Don’t bother
Rime Allaf, May 18, 2011
President Obama and Special Envoy George Mitchell.
In the space of a couple of weeks, Arabs were reminded of two issues that had become rather insignificant for them over the years, especially following the invasion of Iraq; first, the existence -- and the demise -- of the infamous leader of Al Qaeda, and second, the existence -- and the resignation -- of the latest U.S. envoy to the Middle East.
If many were surprised by the overt self-congratulatory reactions to Osama Bin Laden’s killing, even taking into account the enormous impact of 9/11 on the American psyche, most did not even register George Mitchell’s announcement that he was giving up his position. Indeed, in a region sweltering in the rising heat of the Arab spring, the focus has been on uprisings driven by secular popular movements, joining people from every political, social and ideological background in a common struggle against the tyranny of stagnant, corrupt regimes. In such settings, from the Atlantic to the Gulf, Arabs have had no time for extremists preaching archaic messages, and Bin Laden’s voice had neither been played nor heard in the newly baptized liberation squares in various capitals.
Likewise, U.S. statements relating to Arab affairs have not been well received since President Obama’s public backtracking on the issue of Israeli settlements on occupied Palestinian land, and Arab anger has increased with each successive American position on the nascent Arab revolutions. From initial shock in Tunisia, to hesitant generalities about demonstration rights in Egypt and Yemen, to practical silence when the heaviest repressions began in Bahrain and Syria, the U.S. position did not shine by its principles. Apart from the blatant case of Libya, one could be tempted to surmise that the U.S. was suddenly uninterested and uninvolved in the Arab world.
But for better or for worse, the U.S. is not only still interested, it is increasingly involved in the affairs of the Arab world, trying to recover the ground lost after the fall of two strong allies. While Ben Ali’s departure may have momentarily shaken its relation with Tunisia, the fall of Mubarak threatened to change much more than its alliance with Egypt, as the revolutionaries continue to denounce the country’s perceived subservience to Israel, to demand the opening of the border with Gaza, and to support the Palestinian cause in all its ramifications.
The U.S. will be working to adapt to the new leaderships quickly and to work around new alliances, including the recent reconciliation between the two leading Palestinian factions, Fatah and Hamas. While the declared U.S. goal remains to achieve peace in the region and to support peoples’ aspirations, there is little point in re-appointing an envoy to the region if the U.S. continues its current policy of acquiescence to all Israeli demands -- and to all Gulf regime demands as well.
Indeed, short of someone with the moral caliber and the independence of a Nelson Mandela, no envoy will ever achieve anything if he is merely in damage-control mode -- or, worse, in election mode. The message to the Arab world would be clear: the U.S. only cares when it’s about oil, and when it’s about Israel.
It doesn’t need to be mission impossible, and there is always the minute chance that President Obama will begin laying the ground for a legacy of which others have only dreamed. On Thursday, addressing an Arab audience which has rejected empty rhetoric, the U.S. president can declare that all people will be treated equally in their quest for justice and freedom; that all regimes and all governments will be treated equally if they deny them those rights; that a better, fairer settlement than the one Israel was pushing, and the Palestinian Authority was willing to take, will be imposed; that international law stands above all else; and that nobody is above those principles.
It’s a dream, but somebody’s gotta have it.
