Reflections on 2003

Camden, Mich. On the first day of the new year, as I sat down to write this column, my mind wandered with random thoughts about Iraq, the Middle East, Pakistan, and Iran. They were the hot spots that dominated the front pages in the waning days of 2003 and they continue to be center stage in this New Year.

In Iraq, Saddam Hussein became history when he was ferreted out of a hole in the ground. It was pathetic to see the self-proclaimed successor of Nebuchadnezzar, the great king of Mesopotamia, give himself up while still claiming to be president of Iraq.

While some of our allies have doubted our reasons for going to war in Iraq and have questioned the legal and moral basis for our actions, all of them have hailed the capture of the tyrant. So have the Iraqis, who for 30 years suffered at the hands of one of the most brutal and ruthless men the world has seen. Now the same people he so savagely brutalized will decide his fate. Let us hope the New Year brings a renewed hope of stability and sovereignty to that tortured land.

The bigger challenge and danger confronting the United States, however, is not in Baghdad, Tikrit, or Karbala, but in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. The road to a durable peace does not pass through Cairo, Riyadh, or Damascus but through Washington, London, Berlin, Paris, and Moscow on its way to Jerusalem and Tel Aviv. Unless we are willing to redress the collective grievance of Arabs and Muslims about the ongoing devastation and humiliation by Israel of Palestinian people, the United States will continue to be the target of the militants and terrorists. Our allies in Europe (even those in Donald Rumsfeld’s New Europe), Africa, and Asia understand this basic premise. If everyone around us does not measure up, we should change the yardstick. To date we have been using the one jury-rigged for us by Israel. To ask for fairness and decency in the Middle East is not being anti-Semitic.

Last month the Pakistani strongman Pervez Musharraf survived two assassination attempts. Since assuming power three years ago, the general has been dodging bullets. He inherited a country that was torn apart with communal strife and religious militancy and was on the verge of economic collapse. He was making some headway when the world changed on 9/11. In a pragmatic move he hitched his country and his own fate to the US bandwagon and earned the sneering label of Busharraf from his detractors and his opponents.

I still believe he is the only person who could bring his country out of its frightening quagmire of militancy, terrorism, economic deprivation, and political instability. He has made progress on all these issues and has also made substantial peace overtures to India. But there is a limit as to how much he can do or deliver to please America.

On his next visit to Islamabad, Deputy Secretary of State Richard Armitage, a frequent visitor to the region and known for his strong-arm tactics, ought to resist pushing Mr. Musharraf further against the wall.

America has received its share of criticism from around the world for its foreign policy. But not many have acknowledged or commended the humanitarian efforts of our country in different parts of the world. The recent devastating earthquake in Iran is one example. American technical and economic help was the first to arrive on the scene.

This country has always set aside political differences at the time of disasters and has responded with unprecedented kindness and generosity. This makes us all very proud.

I am reminded of a tribute that a Canadian broadcaster by the name of Gordon Sinclair paid our country in the early 1970s. Mr. Sinclair recorded a moving and stirring essay set to music in honor of the “most generous and possibly the least appreciated people in all the earth.” It was titled “The Americans” and can probably be downloaded from the Internet. It will pull on your heartstrings and restore your faith (if it needs restoring) in the American spirit.

A very Happy New Year to all.

Dr. S. Amjad Hussain writes for the op-ed pages of the daily Blade of Toledo, Ohio. E-mail him at: <aghaji@buckeye-express.com>