What was special in Obama's Cairo speech?
PRESIDENT Obama's speech at Cairo University was remarkably direct and honest. It was a carefully crafted balanced message to his Muslim audience around the world; Israelis and his listeners back home in the United States.
He spoke of rebuilding bridges and repairing damaged relations with the Muslim world caused by a cycle of suspicion and discord arising of George W Bush's obsession with America's war on terror precisely directed against Muslims. Throughout his speech there was not a single mention of terror or Islamic terrorists but instead only extremists.
In his quest of rapport and rapprochement with the Muslim audience 'to seek a new beginning of relationship with "Muslims around the world" based on mutual interest and mutual respect,' Obama displayed masterly of touch and proved himself a quintessentially charming orator at his best with extreme sensitivity and suppleness.
While not announcing any new initiatives on the Middle East or distancing himself adequately from his predecessor on Iraq and Afghanistan, Obama made daring, frank and forth right statements on Israeli Palestinian conflict, Islam, democracy Iran and nuclear weapons. He greeted his audience in Muslim style, quoted 4 times from the holy koran, spoke about his middle name, Hussain, his Muslim connection in kenya and Indonesia, his fascination with listening Azan in his boyhood in Indonesia.
After 8 years of open conflict between America and Islam demonstrated by Bush's infamous comment 'you are with us or against us in our war on terror,' he declared to fight against negative stereotypes of Islam and dismissed the so called myth of 'clash of civilization.' He showed empathy for Muslims when he said colonialism and cold war had denied rights and opportunity of Muslims being 'treated as proxies with regard to their own aspirations.' He demolished misperception in the west that women in Islamic societies do not have equality of status when he mentioned Muslim women leadership in Bangladesh, Pakistan, Indonesia and Turkey.
His remarks on Israeli Palestinian conflict marked one of biggest shifts in American foreign policy on the Middle East There is no more carte blanche support to Israel. He said America would not turn its back on legitimate aspirations of Palestinians for dignity and a state of their own.
He demanded a 2 state solution to the conflict. He was blunt when he said US does not accept the legitimacy of continued Israeli settlements in West Bank adding the constructions violates agreements and undermines peace efforts and destroys hopes of a Palestine state and must sop. He said the 'daily humiliation of occupation was intolerable.' He spoke of 60 years of Palestinian dislocation and dispossession, which implicitly acknowledged close to what the Palestinians call Naqba, catastrophe of 1947. However, Obama asserted 'unbreakable bond' with Israel, traced its tragic past persecution in Europe and described denial of holocaust, an obvious dig at Iranian President Ahmadinejad, as baseless, ignorant and hateful, words pleasing to Israeli ears.
He acknowledged Iran's right to access peaceful nuclear power within the frame work of nuclear non proliferation treaty and reaffirmed America's commitment to seek a world where no nation hold nuclear weapons. He pointed to the danger nuclear arms race in the region and hoped all countries in the region shared this goal. Earlier, US Astt secretary of state for verification and compliance said 'America would like every nation including Israel to sign NPT. Israel's estimated 264 nuclear warheads and huge arsenal of chemical and biological weapons of mass destruction may not be a secret to United Sates.
Obama showed remarkable understanding and even handedness of the matrix of what he described as 'tumultuous history' of Iran -US conflict over, Obama confessed, America's role in overthrowing elected Iranian government in 1954 and US hostages held by Iranians after the Iranian revolution in1979.
Obama's harshest remarks were reserved for Arab autocratic and authoritarian leaders, tacitly including his host, when he asked them to reform and embrace the rule of law, equal administration of justice, transparency and 'freedom to live as you choose.'
These are historic and heroic statements indeed to realise Obama's vision for a better future for humanity of all religious hue and political persuasions.
It remains to be seen if he can turn his words into deeds faced with stubborn intransigence of extreme right Israeli leader Benyamin Netanyahu and his strong Israeli lobby backers in Washington.
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