Middle East Policy

Op-Ed: A Dying Man's Cry for Freedom in Iran By Max Boot Los Angeles Times, August 10, 2005 The headlines out of Tehran concern the predictable failure of yet another round of farcical negotiations designed to stop Iran's nuclear weapons program. Meanwhile, a much more dramatic story is unfolding with much less attention. Investigative journalist Akbar Ganji has been on a hunger strike since June 11 to protest his unwarranted imprisonment over the last five years for the crime of criticizing the theocratic thugs who have hijacked his country. Recently, he has been moved from prison to a hospital, where he is said to be at death's door. His condition is so perilous that even his advocate - lawyer and 2003 Nobel Peace Prize winner Shirin Ebadi - has urged him to end his fast, but he has so far refused. Having lost a great deal of weight, he is apparently being kept alive only by intravenous fluids. Ganji deserves to become as famous as Nelson Mandela, Andrei Sakharov, Vaclav

Women in the new Iraq Some reports from Iraq have made me concerned about women rights in Iraq. Actually, I do not like to use the term of “women rights” because of its discriminating implication, the human rights term fulfills all including unquestionable equality between man and woman. I know clearly that the United States avoids any colonial behavior in Iraq and that is good but under normative consideration leading to a consistent practice with the liberation course. The human rights are something that the Iraqi leaders must clearly know it exceeds their jurisdiction. They are not an Iraqi affair they are a human and international affair. I hope that the President Bush would tackle this important question seriously. Following are related materials: (Thanks to the Foundation for the Defense of Democracies for gathering these materials) Women Fear Imposition of Islamic Law in Iraq Associated Press August 5, 2005 The president of the Women's Alliance for a Democratic Iraq says she

Op-Ed: They're leaving Gaza, so what's next? By Ziad Asali August 17, 2005 The Daily Star As Israel begins its withdrawal from the Gaza Strip and parts of the northern West Bank, it is clear that this presents, for all those committed to an end to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, a moment of truth. If we are to eventually have two states, Israel and Palestine, living side by side in peace, it is imperative that all parties play their part to ensure that the disengagement is marked by a successful transition to orderly and effective Palestinian rule. Palestinians will still be surrounded on all sides by the Israeli military, but they will have to administer significant areas of territory with a population of over a million people. The degree to which the Palestinian leadership succeeds is likely to play a key role in determining how far other parties are willing to go to help Palestinians realize their goal of creating a viable, fully independent state in the Occupied Territori

Iraq Reconstruction Hinges on Constitution, Reforms, IMF Says Some stability achieved but economy remains "fragile," report says Washington -- The pace of reconstruction in Iraq and the recovery of its economy will depend to a large degree on the adoption of a national constitution and the progress of economic reforms, an International Monetary Fund (IMF) official said. Briefing reporters August 16 on the fund's just-released report on the Iraqi economy, Lorenzo Perez said that consensus on and formal approval of a constitution would be an “important step in the political and economic development process” and would have a “very meaningful and positive effect on Iraq.” Perez, a senior official in the IMF’s Middle East and Central Asia department, spoke one day after Iraq's Transitional National Assembly agreed to a one-week extension of the deadline for drafting the country's new constitution. The report is the fund’s first assessment of the Iraqi economy since 198

Rumsfeld Confident Iraqi Constitutional Process Will Succeed Defense secretary says drafters are working seriously on "tough issues" Washington -- Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld says he is confident that Iraqi legislators will present a draft constitution for Iraqi voters to approve later in the year, and he compares that process to the development of the U.S. Constitution since its inception in the late 18th century. “[M]y impression is they'll get it done,” Rumsfeld said August 15 in an interview on KARN radio in Arkansas. Issues such as federalism and the role of Islam are “tough issues for them,” but they understand the importance of having a constitution, he said, “and they have serious people working seriously.” The defense secretary said Iraqi negotiators do not necessarily have to come to agreement on every issue; they could amend the document over time, just as U.S. lawmakers have done with the U.S. Constitution. “They can get it 99 percent done and leave a fe

U.S. Welcomes Efforts To Ensure Peaceful Gaza Withdrawal State Department condemns attack by Israeli settler on Palestinians By David Shelby Washington File Staff Writer Washington -- The United States welcomes the efforts of both Israelis and Palestinians to ensure a peaceful and orderly withdrawal of Israeli settlers from Gaza. “I think everybody who is watching this process unfold understands, when they see the pictures and the television images, that this is a very difficult moment for these people who are leaving their homes, in some cases the only homes that they have known,” State Department spokesman Sean McCormack told reporters at an August 17 briefing. “It's a very difficult time for the Israeli people. But Prime Minister Sharon has made a bold and courageous decision to follow through with the withdrawal from Gaza, and we certainly have supported him in that decision,” McCormack added. McCormack praised the Palestinians for their close coordination with the Israeli gove

Rice Calls Iraqi Constitutional Process "Democracy at Work" Secretary expects Iraqis to complete document within seven days The negotiations under way on Iraq’s new constitution are an example of “democracy at work,” according to Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, and the progress that has been achieved in addressing difficult issues and forging a consensus over the past several months should carry the constitutional process through to completion in the coming days. Rice addressed journalists August 15 just hours after Iraq’s constitutional committee requested and received, by unanimous approval from the Transitional National Assembly, a seven-day extension on its deadline for completing a draft constitution. “These people are working very, very hard,” Rice said. “They are working very long hours. But what that says is that they are really committed to putting together a document that they believe in, a document that can be a foundation for a free and democratic Iraq for

Report of the Egyptian Movement for Change "Kefaya" The Egyptian Movement for Change No Heredity, No Succession KEFAYA Report of the Egyptian Movement for Change "Kefaya" about the villainous acts of violence committed by security personnel after having planned them with a higher will against the demonstrators of the movement on the day the mock referendum concerning the amendment of Article 76 of the Constitution on Wednesday, 25 May 2005. A Black Day for the Oppression Forces and a Disgraceful Act on Part of the Egyptian Regime The Egyptian Movement for Change "Kefaya" organized three silent demonstrations in Cairo and similar demonstrations in governorate capitals, a right guaranteed by the Constitution to all citizens and acknowledged by law (prohibited by the Emergency Law by which the President has been ruling us since he came to power in 1981!!). The Movement's demonstration organizers noticed that the security density on the mentioned day –upo

United States Supports Women's Empowerment in Iraq State Department fact sheet outlines U.S. programs for Iraqi women Following is a State Department fact sheet outlining the state of women’s rights in Iraq and describing U.S. efforts to support women’s empowerment: (begin fact sheet) [U.S. Department of State] Office of International Women's Issues August 15, 2005 Fact Sheet U.S. Support for Women in Iraq "Human rights are defined by a constitution; they're defended by an impartial rule of law; they're secured in a pluralistic society. The advance of women's rights and the advance of liberty are ultimately inseparable." President George W. Bush Efforts to Globally Promote Women's Human Rights, March 12, 2004 Background Since Iraq's liberation, the United States has actively supported the needs and interests of Iraqi women, seeking to provide them with the necessary tools to permit their full participation in their country's political, social,

Research: Arab Media: Tools of the Governments; Tools for the People? The United States Institute of Peace has issued a report “Arab Media: Tools of the Governments; Tools for the People?” Following is the last section of this report: Full report Possible Destinies The June 30, 2004, move to recognize Iraqi autonomy in the form of a U.S.-appointed government and the January 30, 2005, elections—which happened on schedule and in a mostly free-and-fair way—have gone far to release the insurgents’ psychological grip on the region’s blind acceptance of U.S. malevolence. Add to this the mostly free-and-fair election of Abu Mazen in Palestine and the however-limited local elections recently conducted in Saudi Arabia, and we begin to sense a tectonic political shift in the region. It is still too much to hope that Western-style democracy is around the corner, but something fundamentally new is emerging in Arab politics. However tenuous the tie, it seems to have something to do with the awakeni