Arabs debate political reforms

When details of President George W. Bush's ambitious plan to promote democracy in the greater Middle East were leaked to the media, the reaction from Arab leaders was swift and unequivocal.

Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak, a key US ally, dismissed it as "delusional," while Lebanese Prime Minister Rafik Hariri called the plan "dangerous and sensitive."

Saudi Foreign Minister Saud al-Faisal, encapsulating the indignation felt by Arab officials, charged that "Those behind these plans ignore the fact that our Arab people have cultures rooted deep in history and that we are able to handle our own affairs."

Yet, even though President Bush's Greater Middle East Initiative has met with near universal rejection from Arab leaders, it has re-energized the debate on political, economic and social reforms in the region - and the role that outside pressure may play in promoting (or retarding) them.

The need for reform was set to replace the Middle East peace process as the main item on the agenda at a summit of Arab heads of state in Tunis last week, before a last minute postponement by the Tunisian President Zine el Abidine Ben Ali. Arab foreign ministers met beforehand and, according to Jordanian Foreign Minister Marwan Muasher, almost reached consensus on an unprecedented pan-Arab framework for reform.

"We came extremely close to agreeing on principles for reform before Tunis took its decision to postpone the summit," he says.

Mr. Muasher says the agreed areas of reform are public freedoms, women's rights, educational and judicial reform, a commitment to fighting terrorism and the liberalization of economies.

"After the Arab summit, hopefully, there will be a new yardstick by which everyone can measure reform, so that we don't just talk about reform as a lip service," he says.

President Bush's Greater Middle East Initiative calls on Arab and south Asian countries to adopt major political and economic reforms in exchange for greater cooperation from the West such as increased aid, security arrangements and access to the World Trade Organization. The president intended to present the finalized initiative at the Group of Eight (G-8) nations summit at Sea Island, Georgia, this summer.

But the plan was leaked to the media, apparently by the German foreign ministry, in February, sparking a critical backlash from Arab governments. Embarrassed Bush administration officials said it was an unfinished document and that they intended to discuss its contents with Arab governments. Nonetheless, the hostile reaction from Arab leaders appears to have forced the Bush administration to abandon the original version.

Arab governments say that the United States has no right to impose its version of democracy on the region. Such is the Arab distrust of Washington that US attempts to promote democracy in the Middle East can end up undermining the efforts of genuine homegrown Arab reformists.

Mr. Muasher says that foreign intervention was "unhelpful" and should be limited to supporting Arab initiatives.

"We are faced with a situation today where [Arab] reformists are being labeled as US agents," he says. "If the international community helps us achieve reform after we come out with [our own] blueprint in the Arab world, then that is welcome. But in terms of a blueprint initiated by the outside world, I don't think that will be helpful."

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