Egyptian Columnist Speaks out for Democracy

Things are pretty bizarre when one can find pro-Western, pro-Israel, and anti-terror articles in the Egyptian press that the leftist media in the West would never touch. It is yet another positive consequence of the Allied toppling of Saddam, the pressure on Syria, and the liberation of Afghanistan, and is another feather in George W. Bush's cap.

Ahmad Naji Kamha is a researcher at the Al-Ahram Center for Political and Strategic Studies in Egypt. In an article titled "The Khan Al-Khalili Incident: Causes and Consequences," published in the Egyptian government daily Al-Ahram, he analyzes the causes for the April 7, 2005 terrorist attack at Khan Al-Khalili, in which Western tourists were attacked in Egypt, and proposes how to deal with such phenomena. Kamha criticizes the authorities for not letting the liberal Egyptian organizations convey a message of openness to the Egyptian people, and for having allowed various factions "who live in the mentality of the past" to spread anti-Western incitement and to call for Jihad against anything American. He calls upon the authorities to permit the activity of liberal organizations because this, in his view, would be the most effective response to religious and nationalist incitement. While leftist moonbats in the West are spreading paranoid conspiracy nonsense, here is an Egyptian speaking out against conspiracism!

"...If we really want to fight such incidents and to prevent them from occurring in the future, we must admit that we all - as the state, as intellectuals, and as a people - have failed to fulfill our duty... Let me start with the state. For close to thirty years, Egypt has decided ... to play an
active and primary role in establishing peace in the Middle East as a strategic option and for the benefit of all its citizens, including the Arab region and the three states in strategic proximity (Iran, Turkey, and Israel).

"This trend controls the [political] orientation of certain publications. It has helped to spread hatred of anything American and to disseminate the conspiratorial theory that Israel is behind every [violent] incident that occurs in Egypt. Thus, the state has failed to transmit its message regarding its strategic alliance with the U.S., as if it were afraid to confront the citizens with this truth.

"Yes, we are [the U.S.'s] allies, and this does not constitute a betrayal of any principle. This is an alliance aimed at reshaping the entire region on the basis of freedom and equality, and in order to change and awaken societies that deserve a better life. What is wrong with presenting this message loud and clear? Yes, we are [the U.S.'s] allies, and this alliance grows with every
crisis in the region.

"The state has made a mistake by letting its voice be weaker than the voices of the publications inciting for Jihad against anything American or Western, on the basis of attitudes shaped in a [past] era, which the authors of these publications refuse to believe has gone, never to return."