Bush dances with dictators

Bush dances with dictators

2

For too long, America has pursed its foreign policy interests by supporting and working with dictators in Pakistan and elsewhere. It is fair to say that the United States has played an overwhelming role in preventing democracy from taking root in Pakistan.

For too long, America has pursed its foreign policy interests by supporting and working with dictators. More often than not, the United States finds democracies unconducive to its interests and uproots them where they exist and prevents democracy from taking root elsewhere.

Over Pakistans 55-year history, America supported the military dictatorships of Generals Ayub Khan, Agha Muhammad Yahya Khan, Muhammad Zia ul Haq and, presently, Pervez Musharref. It is fair to say that the United States has played an overwhelming role in preventing democracy from taking root in Pakistan.

After his recent visit to Pakistan, Assistant Secretary of State Richard Armitage said several times on television that the administration is very happy with General Musharref and trusts him. In other words, the administration does not trust the Pakistani people, it trusts a Pakistani general.

The cold reality is that Americans value democracy and human rights at home, but their state and its leadership often crush those movements in other states. America is losing face all over the world. Even here, people are beginning to question the role of American policies around the world.

Havoc and disaster have been unleashed upon Afghanistan, plans are being made to invade Iraq and there is no sign of even-handedness in the conflict between Israelis and Palestinians. How do you think the world views the American administration?

Jihad is now a term that is akin to terrorism, but how much of that terrorism is a result of American policies?

There is a world consensus that the existence of democracy means the defeat of extremism. Pakistan is now a front-line state in the war against terrorism, but if several decades of democracy had been allowed in Pakistan, as opposed to the fostering of generals who were fighting the Cold War for American administrations, there would have been no terrorism in the region, no war and no front-line.

Were not alone in this perceptionin the September 1st edition of the New York Times in an editorial titled Dancing with Dictators, the Times argued that the administration will seem hypocritical if it claims to value democracy and then works with dictatorships to advance its short-term goals.

2002-09-09

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Urdu

News Pakistan

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Bush dances with dictators

Rehan Ansari

born-digital

article

For too long, America has pursed its foreign policy interests by supporting and working with dictato

yes

no

2002-09-09