EGYPTIAN DEMOCRACY: A CRITICAL MOMENT

JAZZMAN CHRONICLES. DISSEMINATE FREELY.

Nothing frightens the ruling elite more than a fresh new wave of democracy. When the people are empowered to challenge repressive governments on the streets, a challenge to the corporate dominance that shapes world economic policy cannot be far behind.

The events in Tunisia and Egypt with rumors of upheaval in Yemen and Jordan have sent shock waves through the halls of power in every boardroom of every corporate monolith and every war room of their protectorates in government.

Democratic governments are facing a dilemma: How to frame the emergence of a democratic movement in an oppressed nation as a double-edged sword?

All governments have a stake in these affairs and all must feel obliged to hedge their bets. If WikiLeaks is worth its weight in gigabytes we will begin to see a rising tide of government duplicity as the uncertainty of Hosni Mubarak’s reign takes hold.

Mubarak is at a familiar crossroad and one that has awaited him for more than three decades. It is a test for which he is ill prepared and one that virtually all dictators fail. He can yield to the inevitability of his government’s fall and pave the way to democracy or he can fight back with the full force of his repressive security apparatus in the vain hope that he can hold on to power. The first option would offer the possibility of a historical reprieve, painting the portrait of a complex leader who was late to recognize the winds of change but who ultimately gave way to prevent bloodshed and preserve his nation’s unity. The second would seal his fate as a ruthless dictator who fell in love with his own image, placing himself about the will of the people and the welfare of his nation.

Tragically, the opportunity for the more enlightened path may already have vanished, leaving Mubarak with only two remaining choices: Get out now and allow the nation to define its own future without him or stay and attempt to purge the opposition with brutal oppression.

The possibility of a purge is clearly present and foreboding. When we hear that a thousand prisoners armed with prison weaponry escaped to wander the streets of Cairo, we cannot but wonder at its timing. Whether it turns out to be an unfounded rumor, a deliberate act or gross negligence on the part of the prison, it is timed to provide a cover for a bloody crackdown.

Now, in the time of uncertainty, a time of great danger, a time that could foreshadow genocide, the people of the world who are able and willing have spoken: We support the Egyptian people in their struggle for freedom, human rights and democracy.

Now, in this time of uncertainty, it is time for the democratic governments of the world to stand with their people. In this equation of international affairs, no nation is more critical than the United States of America. We have supported this dictator with billions in economic and military aide for over thirty years, just as we supported his predecessor.

If we fail to stand with the people now we must accept our share of responsibility for what follows.

If we find the courage to declare our unqualified support for the Egyptian people in their struggle for democracy, Mubarak will almost certainly fall and the Egyptian military may be empowered to protect the people as civil society leads a transition to democracy.

Tragically, the odds of an American president defending democracy or freedom or human rights when doing so may risk geo-political interests are about as slim as an entrenched dictator voluntarily stepping down.

Just as Hosni Mubarak faced his moment of reckoning and failed to grasp it, President Obama confronts a similar test. At a time when his promise of a transformational presidency is receding on the domestic front, he has an opportunity to place democracy in its rightful place at the core of American diplomacy.

All American presidents give lip service to the causes of democracy and human rights but none have been willing to place our values on par with strategic or economic interests.

Obama could be the first.

I urge him to seize the moment.

More likely, he will follow the diplomatic handbook of strategic neutrality and the moment will pass him by.

Jazz.

JACK RANDOM IS THE AUTHOR OF THE JAZZMAN CHRONICLES (CROW DOG PRESS) AND GHOST DANCE INSURRECTION (DRY BONES PRESS). THE CHRONICLES HAVE BEEN POSTED ON NUMEROUS CITES OF THE WORLDWIDE WEB, INCLUDING THE ALBION MONITOR, BELLACIAO, BUZZLE, COUNTERPUNCH, DISSIDENT VOICE, THE NATIONAL FREE PRESS AND PACIFIC FREE PRESS. SEE WWW.JAZZMANCHRONICLES.BLOGSPOT.COM.