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Congressional Letter asks
Obama to raise real issues in his speech to the “Muslim
World”
By: Dr. Walid Phares (bio)
29 May/09
Attached is a letter signed by ten
members of the US House of Representatives and sent
today to President Obama. In this powerful letter the
legislators ask the President to include important
points in his speech to the Muslim world on June 4, from
Cairo.
The Congressional letter reminds
the President that he needs to raise the following main
ideas:
1. That the world threat are the
extremist-Islamists (known as Wahabis and Khomeinists).
That the Muslim world must declare al Qaeda and the
Taliban as a menace against Humanity
2. That rich Governments in the
region must help the poor segments of their own
societies.
3. That the US must commit to help
the dissidents and democracy groups in the region
4. That the Muslim world must help
Darfur against the criminal regime in Sudan
5 That Lebanon should not be
abandoned to Hezbollah
6. That any solution to the
Israel-Palestinian problem must be found through a
mutual recognition of the state of Israel and any future
Palestinian state.
7. That the charge of
“Islamophobia” must be rejected
8. That Pakistan’s efforts against
the Taliban should be supported
9. That non-Muslim minorities
inside the Muslim world must be protected in as much as
Muslim minorities in the West are protected.
10. That the Muslim Government must
be reminded of the gigantic effort by the United States
to save Muslims endangered around the world and of the
significant foreign aid and humanitarian assistance sent
to Muslim populations in need.
I think this is one of the most
important letters issued by legislators under the Obama
Administration to make sure US policy serves the
interests of democracy and freedom around the world. It
is important that this letter initiates a debate on the
US relations with the Muslim world before the President
arrives to Cairo for the delivery of the speech.
Walid Phares
————————————————————————————————————
May 28, 2009
President Barack Obama
The White House
1600 Pennsylvania Avenue
Washington, DC 20500
Dear Mr. President:
As you prepare to address the
“Muslim world” on June 5th from Egypt, we ask that you
remain mindful of the power of your words. You have the
ability to inspire the countless individuals who wither
under the control of repressive governments, encourage
Middle Eastern governments to engage important issues,
and remind the world of America’s commitment to
protecting religious freedom for all people of faith,
including Muslims.
The Middle East has historically
been a place of religious pluralism and cultural
diversity. However, groups espousing extremist
ideologies based upon Wahabbism and Khomeinism have
marginalized and repressed both non-Muslim and Muslim
women, youth, reformists, pro-democracy advocates, human
rights activists, as well as ethnic and religious
minorities. Groups such as the Taliban and al Qaeda,
whose ideology is intent on dividing humanity between
Muslims and non-Muslims, have killed countless
individuals, including Muslims, in an effort to
overthrow Middle Eastern governments and weaken other
non-Muslim governments.
Based on these facts, we urge you
to call upon all governments to join the international
community in declaring al Qaeda and the Taliban a threat
to humanity, and urge them to fight these radical
Islamists.
We also ask you to urge Middle
Eastern governments to relentlessly lend their support
to the marginalized, weak, and oppressed segments of
their societies by recognizing the universal importance
of basic human dignity.
In a recent opinion piece published
in The Washington Post, Nobel Laureate Desmond Tutu
proclaimed that “repression cannot be rewarded; the
voices of those it has silenced must be heard as if the
walls of their jails did not exist.” It must be made
clear that the United States will stand with all those
that are oppressed around the world, from the Baha’is in
Iran to the imprisoned blogger in Egypt.
Countless dissidents can attest
that their lives improved when their plight was raised
publicly by leaders in the West. The pressure put on
the Egyptian government by Members of Congress and the
Administration following the imprisonment of famed
Egyptian dissident Dr. Saad Eddin Ibrahim helped lead to
his eventual release in 2003, after almost three years
in prison. We therefore ask you to raise the individual
cases of dissidents that languish in the prisons, and
others that face persecution, to assure them that they
are not forgotten by the American people. We ask you
to advocate for the region’s struggling religious
minorities as is consistent with our own rich tradition
of religious freedom.
We ask you to call upon the
governments of the Middle East to commit to defend
freedom and democracy in pluralistic Lebanon, and to
call for a stop to political assassinations and a
disbarment of militias within their borders. We urge you
to ask the Arab League to help the mostly Muslim
population of Darfur, which is subjected to a genocide
at the hands of a regime whose president is under
indictment by the International Criminal Court. We urge
you to ask them to help Pakistan in its war against the
Taliban, al Qaeda, and other terrorist organizations.
We ask you to call on the Organization of Islamic
Conference to abandon its goal of imposing so-called
“Defamation of Religions” laws which will repress
reformists and groups seeking democracy in Muslim and
non-Muslim societies alike.
We urge you to ask the governments
of the Middle East to commit to a just and lasting
resolution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict via a two
states solution based on a mutual recognition between
Israel and any Palestinian state-to-be. The starting
point for this should not be Israeli concessions, but
the recognition of Israel and its right to exist.
Please remind your audience that
while the international community is committed to help
Muslim minorities around the world, including those in
India, Russia, China, and the West, at the same time we
must ensure that all other minorities inside the “Muslim
world” are granted their basic rights. We urge you to
ask them to discuss the root causes of what they call “Islamophobia,”
particularly the rise of radical Islamist ideologies,
which have generated tensions and violence worldwide
among Muslims and non-Muslims alike. We urge you to ask
them to help Egypt fight the scourge of terrorism and
stand by its own Coptic minority, often targeted by
extremists’ violence. We urge you to ask them to speak
out against radical Islamists all around the world and
not condone their behavior with complacency.
We urge you to highlight the
contributions of the American people to ameliorate
suffering in Muslim communities around the world. For
example, the United States military saved countless
lives in the hours and days immediately following the
tsunami that ravaged Indonesia. Similarly, our military
forces were the first on the scene to deliver
humanitarian relief and medical treatment to Pakistan in
2005 when that country was hit by a terrible earthquake.
In fact, your Administration recently announced $100
million in aid to provide relief to the Pakistani people
who are affected by the effort to rout Taliban
extremists in that country. These are efforts of which
the American people can be proud, and which your speech
could rightly highlight.
Similarly, your speech can remind
the Muslim world of U.S. efforts in the Bosnia and
Kosovo conflicts to prevent Muslim massacres and ethnic
cleansing, as well as American efforts in Iraq and
Afghanistan which liberated 50 million people, mostly
Muslim, from the jaws of Saddam Hussein’s dictatorship
and the cruel violence of the Taliban terror regime.
Mr. President, you have a great
opportunity to engage and inspire Middle Eastern
governments and Muslims around the world with your words.
We urge you to consider including these important
recommendations in your speech.
Sincerely yours,
Frank Wolf
John Shadegg
Sue Myrick
Ted Poe
Zack Wamp
Trent Franks
Dan Burton
Paul Broun
Joe Pitts
Patrick McHenry |
