Excerpts: Honor killings.Arab intellectual failure.Arab basic defect. 1
November 2004

+++JORDAN TIMES 31 Oct.'04:
"Editorial No honour in killing"
QUOTE FROM TEXT:
"the Criminal Court verdicts are decidedly wrong because they were based
on the assumption that the father benefited from Article 98 of the
Penal
Code, which renders killings in a 'fit of anger' as grounds to alter a
charge
of premeditated murder to a mere misdemeanor"
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FULL TEXT:
The Court of Cassation recently broke new ground in the fight against
so-called honour crimes. It did so when it overturned, not once but twice,
the six-month prison term passed against a man found guilty of stabbing his
18-year-old daughter to death in 2002.
The Criminal Court had handed down the two lenient sentences in 2002 and
2004 against the father, who had claimed his daughter had dishonoured his
family. But the Court of Cassation ruled twice that the Criminal Court
verdicts are decidedly wrong because they were based on the false assumption
that the father benefited from Article 98 of the Penal Code, which renders
killings in a "fit of anger" as grounds to alter a charge of premeditated
murder to a mere misdemeanour.
[IMRA: Why roundabout? Eliminate Article 98. But the government
doesn't have the power to do this in the face of Islamist power in Jordan.]
By reversing the verdicts of the Criminal Court, the Court of Cassation has
demonstrated that our justice system need not be weak. It showed that if it
applies the law fairly in cases of honour killings, as it does in other
murder cases, and does not pass lenient punishments against perpetrators of
these crimes, it is doing so within the law.
The Court of Cassation in this instance found that, contrary to the
"prejudiced" findings of the Criminal Court, the father committed
premeditated murder and ruled accordingly. If the defendant in this case
murdered his daughter in a "fit of fury," as the Criminal Court described
it, sentencing him to a mere six months in prison is preposterous by all
civilised standards. A man who kills his daughter for allegedly offending
his feelings warrants a much stiffer sentence, fit of fury or not.
It is a good sign that the Court of Cassation is beginning to correct the
gross injustice of lenient sentencing of perpetrators of honour killings. It
would be even better if the Criminal Court took the same position.
Although the reported number of honour killings of women annually is around
25, there are ways to bring it down to zero. One way is to apply the law to
the full extent.
[IMRFA: Are there robably a significant number of unreported honor
killings?]
CNN reported last week that the Pakistan National Assembly passed a bill
that would strengthen criminal laws against "honour killings," with
offenders being charged with murder and sentenced to anywhere from 10 years
to life in prison or death.
According to Amnesty International, each year, hundreds of women in Pakistan
are killed for having brought "shame" upon their families. In nearly all
cases, the perpetrators go unpunished, AI said.

+++JORDAN TIMES 1 Nov.'04:
"The lack of understanding between Arabs and the West" By Tawfiq Abu Bakr
,Director, Jenin Centre for Strategic Studies, member Palestinian National
Council.
QUOTES FROM TEXT:
"Arab elites need to identify points of distorted understanding between
us
and the West, without the influence of what we call 'Arab street
extremism'."

"talked with great vigour about 'culture relativism' in order to repulse
attempts to universalise human rights and openness to 'the other' "

"the search for the roots of extremism and terror in our countries will
lead to
pro-Israeli Western policies, as well as socio-economic reasons,
including
poverty, depression, dispair and isolation."

"Extremism in our countries has an educational side, and we should not be
bashful to admit this openly"
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The relationship between Arab and Western intellectual elites is distorted,
representing a major obstacle on the path to reaching a mutual understanding
... . Many "revolutionist" intellectuals in our countries retreat from
facing this obstacle, instead waging a daily war of words on Arab satellite
TV stations, against American policy in the Middle East. This only expands
the prevailing valley of misunderstanding.
Bridging this gap requires even more extensive efforts ... after the events
of Sept. 11, 2001, which were carried out by extremist groups hiding behind
the cloak of Islam and holding distorted interpretations of its scriptures.
Arab elites need to identify points of distorted understanding between us
and the West, without the influence of what we call "Arab street extremism".
The League of Arab Nations had called for a special forum, attended by
prominent Arab intellectuals, to study the misunderstanding between Arabs
and the West. It was to open channels of dialogue with Western intellectuals
and research centres that work to understand us ... .
The Islamic Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation held a similar
seminar in Frankfurt, and another in Paris, in cooperation with the Arab
World Institute (L'Institut du Monde Arabe). The main problem with these
conferences is the practice of "text assaults", where each party throws what
texts it has at the other, thus turning the conversation into a disputation
... with participants addressing their Arab or Islamic audiences. Many
Western intellectuals do the same.
[IMRA: Hardly many. To the contrary, many Western "intellectual elites"
promote the consiquesnces of Islamic extremism. This is exemplified by
academic anti-Israel drives in Western universities.]
...We should not debate Western intellectuals as if we were angels without
sins; we should ... admit our shortcomings in their presence.
There is no truth to the allegation that there exists an animosity against
the West in the Arab and Islamic world for which there is no cure, and whose
roots are religious and historical in nature. ...
There exists a distorted relationship with the West, but it is not one of
deep animosity. Otherwise, we would not have eagerly received their
scientific and technological products in our countries, with profound awe,
in most cases.
[IMRA:Arab/Islamic extremists eagerly use Western scientific and
technological products to advance their causes.]
Yes, we do have a problem with "modernism", for some extremists ... in our
countries (not all of them) ... oppose openness to the West. This is a
major crisis from which we suffer, and which is not sufficiently challenged
by advocates of enlightenment. But there are also opponents to modernism in
the West, including those who deny that the earth is spherical ... .
[IMRA: Irrelevant nonsense. There aren't such in the West. And the
odd-balls who might so think don't kill on that score.]
We have a problem with "culture relativism", because those who oppose
openness to "the other" in our Arab world hide behind the Arab and Islamic
particularism, exaggerating it in order to prevent application of
international values that harm their limited interests. I have myself seen
representatives of the most oppressive and backward Arab regimes take turns
at the podium at the International Conference for Human Rights held in
Vienna in 1993, when I was executive director of Amnesty International
chapter in Jordan. They talked with great vigour about "culture relativism"
in order to repulse attempts to universalise human rights and openness to
"the other", because that would have put an end to their monopoly on control
over their peoples. Arab people of enlightenment have a duty to confront
this phenomenon.
We incessantly say that those who are extremists in our countries are
limited in number and influence, and that the West generalises the behaviour
of this strayed minority as representing Arabs and Muslims. Yes, this does
happen. But in order for it not to happen again in the future, and in order
for channels of communication and dialogue to open up, the Arab intellectual
elite, which takes upon itself the mission of enlightenment, must assume its
role and condemn, clearly and without a trace of ambiguity, the actions of
those extremists and terrorists, without hesitation or bashfulness ... .When
a true dialogue with Western elites commences, the issue must be addressed
openly and squarely: that the search for the roots of extremism and terror
in our countries will lead to pro-Israeli Western policies, as well as
socio-economic reasons, including poverty, depression, despair, and
isolation.
...Our isolation started in the 15th century, with the delay of openness, a
prerequisite for eliminating misunderstanding, and a condition for
development, as well. The West cannot be understood from translated
articles, sometimes in poor style, or through academic studies. Direct,
fertile and continued interaction is essential. Similarly, the West cannot
understand us through partial readings of Sayyed Qutub's last writings, in
which he deletes the role of the intellect in the making of civilisation.
Extremism in our countries has an educational side, and we should not be
bashful to admit this openly. Some educational curricula in our nations
promote isolationism, extremism and animosity towards "the other". Things
will never get better unless we initiate, within Arab circles, a deep
dialogue without "red lines". ... Things will never get any better, until we
consider "the other" inside the Arab house as an extension and not an
antagonist.
It is true that considering "the other" an "opposite" does exist in the Arab
heritage. But excavating our heritage also reveals the presence of
democratic calls for realising "the other" in a luminous manner. ...The
writer, a veteran political analyst and director of Jenin Centre for
Strategic Studies, is a member of the Palestinian National Council. This
article was contributed to The Jordan Times by the Common Ground News
Service.

+++INTERNATIONAL HERALD TRIBUNE 30 Oct. '04: "The fear that chokes the Arab
world"
Youssef M. Ibrahim , managing director Dubai-based Strategic Energy
Investment Group.

QUOTES FROM TEXT:
"Arab media filters news through the prism of fear, disguised as political
correctness, politeness and Information Ministry rules, so that facts become
fairy tales."

"How many times have you read about 'honor killings,' which is meant to
describe harrowing acts of bloody mahem by a male who cuts the throat of his
wife, sister or distant female relatives"

"In America today, an Arab-American community of some three to four million
has no voice because it is afraid."

"Our governments, our schools, our social systems. our economies and very
sense of ethical conduct are all failed models whose shelf-life is over"
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EXCERPTS:

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates Fear is deeply ingrained in the Arab psyche
...no matter where it lives. There is a fear to speak, write, read or even
hear truth. The fear hangs in the air ... dominating thinking processes,
surfacing in a self-censored media, nervous jokes, absurd commentary that
wastes hours describing black as white.

Arab media filters news through the prism of fear, disguised as political
correctness, politeness and Information Ministry rules, so that facts become
fairy tales.

The whole world ...heard about an ongoing political crisis in Lebanon and
the UN Security Council pressures on Syria to get out of there.

But the official Arab media, very anxious not to offend "Arab brothers,"
will tell you there is no crisis there, that both Lebanon and Syria are
blessed with "fraternal" relations, and the whole thing is manufactured by
France and the United States, who are "meddling" in internal Lebanese-Syrian
relations.

How many times have you read about presidents who win new terms with 99
percent majorities? How many times have you read about "honor killings,"
which is meant to describe harrowing acts of bloody mayhem by a male who
cuts the throat of his wife, sister or distant female relatives, often on a
rumor about her misbehaving or not marrying someone the family designated.
One fails to see the origin of the word "honor" where cowardice is more
appropriate.

We say of countries where women are not allowed to vote, choose their life
partners, drive, travel or run for office that they are preserving "Arab and
Islamic tradition," when in fact they are committing flagrant violations of
human rights for half their population.

Arab media has been very good at dishing out criticism of American double
standards. We talk boldly of a pro-Israeli and an anti-Arab bias. But let us
not loose perspective here. This same America and its pundits have openly
described both George W. Bush and John Kerry as liars, flip-flops,
double-dealers and elitists. Nobody goes to jail for it. Can we say as much
for the Arab order?

No one is born this way, of course. Fear is an environmentally acquired
characteristic. At home it is the product of unilateral rule, hereditary
power, rejection of democratic culture, dominance of the male persona which
eliminates women as equal partners, and a demeaning embrace of hand-kissing
rather than merit as the means to climb the social ladder.

For expatriate Arab communities these fears have been made even more
complicated since 9/11 by the systematic singling out of Arabs and Muslims
as potential terrorists. In America today, an Arab-American community of
some three to four million has no voice because it is afraid.

[IMRA:Arab-Americans are outspoken about their situation and regarding
the Middle East they take strong positions against the US and Israel.]

Having a voice means attracting attention, perhaps trouble, most Arabs will
tell you. In Europe, where some 35 million Arabs live, most have crawled
back into cultural caves - speaking Arabic, eating Arabic and thinking
Arabic - instead of opening up to the societies that embraced them.

...The Arab and Muslim worlds are undergoing massive transformations which
demands massive adjustments.

Our governments, our schools, our social systems, our economies and our very
sense of ethical conduct are all failed models whose shelf-life is over. If
Arab writers and pundits cannot say this, document it, analyze it or focus
on it without fear, we cannot even begin to reform.

And if we cannot reform, what is left of Arab civilization will evaporate,
making place for a new agenda set by someone else. This is happening in
Iraq, and it will happen to every society that blocks oxygen to its people.

(Youssef M. Ibrahim is managing director of Strategic Energy Investment
Group based in Dubai.)

Dr Joseph Lerner, Co-Director IMRA