Saturday, March 19, 2011

Allies and blind eyes turned

What happened to the "universal values" US President Barack Obama cited when he eventually chose to back protesters in Egypt?

"The US always preaches values that it cannot live up to," says Marina Ottaway, director of the Middle East programme at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace in Washington. "In the end, its interests come first."

What's the difference between Libya and Yemen or Bahrain? All three states have been using violence to crush pro-democracy protests. But only against Libya are the US and its Western allies planning a military response. Yemen and Bahrain's crackdowns have so far been met only with words, not action.

The answer is obvious. Bahrain and Yemen are US allies - especially Bahrain with its large US naval base. Libya is not.

Having watched Tunisia and Egypt go, other Arab leaders are following Libya's lead in drawing a line in the sand and opting for force rather than dialogue.

Meantime in Ivory Coast, a statement from the UN mission in Ivory Coast says that about 100 people were killed or maimed by at least six 81mm mortar shells. "Such an act, perpetrated against civilians, could constitute a crime against humanity," it says. 370,000 people have fled recent clashes in Ivory Coast's main city, Abidjan.

The Socialist Party

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