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AL-MOHARER AL-AUSTRALI (Arabic/English)
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1) A Protest for Algeria by Naji Alloush
Some Arabs with democratic inclinations have grown accustomed to
voicing protest upon the arrest of a writer or politician by an
Arab regime. And of course, they're right on track here, except for
the fact that they tend to complain only when tensions arise between
them and a given Arab government, but not when they have an
'alliance' with the arresting government!
Yet what's with some of these democratic Arabs, or non-democratic
Arabs even, standing speechless, neither clamorously nor calmly
protesting, nor declaring where they stand, before the massacres
of Algeria?! Isn't what's happening in Algeria worth a stance?
Surely, democratic and non-democratic Arabs alike both have more
than one concern preoccupying them because:
I - they find killings, arrests, and the wholesale confiscation of
rights rampant in this vast Arab homeland. There has been civil wars,
assassinations, counter-assassinations, and massive abuses of power.
Talk of democracy has turned into a sort of a cruel practical joke not
only because it now pertains to uplifting the face of local tyranny,
but also because it's become connected to justifying international
intervention, to be sponsored of course by the U.S. government.
Thus has 'democracy' turned into a thin veneer for occupying land,
displacing people, appropriating oil or natural gas, or for the
manipulations of foreign powers and the despotic plundering local
Arab groups working with or for them.
II - they find aspirants to political power talking good game about
democracy, ranting against tyranny while out of power, but once these
get hold of the helms, they unleash torrents of despotism till there
isn't any possible room for more...
III - they find the Arab regimes violating every sanctity and taboo,
so they wonder why they should condemn perpetrators of crimes from
among weaklings whom are not rulers. If they condemned them, wouldn't
they be supporting the oppressive rulers against the ruled?!
Nevertheless, Arab democrats and non-democrats alike are not really
decision-makers.
Their fathers and mothers have taught them not to 'meddle' in public
affairs. A slang proverb in Palestine warns: "Hide your head when the
state differs.." for no one shall give you mercy! Hence in the struggle
that is not governed by any rules or conventions except lust for power
and control, there's no protection for any, and people have to hide their
heads.
That is the case of Algeria too.
The killers show up suddenly to reap the people with sickles, axes,
machetes, and bullets. They don't discriminate between combatant and
non-combatant, man and woman, or baby-boy and baby-girl...They don't
even declare why they kill or what they want:
Do they want the Algerian people to support them against the
government? Or do they seek to show the people that the Algerian
government is incapable of protecting them?
Whatever the causes or excuses, palatable or not, these killings are
veritable crimes before which no Arab should remain silent. They should
be incriminated. All measures should be taken to stop them, and their
root causes should be tackled.
If fellow Arabs and Muslims don't do that, they should be held
accountable for what's happening and will happen to Algeria!
They'll be responsible for the exacerbation of the slaughter, the
disintegration of authority, and the further spread of the carnage
amongst more Algerian groups: Arabs and Berbers, peasants and urbanites,
the agents of France and the agents of the U.S, ..., or between
inhabitants of one region and another.
They'll also be responsible if an international intervention occurs
under the pretext of stopping the carnage. Such an intervention will
only protect the belligerent parties, and bring new antagonists into
the arena. It might even carry the conflict across into Morocco,
Tunisia, Mauritania, and Sudan.
However, as the Algerian government exhibits incompetence, and its armed
forces seem less than capable of bringing the continuous massacres to a
halt, the killers will continue their operations to make the government
feel ever more incompetent, and to make the Algerian people feel that the
government has become totally superfluous: Algerians should simply submit
to the rule of killers without hesitation or delay..
Therefore Arabs should do all they can to bring the massacre to an end,
and to stop the slaying, all the slaying, and to stave off a foreign
intervention. For eventually tolerating or demanding foreign intervention,
perhaps alongside another U.N.-sponsored natural gas-for-protection
deal, will only mean that the massacre has accomplished its objectives.
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2) An Islamic Perspective on the Massacre of Western Tourists
in Egypt
by Hicham Takache
[The following is an open letter to the editor of The Gazette of Montreal
in response to a November 18 cartoon, regarding the killing of western
tourists, and which featured "Islamic extremism" as a snarling mad dog
"with apologies to dogs everywhere"!]
Sir/Madame,
Salamu Alaikum (Peace be upon you),
As a practicing Muslim, following the basic fundamentals of Islam, I was
particularly shocked by the massacre of 70 innocent western tourists in
Egypt.
It reminded me of the same pain and anger I felt when I learned of the
massacre of innocent children in the UN compound at Qana, South Lebanon,
in April, 1996, where innocent people also fell victim to hatred and
political games.
The then Israeli Prime Minister, Shimon Peres, wanted to increase his
chances of winning the elections at the expense of innocent children in
South Lebanon ... Similarly, the Jammah al-Islamiyah in Egypt wanted to
put the squeeze on the government, and portray it as incompetent.
Both objectives do NOT justify the use of horror to achieve them.
The crime committed in Egypt makes me even sicker especially that it
was claimed by some group that calls itself Islamic.
Let me say it very loudly: There is nothing Islamic about killing innocent
western tourists. Islam never gave anyone the right to go and kill
blindly. This heinous crime is punishable by capital punishment under
Islamic law. The Holy Qura'an explains very clearly that those who kill
one innocent soul are as criminal as those who kill the whole humanity.
As a concerned Muslim I, as well, detest, object and oppose any
association made between the crime and Islam. Yet this is exactly what
your cartoon does. And that is wrong, immoral and irresponsible.
There are over one billion Muslims today, spread all over the world,
of which the vast majority detest and oppose the crime of killing the
tourists in Egypt. Furthermore, there are over half a million Muslims
in Canada, none of whom came forward to glorify that crime.
On their behalf, I say we're sick and tired of such crimes as well as
the attempt made by your cartoonist to link all Muslims to them.
As a media outlet with tremendous influence on public opinion, you have
more responsibility to distinguish between crime and Islam. You have no
right to spread hatred against all Muslims by associating the law-abiding
Muslim citizens of Canada with a crime committed by heinous criminals
somewhere else.
Rise to your responsibility and do NOT commit another crime on Canadian
soil by branding all Muslims as terrorists. My kids have had enough from
their classmates who terrorize them with strange looks and gestures of
hatred. All of which arise because of the media bashing that you have
become a part of.
Best Regards, Hicham Takache
3)The Response of the ADC to the Appeal to Lift Sanctions off
Iraq
By Dr. Hala Maksoud
[In the last issue of the Free Arab Voice we circulated an appeal to ADC
suggesting specific steps to take to help lift sanctions off Iraq.
Dozens signed that appeal (and still do), and we in turn delivered the
appeal and the signatures to Sam Husseini and Dr. Hala Maksoud of
ADC. In response we got the following letter from Dr. Maksoud, which
we publish below unedited, addressed to the persons who signed the
petition]
Dear Mr. Alloush,
Thank you for forwarding the petition asking ADC to take action on Iraq.
While it is heartening to see so many committed individuals come
together to express their concern, frankly I am surprised that the
petition seems to have been prompted by the impression that ADC is not
already active on the issue. I hope that in the future, you will seek
our input before launching a protest campaign so that we may have a
chance to share our news with you.
We launched the ADC Task Force on Iraq during our 14th National
Convention in order to unite the efforts of members, activists,
chapters, and other groups committed to lifting the sanctions on Iraq.
Since then, meetings with members of Congress, teach-ins, demonstrations,
interviews with the media (television, radio, newspapers), petition
drives, letter-writing, telephone and email campaigns have been conducted
and are ongoing.
The ADC Times has covered many of these activities. Anyone who is not a
member, and therefore does not get a copy of ADC Times, is welcome to
request a sample issue for a glimpse at our efforts to increase public
awareness of the suffering of the Iraqi people.
A week ago, we held a teach-in on Iraq at George Washington University
and delivered 7,000 signed petitions calling for a lifting of the embargo
to President Bill Clinton, Secretary of State Madeleine Albright, and UN
Secretary General Kofi Annan. The numerous press releases we have issued
about Iraq generated media coverage in outlets such as NPR, VOA and BBC
radio. ADC representatives have appeared on the Fox News Channel, which
broadcasts to over 12 million viewers nationwide, six times on their
main debate show, Hannity and Colmes. We helped ADC members get Op-Eds
calling for a lifting of the sanctions in major publications, such as
Newsday. We also got letters to the editor published in national
newspapers such as The New York Times and The Washington Times stressing
the need to lift the sanctions.
ADC chapters in various areas of the country also held demonstrations
-most recently in North Carolina and Minneapolis- which generated
considerable media coverage.
In addition, regular Action Alerts disseminated by ADC generated letters
of protest to members of Congress, the White House, the State Department,
and the UN.
All of these efforts are ongoing. The ADC staff has galvanized around the
issue, while at the same time continuing ADC's necessary work in other
areas. I hope the activities I just described give you an idea of the wide
range and scope of our efforts on behalf of the Iraqi people.
This campaign is the result of the combined efforts of the ADC staff,
chapters, members, supporters, sister organizations, and groups who
share our concern. It is only by uniting our voices that we can hope to
make a difference.
That is why I take this opportunity to urge you to help us by using the
same time and energy you devoted to sending this petition to ADC to,
this time, reach out to members of Congress, the media, U.S. and UN
officials, etc. By exposing the tremendous suffering of the Iraqi people
under the sanctions, we can work toward influencing public opinion and
ending the media's silence on the issue.
For all those who signed the petition, I thank them for their commitment
to the issue, and at the same time, I urge them to join the ADC Task
Force on Iraq and to sign the petition we have been circulating calling
for an end to the embargo. A copy of it is available on our website at
http://www.adc.org (Click on ADC Task Force on Iraq)
The upcoming issue of ADC Times (Dec.-Jan.) will outline in great detail
ADC's efforts in the past few weeks in light of the standoff with Iraq.
We, at ADC, appreciate your constructive criticism and your support.
Should you have any further questions about ADC activities, please do
not hesitate to contact me.
Sincerely,
Hala Maksoud
ADC President
P.S.: Please feel free to share my response with the persons who
signed the petition.
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4) Action Alert: Isn't the Sacrifice of about 1.4 Million
Human Beings Enough to Appease the Death Machine?
(A Brief Free Arab Voice Commentary on the Terror of the U.S. Government
against Iraqi Civilians)
It might look like the Iraqi government keeps challenging Zionist and
imperialist incursions on Iraqi sovereignty then backing off in a strange
cat and mouse game!
However, each time Iraq has back off after stating its legitimate case,
it was only to deprive the forces of death from any seemingly legal
pretext to go through with prepared plans to massively re-bombard Iraq.
Then another pretext is concocted, and Iraq in turn states its case
and strives to avert a military strike..
In the meantime, the same forces of evil are trying to alter Arab
perceptions of the symbiotic linkage between the U.S. government and
the so-called "Israel" by churning out alleged media reports about
Clinton and Netanyahu and how they just won't visit each other!!
So forget the whole slew of treaties and networks for military,
economic, and political cooperation between "Israel" and the U.S.!
The bosses won't visit, therefore Arabs, please conclude that this
administration is not as biased as its record shows, and hence it
shouldn't lack credibility as a mediator always eager to press Arab
regimes for more concessions.
The truth nevertheless is that the horrendous sanctions on Iraq have
killed about 1.4 million Iraqis, and regardless of any excuses or
justifications, and whether one is with or against the Iraqi regime,
intentionally killing so many civilians can't be but a criminal act
under any secular or religious code. Yet this is a death machine
running almost entirely on the energy of the U.S./U.K and the
U.S./'Israel' alliances and their policy objectives in the region.
Only a government and a media without shame would brazenly broadcast
and condone public Israeli threats to use nuclear weapons on Iraqis
while insisting on unlimited UNSCOM access to every bedroom and bathroom
in presidential palaces in Iraq allegedly to eradicate chemical
weapons.
It is clear therefore that to stop the death of innocent Iraqis, we
can't rely on the mercy or 'humanity' of the West. We as individuals
and as groups have a moral obligation to push our Arab and Islamic
organizations to do more on Iraq, even when they are good and active
already on the issue, as long as the sanctions are in place.
Press releases are not enough. We need to mobilize, organize, write,
and speak out to generate tremendous grass roots pressure to produce
tangible results and stronger stances against the death machine of
sanctions. Every little action counts. So let's do what we can to
stop the terror against Iraqi civilians: LIFT THE SANCTIONS NOW.
The Free Arab Voice
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