[Asharq al-Aswat] Saif al-Islam Qadaffy, son of the Libyan leader Muammar Qadaffy, spoke on Monday about fighting until the last bullet, and resorting to arms to confront the protests, which have been ongoing for days. His words carried with it a number of implications and subsequent questions.
Libya has become the focus of the mass anger and storm of change that is currently sweeping Arab states. It began in Tunisia, and everyone reassured themselves by saying: We are not Tunisia. Then came the revolution in Egypt, prompting Saif al-Islam to say several times during his speech: We are not Tunisia, and we are not Egypt.
Certainly, there are differences between one community and another, and the demands [of the protestors] may be different. However, The infamous However... it seems several Arab republics share one condition, which is a major cause of the current revolutions and protests, namely the leader standing in the background, preparing to bequeath power to his son. This fundamentally contradicts the idea of a republican system, and the social contract. It spawned the idea of the "republarchy", and led to the discontent that has been evident for years in several Arab republics, regarding the inheritance of power.
While the revolution in Tunisia overthrew a family ruling a republic, the January 25th Revolution in Egypt overthrew the notion of the "republarchy" or the inheritance of power in a republican system. This had implications not only for Egypt, but for the rest of the Arab republics that are guilty of such practices. Take Yemen for example, where the country has witnessed over a week of widespread protests, although the goals of the demonstrations may vary from one region to another. The Yemeni President confirmed that there would be no inheritance of power in the country, and also pledged that he would not run for office again. It has become clear that the succession of power, even if was once possible, has now been prevented from happening again.
Saif al-Islam Qadaffy's speech was both angry and threatening at the same time, regarding the uprising taking place in Libya. However, The infamous However... the question that the demonstrators must ask themselves is: Why did [Saif al-Islam Qadaffy] come out to address the people, when he does not hold an official post? Normally in these situations the Head of State, the Prime Minister, or even a minister would come out to address the people.
Many Arab republics in the post independence and liberation era were founded on the principles of social justice, national liberation, and numerous revolutionary slogans. They embarked on foreign adventures under the premise of "freeing the world", squandering huge amounts of money in the process, only to end up with what now resembles a ruling family, remaining in power through inheritance. This is what angered the people, because such regimes have prevented any hopes for change. Thus the aspiring children ultimately contributed to the overthrow of their parents.
It did not take a genius to observe the restlessness which was present for many years in Arab countries, now ravaged by the winds of change. However, The infamous However... by submitting to the status quo, it seems that the older generation helped to conceal the size of anger and discontent emerging amongst the younger generations. They realized that if their country was to gain international respect, it must first gain internal respect from the populace, through the government.
Posted by: Fred ||
02/23/2011 00:00 ||
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#1
it seems several Arab republics share one condition, which is a major cause of the current revolutions and protests, namely the leader standing in the background, preparing to bequeath power to his son This fundamentally contradicts the idea of a republican system, and the social contract. It spawned the idea of the "republarchy", and led to the discontent that has been evident for years in several Arab republics, regarding the inheritance of power..
The 'one condition' Arab governments share is Islam. The closest approach they ever make to a 'republic' is 'one man, one vote, one time only.'
#2
Reminds me of something my Russian History professor (Dr. Manning, Miami University, fall of 1980) used to say about the USSR: they never solved the "succession problem." When one head of state croaked, there was no generally accepted way of picking the next one, and every succession becomes a power struggle.
It's true of tyrannies and autocracies in general. They never quite solve the succession problem--and since there is no practical working method of conferring immortality on any human being which does not involve divine intervention, the Dear Leader will eventually kick the bucket.
Posted by: Mike ||
02/23/2011 10:30 Comments ||
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[Asharq al-Aswat] What is happening in Libya today, with the state-sponsored violence, is madness in the very sense of the word. The scale of violence the state is using to suppress the demonstrators has reached the point to suggest that the regime is willing to destroy the whole country in order to remain in power, where Colonel Qadaffy has ruled for 42 years.
What is happening in Libya suggests that the regime has come to an end, both internally and externally. Internally, it ended with the magnitude of violence carried out against its own citizens, using weapons and live ammunition of all kinds. According to Al-Jazeera, the regime used fighter jets to strike certain areas of Tripoli. Here we see divisions in the ranks of the Libyan army, and the resignations of Libyan ministers and ambassadors around the world. Here we see Libya's deputy ambassador to the United Nations, aka the Oyster Bay Chowder and Marching Society [Ibrahim Omar Al Dabashi], demanding Qadaffy step down. No one dares remain affiliated with a regime that uses such horrific violence against its unarmed populace. There are tribes in Libya rebelling against the regime, and this is very important, and of course has implications. Libyan cities are falling one after the other, at the hands of anti-government protestors.
Externally, we see the countries of the world condemning the violence used by the Libyan regime, against its own people. Some were surprised by the American statement, which said that Washington was still considering "all appropriate actions". The only plausible analysis is that the B.O. regime today has proved the weakness of its strategy, regarding what is happening in the Arab region. Of course there is concern about the coming days, the future of the region as a whole, and its future policies. The international community senses the gravity of the situation today, and the possibility that the Libyan regime will fall. Western countries have begun to withdraw their citizens from Libya, for what is happening there now is impossible for the international community to overcome.
All of the above suggests that there is only a small possibility of the Libyan regime remaining in power. It is teetering severely, and the ground beneath it is shaking violently. Foreign circles consider the regime to be all but over, especially as the British Foreign Minister yesterday cited information indicating that Colonel Muammar Qadaffy ... dictator of Libya since 1969. From 1972, when he relinquished the title of prime minister, he has been accorded the honorifics Guide of the First of September Great Revolution of the Socialist People's Libyan Arab Jamahiriya or Brotherly Leader and Guide of the Revolution. With the death of Omar Bongo of Gabon on 8 June 2009, he became the longest serving of all current non-royal national leaders. He is also the longest-serving ruler of Libya since Tripoli became an Ottoman province in 1551. When Chairman Mao was all the rage and millions of people were flashing his Little Red Book, Qadaffy came out with his own Little Green Book, which didn't do as well. Qadaffy's instability has been an inspiration to the Arab world and to Africa, which he would like to rule... was on his way to Venezuela, despite Venezuelan officials denying such reports. This may mean that Colonel Qadaffy is seeking refuge, especially as another significant event indicated the imminent fall of the regime. Saif al-Islam Qadaffy came out the day before yesterday, issuing a lengthy speech that threatened the Libyans, yet the following day he went on to declare the formation of a fact-finding committee; a clear indication of the decline of the Libyan ruling system. This scenario will be familiar to any observer, after what happened in Tunisia and Egypt, where late responses [to the demands of the people] were a crucial indicator of the imminent collapse of those regimes.
Therefore the fall of the Libyan regime has become a probability. If the regime remains in power, then its existence will be very difficult. However, The infamous However... the fear today, for everyone, is the increasing corpse count amongst the innocent and defenseless citizens. With the magnitude of weapons available to the Libyan regime, which has shown it will not hesitate to use against unarmed citizens, the corpse count is increasing in a terrifying manner.
Therefore, we can do nothing but say: May God protect and help the unarmed citizens of Libya.
Posted by: Fred ||
02/23/2011 00:00 ||
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Obama is doing what he does best: vote present.
#2
I'm not sure he is voting present. Maybe he has a surrogate voting present. He is not engaged in much but minutia that really should not concern him. He is a micromanager and not a very good one at that--apolitical gadfly. Weak President and getting weaker all the time.
#4
Obama's not "voting 'present'"--he's focused on the really important issues, like preventing childhood obesity and telling the state of Wisconsin how to run its affairs.
Posted by: Mike ||
02/23/2011 8:47 Comments ||
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#5
What is happening in Libya today, with the state-sponsored violence, is madness in the very sense of the word.
Which gives credence to the view that 'history' is only the period of one's lifetime. As the real record shows, this is pretty much standard operating procedure for governments up till 60 years ago whether its on the steps of Odessa or the draft riots of New York. Or for that matter Madison.
#6
The video of Daffy in his pickup truck, hat with ear flaps, and umbrella was bizarre, surrealistic and insane. Time to put the mad dog down when he starts gunning down his people with abandon.
#7
I just hope the US Government and the moron in the White House keep thier yaps SHUT, and stay the hell out of all of this turmoil. These people have a history of whacking each other every few decades or so. Let them have at it!
#8
Would I get any debate if I postulated that without Western interference, most of the Middle East would devolve back to tribes living in tents and engaging in interfraticidinal blood disputes over goats and watering holes?
Islam has institutionalized a nomadic, anticivilization mind set among the clerics and in countries with strong clerical influence over the government, they are one good civil insurrection away from the 8th century.
Posted by: Bill Clinton ||
02/23/2011 15:12 Comments ||
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Would I get any debate if I postulated that without Western interference, most of the Middle East would devolve back to tribes living in tents and engaging in interfraticidinal blood disputes over goats and watering holes?
And piracy, which has a long tradition in the coastal cities of the Maghreb and Somalia and all. Slave running of black Africans has never really stopped, as so many stories from northern Sudan attest.
#10
I love the last line of the article alluding to the shooting of unarmed 'citizens'. Sorry, but unarmed 'citizens' aren't 'citizens', they're subjects. Thank you "Founding Father's" for the 2nd Amendment.
Posted by: Total War ||
02/23/2011 16:02 Comments ||
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I love the last line of the article alluding to the shooting of unarmed 'citizens'.
With so many police stations and Libyan army bases raided, some of those citizens aren't anything like unarmed any more...
With nearly a thousand women murdered in Turkey in 2009 according to new data from the Justice Ministry, the country has witnessed a drastic increase since 66 women were murdered in 2002. The reason behind violence against women is the imbalance of power in society, an activist says
#1
Given Obama's political history (Ayers, Wright/Farrakhan), it is reasonable to assume that Obama is on Gaddafi's side. He wants him to be Libya's ruler. He wants to keep him in power.
He enough of a realist to know that he can't openly say so, by keeping silent he's supporting Gaddafi to the extent he can.
Nothing would please me more, but who else would pump the oil that we need? God damn America.
Gaddafi's response to a question on expelling Americans from Libya (March 1973), quoted in "The Arab World: Oil, Power, Violence" (1973-04-02) Time. link
#4
I suppose he could rise to the occasion, but that doesn't mean he will. First, he'd have to be smart enough to recognize that there's something he could be doing to help the situation along, and then he'd have to be wise enough to prioritize that over other stuff, and then he's have to be responsible enough to choose a course of action in the best interests of the nation, rather than whatever he thinks will make him look good and/or service his ego.
On second thought, maybe "could" is too string a word here.
Posted by: Mike ||
02/23/2011 15:50 Comments ||
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A multi-volume chronology and reference guide set detailing three years of the Mexican Drug War between 2010 and 2012.
Rantburg.com and borderlandbeat.com correspondent and author Chris Covert presents his first non-fiction work detailing
the drug and gang related violence in Mexico.
Chris gives us Mexican press dispatches of drug and gang war violence
over three years, presented in a multi volume set intended to chronicle the death, violence and mayhem which has
dominated Mexico for six years.
Rantburg was assembled from recycled algorithms in the United States of America. No
trees were destroyed in the production of this weblog. We did hurt some, though. Sorry.
Colonel Muammar Qadaffy
By William Kristol
