U.S. cannot take credit for change in Egypt

While simultaneously supporting Arab dictators who happened to be U.S. allies and by launching a war that caused the loss of so many innocent lives, Bush lost his authority in the eyes of the Arab people to promote the values of peace and democracy.
 
Bush also amplified U.S. support for Israel despite its repression of Palestinians seeking freedom from Israeli occupation. He preached how the sometimes violent methods of Palestinians had to stop before there could be discussion of peace and freedom. The contradictions embodied by President Bush were seen as so stark that the message lacked any credibility.
 
As unsatisfying as Bush’s message was, the question remained: How should democracy, freedom and genuine peace come to the Middle East?
 
The answer has become clear. As the U.S. focused on its democracy-building ventures in Iraq and Afghanistan at the cost of hundreds of billions of dollars and thousands of lives, a separate but quiet transformation has been underway among many Arabs in the region.
 
In 2005 and 2006, Palestinians held free and fair local and national elections across the West Bank and Gaza. Palestinian resistance to occupation also took a new form across towns such as Bi’lin. For the past several years, Palestinians have daily challenged Israel’s occupation through largely peaceful demonstrations.
 
In Tunisia, people took to the streets largely peacefully, though with such conviction that one of the most feared dictators in the region was compelled to flee. For 18 days, millions of Egyptians largely peacefully went to the streets to demand freedom. Both Tunisians and Egyptians persevered and succeeded without needless and self-defeating American bombs.
 
These trends represented golden opportunities for governments which espouse freedom and democracy as core values, particularly the United States. President Obama proclaimed a clear commitment to supporting freedom and democracy in his much-heralded speech to the Muslim world in Cairo in 2009. With the Arab and Muslim world eager to turn a new page after Bush, Obama represented a fresh start. His message promoting freedom and democracy was similar to Bush. However, without the baggage of Bush’s legacy, Obama’s message carried more weight.
 
Obama’s credibility has been squandered in the past two years. While the Palestinian people embraced democracy and abandoned violent resistance to occupation, the U.S. rejected their democratically-elected choice and has been unwilling to maintain real pressure on Israel to stop illegally building Jewish-only settlements.
 
As Tunisians protested in the streets demanding democracy, the U.S. remained largely silent. As Egyptians embarked on their peaceful revolution, Secretary of State Clinton reaffirmed the stability of the Mubarak regime. Subsequently, Obama made tepid calls for “reform” and “transition to democracy” from the sidelines.
 
The U.S., by its silence, slowness, and Israel-centric response, rendered itself largely irrelevant to the historic change taking place. Now that Mubarak has resigned, it’s clear the U.S. can’t share in this historic victory.
 
Being in Jordan, as I was during 2003, I see the difference in people’s reactions. While Bush elicited anger across the Arab world, Obama is not eliciting much attention at all. Still, both share a common credibility gap which underpins the waning influence of the US in the region.
 
Consider the Palestinian municipal elections recently announced by the U.S.-backed Palestinian Authority. This announcement was a direct result of the momentum behind the protesters in Egypt and the desire of the Palestinian Authority to pre-empt unrest. In this case, the democracy agenda is being advanced by the streets of the Arab world, not by the Obama administration or the regimes it supports.
 
While the immediate road is uncertain in Egypt and other countries, chances are a new system of governance will emerge in the Arab world. The U.S. had a tremendous opportunity to be a clear voice of moral support if not a positive force for change. The next generation of Arab leaders will remember who was with them and who was against them. Most importantly, the people will remember and that’s what matters most in a democracy.
 
Naseem Tuffaha is an American of Palestinian origin and a senior tech industry professional living in Amman, Jordan.