On Tuesday, 2 July 2024, the Cairo Institute for Human Rights Studies (CIHRS) held a seminar as part of the monthly activities of Salon Ibn Rushd, titled ‘The double standards of the West and Arab public opinion… amid interest and political psychology’. The seminar raised questions about the double standards of Western governments on major humanitarian issues in the region, and the disparity in the position and interest of Arab public opinion in these issues, from the situation in Gaza compared to similar situations in Sudan, Yemen and Syria. The salon hosted former Sudanese Minister of Culture and Information Faisal Mohammad Salih and Syrian human rights activist and lawyer Anwar al-Bunni. The salon was moderated by Tunisian human rights defender Messaoud Romdhani.
Human rights activist Anwar al-Bunni began the discussion by asserting that the West cannot alone be accused of double standards, as Arabs also have double standards in most of their positions on regional issues, whether public opinion or Arab elites and governments. Al-Bunni said that the entire West cannot be viewed as one bloc, as the positions of Western peoples may differ according to timing and the issue in question, and may differ from official state positions, and even the positions of one country may differ according to different ruling governments. Nevertheless, the main difference is that if the people (Western) have an opinion differing from that of their government, they can take to the streets to express it. There are also media outlets that convey protest and dissenting opinion, and perhaps the dissenting public could ouster a government in free elections. Al-Bunni added that this is far from the capabilities of Arab public opinion, which is constrained by a lack of democratic practice including the right to free expression, and has not witnessed a change in the ruling authority and a genuine succession of governments with different orientations.
Despite this, al-Bunni does not expect that at the present time Western public opinion will be able to create any real change in Western policies in favor of human rights issues, especially amid the rise of extreme right in Europe and the possibility of Trump returning as president of the United States. He further expressed doubts on the reality of the segment of Western public opinion prepared to win the electoral battle for human rights and the rights of Arab peoples, and on the reality of the size of the mass demonstrations in Europe that recently defended the rights of the Palestinian people. According to al-Bunni’s estimate, it does not represent more than 5% at most of the electoral bloc in Europe.
Writer and journalist Faisal Mohammad Salih attributed the West’s double standards to economic and political interests, including the standards of governing institutions and even media and donor institutions, among others. Salih added that these double standards often differ from the position of the peoples or the cultural and social elites of the West. This explains the dynamism, movement, and various pressure mechanisms witnessed by the West, Salih continued, including demonstrations and protests in support of the Palestinian cause. He noted that this while this conflict between interests (from the point of view of the ruling institution) and human values will continue, in most cases interests prevail not only over human rights values, but also over the rhetoric and even legislation and constitutions of Western governments themselves. Salih cited the example of the United States, which supports the investigations of the International Criminal Court in Sudan and calls for accountability for Sudanese war criminals while it has prevented some members of this court from entering American territory simply because the court moved to convict Israeli officials of crimes no less heinous than those committed in Sudan.
On the positions of Arab countries, Salih said regarding Sudan as an example, ‘We are not talking about double standards, but about indifference and disinterest. While UN agencies are calling on all countries to provide humanitarian aid to the afflicted people in Sudan, you will not find -except one Arab country- among the 40 countries that provided aid!’ On political interference, Salih added that among Arab countries that stood by and watched, others intervened to only achieve their interests, without any attempt to intervene to stop the conflict and war despite its impact on the warring parties. On the position of Arab countries towards Sudanese refugees and how they treat them, Salih continued that you may find countries such as Uganda and Rwanda, which are not neighboring countries, more respectful of the rights and humanity of Sudanese refugees than neighboring Arab countries such as Egypt.
Al-Bunni blames mainly Arab public opinion, including the media, Arab elites, intellectuals, politicians and the opposition for their negligence towards Sudan, Yemen or Syria. Why did they ‘care much more about the burning of the Quran in Sweden than they did about the 13 million displaced persons and refugees in Syria?’. Salih considered the difficulty of claiming that there is an Arab public opinion, amid absence of basics on which public opinion is built, including the rights of information, free expression, free opinion and discussion, and the right to dissent. Salih explained that what is being discussed is not public opinion in its broad sense but rather the opinion of some cultural elites, who could have defended and promoted human rights values without discrimination or interests. Salih added that this is impossible amid the ongoing oppression in the region.
According to al-Bunni, the slogan ‘No voice is louder than the voice of battle’, was one of the most important tools for suppressing the opposition and the elite in all Arab countries. He added that over time, this slogan turned into an idea that took root and was adopted by all authoritarian rulers in the region. He continued that in the name of battle, whatever its type and whoever the enemy is, Arab dictatorships continue to suppress all freedoms and tighten their grip on Arab public opinion. Al-Bunni noted that suppressing and controlling the media has further played a major role in shaping the memory and awareness of Arab public opinion in a selective and biased manner in favor of the interests of the funding party, focusing on what enhances its image and ignoring everything that undermines it. He gave an example of Bashar al-Assad’s regime; its media boasted about the regime’s patriotism only because it is hostile to Israel while deliberately ignoring the fact that Assad committed massacres against Palestinians in Lebanon in the Tal Zaatar camp. He continued that no one mentions these massacres, because ‘we create a public opinion that serves our interests’, not to mention that the countries managing this media are the same countries managing the conflict in the region and sometimes arming its parties. So, Al-Bunni concluded, ‘What do you expect from them when we entrust them with creating Arab public opinion?’
Watch the full seminar:
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