, then it’s not difficult to give up on the rest of equipment. If cellular phones will be included in the ban – and this is possible – then some of us will think for a long time before they board a plane as phones have become part of everyone’s life, probably as essential as kidney and lungs.
However, the important question we forget to ask is: Are terrorist threats serious enough for measures being taken affecting passengers’ lives across the world and ruining the aviation industry?
There is certainly a war going on between terrorists and some governments, primarily the United States. All sorts of weapons are being used in this war and aviation is the number one target. During an event, an expert on terrorism said there was an ISIS cell meeting in Raqqah in Syria talking about carrying out a massive terrorist attack in the US, similar to the September 11 attacks.
Intelligence inputs
According to this expert, when relevant parties received intelligence information about this plan, the participants at the meeting were targeted. This particular story may not be true but it is almost certain that terrorists target flights because it is an easy way to achieve their objectives. There is no doubt that terrorists have succeeded in besieging the aviation industry that currently has lot of security concerns.
Banning passengers traveling from certain Middle Eastern countries from carrying certain items may make security officials feel a sense of relief but it will not deter terrorists who mastered deceitful tactics from achieving their goals. Terrorists no longer fit that old profile of a Muslim Middle Eastern teenage boy.
Everything is possible these days. The man who carried out the recent terrorist attack in London was 52 years old. He was a Christian who converted to Islam and was originally Jamaican. His profile lacks all the characteristics of a typical terrorist.
The world has failed to eliminate terrorism because the latter is not only about arms but also carries an ideology. Developing technology was the only hope left to counter it and diminish its role. However even technology has failed and has ended up becoming the terrorists’ tool to recruit people and direct operations from afar.
Abdulrahman al-Rashed is the former General Manager of Al Arabiya News Channel. A veteran and internationally acclaimed journalist, he is a former editor-in-chief of the London-based leading Arab daily Asharq al-Awsat, where he still regularly writes a political column. He has also served as the editor of Asharq al-Awsat’s sister publication, al-Majalla. Throughout his career, Rashed has interviewed several world leaders, with his articles garnering worldwide recognition, and he has successfully led Al Arabiya to the highly regarded, thriving and influential position it is in today.
Source: english.alarabiya.net/en/views/news/middle-east/2017/03/27/Travelling-without-my-laptop.html
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Westminster Attacker, the WhatsApp Fan
By Mashari Althaydi
27 March 2017
It turned out that ISIS terrorist Khalid Masood, who brutally killed people on the famous Westminster Bridge in London last week, had used WhatsApp two minutes before carrying out the attack. The British police said it could not access the message Masood sent because it was encrypted.
The messaging service has recently bragged about the updates of its famous app as it is trying to keep up with other companies – such as Snapchat and Telegram – providing similar services. Whatsapp had informed its clients that messages and calls are secured with end-to-end encryption, even if the caller is wanted by the authorities. They did not rudely say this but that’s the bottom line.
Britain is “the mother of democracy” in the world and the attack by Masood, ISIS’ criminal and the ignorant man who had converted from Christianity to Islam, was carried out near one of the oldest parliaments in the world. When symbols of the London government criticize internet companies for not cooperating with British security agencies, in order to protect people’s lives, then this means the situation is really serious.
Such companies have formed global lobbies and have little conscience. All they care about is making money and increasing the number of subscribers because the latter will mean increasing the company’s profit. It is a vicious circle of money and chaos.
These companies always try to put their interests first by exploiting fake liberal excuses in order to protect themselves and enhance their presence in the social media industry, which makes hundreds of billions in profit.
Technology for security
In an interview with BBC and in an article published in The Sunday Telegraph, British interior minister Amber Rudd scolded WhatsApp and similar companies for not cooperating with security authorities. Rudd said completely encrypting messages via services like WhatsApp “is completely unacceptable,” adding that organizations like WhatsApp and others must “not provide a secret place for terrorists to communicate with each other.”
Rudd also said these companies must “recognize that they have a responsibility to engage with government.” According to the Sunday Telegraph, Rudd said: “Each attack confirms again the role that the internet is playing in serving as a conduit, inciting and inspiring ¬violence, and spreading extremist ¬ideology of all kinds.”
In an interview with the Sunday Times, Britain’s foreign secretary Boris Johnson escalated the attack on internet companies and condemned their “disgusting failure” to remove militant websites. He also criticized web firms for running advertisements alongside videos with extremist content – in reference to an ad of a company that sells cars and spare parts displayed near the video of the Westminster terrorist attack.
Threat is growing as a result of the “chaos” spread by companies which only care about making profit worth hundreds of billions. These companies are aided by financial, media and political blocs that blindly defend them by resorting to empty excuses related to liberalism and “absolute” individual freedom.
What’s noticeable though is the growing resentment in the West on all this, and not against Arab governments. The West invented these technologies, and “he who summoned the demon must dismiss it.” How? They know better, and they are more capable.
Saudi journalist Mashari Althaydi presents Al Arabiya News Channel’s “views on the news” daily show “Maraya.” He has previously held the position of a managing senior editor for Saudi Arabia & Gulf region at pan-Arab newspaper Asharq al-Awsat. Althaydi has published several papers on political Islam and social history of Saudi Arabia. He appears as a guest on several radio and television programs to discuss the ideologies of extremist groups and terrorists. He tweets under @MAlthaydy.
Source: english.alarabiya.net/en/views/news/middle-east/2017/03/27/Westminster-attacker-the-WhatsApp-fan.html
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What To Expect From The Arab Summit
By Osama Al-Sharif
27 March 2017
Arab leaders meeting at the Dead Sea on Wednesday are not expected to adopt momentous resolutions that could spell a departure from previous positions on key issues including Palestine, Syria, Yemen, Libya and the war on terror.
But the overall message from the 28th Arab Summit will be one of unity, as underlined by the senior level of attendance, expected side meetings between prominent Arab heads of state, and the substance of the Amman Declaration, which will be adopted at the end of the summit. For the host country, presenting a united Arab front on crucial issues will be a major breakthrough.
That does not mean the summit will set aside Arab states’ differences on a number of critical dossiers including Syria, Iran’s regional meddling and Libya’s legitimate representative. But King Abdallah will seek to achieve conformity over basic principles that represent the least common denominator on otherwise divisive issues. Side meetings will see personal mediations to end bilateral rifts and reset relations.
For Jordan it is vital to resurrect the moderate Arab camp, which can initiate a dialogue with world powers on issues such as Syria, Palestine, Libya and the war on terror. Representatives from the US, Russia and the UN will attend the discussions, and Jordan understands the need to reengage the Arab League in regional issues and hopefully reclaim the initiative.
On the divisive issue of Syria, Arab leaders will underline the importance of finding and implementing a political solution that ends more than six years of bloodshed and destruction. Jordan will try to steer through a number of difficult hurdles, such as the fate of the Syrian regime, Arab and foreign involvement in backing various sides in the conflict, and the shape of the political transition that is being discussed in Geneva.
It is no secret that the Syrian conflict has polarized Arab leaderships. Jordan has abided by Arab League resolutions to suspend Syria’s membership, but it also refused to invite representatives of the Syrian opposition to the meeting. This is a significant development that represents Jordan’s attempt to follow a middle and independent path on Syria.
On the Palestinian issue, where Jordan has direct national security interests, King Abdallah is seeking to reposition it, after years of neglect, as a central cause for all Arabs. The timing is important, coinciding with an apparent US departure from a cornerstone of a just and lasting political settlement: The internationally backed two-state solution, which entails establishing a Palestinian state in the territories occupied by Israel in 1967, including East Jerusalem.
While Arab leaders will reinstate their commitment to the Arab Peace Initiative of 2002, they will also discuss behind closed doors the possible implications of, and responses to, a US proposal to convene a regional peace conference this summer.
All eyes will be on Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, who according to Arab League Secretary-General Ahmed Aboul Gheit may be considering presenting new ideas at the meeting. Palestinian sources have denied this.
In light of the vagueness of the US proposal, Arab leaders are not expected to change their position, but will seek answers as Egyptian President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi, King Abdallah and Abbas each head on separate state visits to Washington in April.
Recommitting to the Arab Peace Initiative represents a last-ditch attempt by Arab countries to seek a comprehensive peace deal with Israel in return for the latter’s acceptance of the two-state solution in accordance with UN resolutions and the Oslo Accords.
The challenge will be to maintain this united stand before mounting US pressure to adopt an alternative route. No doubt King Abdallah, as head of the Arab Summit, will stress during his meeting with President Donald Trump the dangers of abandoning the two-state solution.
On Yemen, Arab leaders will back legitimacy, relevant UN resolutions and the initiative sponsored by the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC). Iran’s intervention in Arab affairs will occupy a major part of discussions and will certainly be condemned, but Jordan will also seek to send a message to Tehran to opt for diplomacy and normalize relations with the Arab world.
Libya and the future of the Government of National Accord (GNA) will present a challenge, as the fate of the Sukhairat agreement remains unclear. The summit, while backing the GNA, is unlikely to end Libya’s multi-government, multi-Parliament reality.
The summit’s resolutions and the Amman Declaration will not be short of clichés. What will be put to the test is the ability to summon the political will to address immediate challenges that are not restricted to political issues but include social, economic and cultural ones.
At the heart of all this is Arab leaders’ willingness to go ahead with the restructuring of the Arab League so it can function as a viable pan-Arab vehicle in the 21st century. Despite previous efforts, the 22-member organization has failed to reinvent itself in a way that can affect the present and future of the Arab world. More importantly perhaps, it has ceased to inspire Arabs, whose lack of trust in it has reached unprecedented levels.
• Osama Al-Sharif is a journalist and political commentator based in Amman.
Source: arabnews.com/node/1075086
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We Must Act To Sponsor Goodness
By Khaled Almaeena
27 March 2017
“Sponsors will be fined and punished for failure to renew muqeem or resident cards of their employees on time,” according to a recent ruling of Jawazat (General Directorate of Passports).
The punishment will include suspension of electronic services being provided to the sponsors. According to the new regulations, the punishments would be doubled in case the violations were repeated.
Also, there was a report that sponsors should not keep the passports of their expatriate employees. Some employers have implemented this ruling, but many have dithered. This measure, however, is redundant as the sponsor still has a life and death hold over his employees.
Let us not fool ourselves. The present sponsorship system is totally outdated and is a form of slavery. I write this again and again as a citizen who does not want his country to be flayed in media reports. It’s always the poor employee who is at fault. There are cases where employees have not been paid for two years.
Their cases in the Labor court are lying in either a moribund state or the hearing gets put off repeatedly with the sponsors failing to appear, and their constant pleas for help go unanswered. The modus operandi runs like this.
For a transfer, many of the employers ask for a large sum and if not paid they go and register the employee as “huroob”. In some cases, the employee is coming to the office daily with no knowledge of his “precarious” status.
In a heartbreaking case, an employer asked for SR30,000 to remove the huroob while the poor man’s wife was dying of cancer in a hospital. Some kind-hearted Saudis collected the money to pay.
In another case, a court in Riyadh had cleared an expatriate of all charges against him but the sponsor still held his iqama and did not relent even though the poor man was suffering from a heart problem and living in misery.
Suffering to philanthropy
Hundreds of similar cases exist. For we repeatedly hear such cases, with varying degree of suffering, and many generous acts of philanthropy.
And I would suggest that the Minister of Labor himself, along with a group of righteous citizen, the Director General of Passports, and members of the Human Rights Commission, visit deportation centers to see and hear for themselves from those detained there.
This is very crucial for obtaining an accurate report that will help us resolve this issue once and for all. We can emulate Qatar in reforming the sponsorship system. They planned the reforms and then acted on it. Last December, Qatar abolished the kafala (sponsorship) system and implemented new reforms to improve workers’ rights.
The new law replaces the Kafala system with a modernized, contract-based system that safeguards worker rights and increases job flexibility, freedom and protection to Qatar’s salaried workforce. We cannot continue like this. We have to put a stop to this and until affirmative action is taken from the top nothing will be done.
We should not allow some of our ruthless and greedy citizens to spoil the image of our country. I have said this before and I will say it now. I don’t want the curse of any mazloom (oppressed) on our people and country.
Khaled Almaeena is a veteran Saudi journalist, commentator, businessman and the editor-at-large of the Saudi Gazette. Almaeena has held a broad range of positions in Saudi media for over thirty years, including CEO of a PR firm, Saudi Television news anchor, talk show host, radio announcer, lecturer and journalist. As a journalist, Almaeena has represented Saudi media at Arab summits in Baghdad, Morocco and elsewhere. In 1990, he was one of four journalists to cover the historic resumption of diplomatic ties between Saudi Arabia and Russia. He also traveled to China as part of this diplomatic mission. Almaeena's political and social columns appear regularly in Gulf News, Asharq al-Aswat, al-Eqtisadiah, Arab News, Times of Oman, Asian Age and The China Post.
Source: english.alarabiya.net/en/views/news/middle-east/2017/03/27/We-must-act-to-sponsor-goodness.html
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URL: https://www.newageislam.com/middle-east-press/how-bahrains-progressives-lost-their/d/110553