Urgent & Open Letter May 22, 2009
President Barack Hussein Obama The White House 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW Washington, DC 20500
Dear Mr. President:
First
of all, congratulations on your victory in November. Like so many
others throughout the world, we find ourselves both hopeful and
inspired. Your election is proof of America's continued promise as a
land of opportunity, equality, and freedom. Your presidency presents a
historic opportunity to chart a new course in foreign affairs, and
particularly in the troubled relationship between the United States and
the Muslim world.
We are heartened by your promise to listen to
and understand the hopes and aspirations of Arabs and Muslims. By
shutting down Guantanamo Bay and forbidding torture, your
administration will inspire greater confidence between the United
States and the Muslim world. Last month, in your first major
interview, millions of Arabs heard your call for mutual respect on one
of the Middle East's most watched television channels. They were
encouraged to find that you hold a resolution to the Israel-Palestinian
conflict as an urgent priority, as evidenced by the appointment of
Senator George Mitchell as your envoy. Reaching out to the people of
the region so early on in your presidency is a step of no small
significance. But it is a step that must be followed by concrete
policy changes.
Improving relations between the United States
and Middle Eastern nations is not simply a matter of changing some
policies here and there. For too long, U.S. policy toward the Middle
East has been fundamentally misguided. The United States, for half a
century, has frequently supported repressive regimes that routinely
violate human rights, and that torture and imprison those who dare
criticize them and prevent their citizens from participation in
peaceful civic and political activities. U.S. support for Arab
autocrats was supposed to serve U.S. national interests and regional
stability. In reality, it produced a region increasingly tormented by
rampant corruption, extremism, and instability.
In his second
inaugural address, President Bush pledged that the United States would
no longer support tyrants and would stand with those activists and
reformers fighting for democratic change. The Bush administration,
however, quickly turned its back on Middle East democracy after
Islamist parties performed well in elections throughout the region.
This not only hurt the credibility of the United States, dismayed
democrats and emboldened extremists in the region, but also sent a
powerful message to autocrats that they could reassert their power and
crush the opposition with impunity.
In order to rebuild
relations of mutual respect, it is critical that the United States be
on the right side of history regarding the human, civil, and political
rights of the peoples of the Middle East. There is no doubt that the
people of the Middle East long for greater freedom and democracy; they
have proven themselves willing to fight for it. What they need from
your administration is a commitment to encourage political reform not
through wars, threats, or imposition, but through peaceful policies
that reward governments that take active and measurable steps towards
genuine democratic reforms. Moreover, the US should not hesitate to
speak out in condemnation when opposition activists are unjustly
imprisoned in Egypt, Jordan, Saudi Arabia, Tunisia, or elsewhere. When
necessary, the United States should use its considerable economic and
diplomatic leverage to put pressure on its allies in the region when
they fail to meet basic standards of human rights.
We recognize
that taking these steps will present both difficulties and dilemmas.
Accordingly, bold action is needed today more than ever. For too long,
American policy in the Middle East has been paralyzed by fear of
Islamist parties coming to power. Some of these fears are both
legitimate and understandable; many Islamists advocate illiberal
policies. They need to do more to demonstrate their commitment to the
rights of women and religious minorities, and their willingness to
tolerate dissent. However, most mainstream Islamist groups in the
region are nonviolent and respect the democratic process.
In
many countries, including Turkey, Indonesia, and Morocco, the right to
participate in reasonably credible and open elections has moderated
Islamist parties and enhanced their commitment to democratic norms. We
may not agree with what they have to say, but if we wish to both preach
and practice democracy, it is simply impossible to exclude the largest
opposition groups in the region from the democratic process. At the
same time, to reduce the future of the region to a contest between
Islamists and authoritarian regimes would be a mistake. Promoting
democratic openings in the region will give liberal and secular parties
a chance to establish themselves and communicate their ideas to the
populace after decades of repression which left them weak and
marginalized. More competition between parties of diverse ideological
backgrounds would be healthy for political development in the region.
In
short, we have an unprecedented opportunity to send a clear message to
the Arab and Muslim world: the United States will support all those who
strive for freedom, democracy, and human rights. You, Mr. President,
have recently relayed such a message in your inaugural address when you
said: "To
those who cling to power through corruption and deceit and the
silencing of dissent, know that you are on the wrong side of history,
but that we will extend a hand if you are willing to unclench your fist."
We
are fully aware that, with a worsening global economic crisis, and
continuing challenges in Iraq, Iran, Pakistan, and Afghanistan,
political reform and progress toward democratic reform in the Middle
East will need to compete with a whole host of other priorities on your
agenda. Policy is often about making difficult choices. However, as you
work on other Middle East priorities, we urge you to elevate democratic
reform and respect for human rights as key considerations in your
engagement with both Arab regimes and Arab publics.
In
conclusion, we are writing this letter to raise our profound belief
that supporting democrats and democracy in the Middle East is not only
in the region's interests, but in the United States' as well. Perhaps
more importantly, what we choose to do with this critical issue will
reveal a great deal about the strength of American democratic ideals in
this new era - and whether or not we will decide to respect and apply
them in the Middle East.
Signatures: 1350 (450 from the US, 900 from overseas)
Coordination Committee:
Radwan A. Masmoudi Center for the Study of Islam & Democracy
Shadi Hamid Project on Middle East Democracy
Geneive Abdo The Century Foundation
Larry Diamond Ctr. on Democracy, Dev. & Rule of Law, Stanford University
Michele Dunne Carnegie Endowment for Int. Peace
Jennifer Windsor Freedom House
American Scholars, Experts & Organizations:
Tamara Cofman Wittes Saban Center, Brookings Institution
Francis Fukuyama The Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies
Matt Yglesias Center for American Progress
Mona Yacoubian U.S. Institute of Peace
John L. Esposito Georgetown University
Reza Aslan UC Riverside
Morton H. Halperin Formerly Office of Policy Planning, Department of State
Will Marshall Progressive Policy Institute
Randa Slim Rockefeller Brothers Fund
Neil Hicks Human Rights First
Joe Stork Human Rights Watch
Robert R. LaGamma Council for a Community of Democracies
Jack DuVall Int. Center on Nonviolent Conflict
Robert A. Pastor Center for Democracy and Election Management, American University
Jean Bethke Elshtain University of Chicago
Peter Beinart Council on Foreign Relations
Bob Edgar Common Cause
Rachel Kleinfeld Truman National Security Project
Robert Kagan Carnegie Endowment for Int. Peace
Dokhi Fassihian Democracy Coalition Project
Dina Guirguis Voices for a Democratic Egypt
Andrew Albertson Project on Middle East Democracy
Nathan J. Brown George Washington University
Marc Gopin Ctr for World Religions, Diplomacy, & Conflict Resolution, GMU
Graham E. Fuller Simon Fraser University, Vancouver BC.
Rabbi Michael Lerner Network of Spiritual Progressives
Farid Senzai Institute for Social Policy and Understanding
Frank Kaufmann Inter Religious Federation for World Peace
Ammar Abdulhamid Tharwa Foundation
Arsalan Iftikhar Islamica Magazine
Richard Bulliet Columbia University
Seth Green Americans for Informed Democracy
Joseph Montville Toward the Abrahamic Family Reunion
Joseph K. Grieboski Institute on Religion and Public Policy
Jim Arkedis Progressive Policy Institute
Asma Afsaruddin University of Notre Dame
Anisa Mehdi Arab-American Journalist
Mohammed Ayoob Michigan State University
Peter Mandaville Center for Global Studies, GMU
Omid Safi University of North Carolina
Sulayman S. Nyang Howard University
Naiem A. Sherbiny Ibn Khaldun Ctr. for Development
Louay Safi ISNA Leadership Development Ctr.
Najib Ghadbian University of Arkansas
Aly R. Abuzaakouk Libya Human and Political Dev. Forum
Robert D. Crane The Abraham Federation
Sally Painter Global Fairness Initiative
Steven Brooke Independent Academic
Sheila Musaji The American Muslim
Hashim El-Tinay International Peace Quest Inst.
Antony T. Sullivan Near East Support Services
Clement Moore Henry Dept. of Government, U of Texas at Austin
Ahmed Subhy Mansour The International Quranic Center
Yvonne Haddad Georgetown University
Shahed Amanullah altmuslim.com
Hakan Yavuz The University of Utah
Ibrahim Kalin Georgetown University
Mumtaz Ahmad Hampton University
Charles Butterworth University of Maryland
John P. Entelis Fordham University
Nahyan Fancy DePauw University
Jeffrey T. Kenney DePauw University
Imad-ad-Dean Ahmad Minaret of Freedom Institute
Jamal Barzinji International Institute of Islamic Thought
H. Ali Yurtsever Rumi Forum
Abubaker al Shingieti American Muslims for Constructive Engagement
Nayereh Tohidi California State University, Northridge
Nancy Gallagher University of California, Santa Barbara
Safei Hamed Alliance of Egyptian Americans
Ali Akbar Mahdi Ohio Wesleyan University
Nader Hashemi University of Denver
Nader Hashemi University of Denver
Timothy Samuel Shah Council on Foreign Relations
Sondra Hale Islamic Studies, UCLA
Lester Kurtz George Mason University
Mehrdad Mashayekhi Georgetown University
Fatemeh Haghighatjoo University of Massachusetts, Boston
Salah Aziz American Society for Kurds
Ali Banuazizi Boston College
Mehrangiz Kar Harvard University Human Rights Program
Tamara Sonn College of William & Mary
Salam Al-Marayati Muslim Public Affairs Council
Stephen Zunes University of San Francisco
Mike Ghouse World Muslim Congress
David A. Smith University of California, Irvine
Ziad K. Abdelnour US Committee for a Free Lebanon
Samer Libdeh Center for Liberty in the Middle East
Javed Ali Illume Magazine
Selahattin Oz Georgetown University
Amin Mahmoud The Alliance of Egyptian Americans
Maher Kharma Islamic Society of Annapolis
International Scholars & Organizations:
Saad Eddin Ibrahim Ibn Khaldoun Center
Anwar Ibrahim People's Justice Party, Malaysia
Emad El-Din Shahin Dept. of Government, Harvard University
Radwan Ziadeh Carr Center for Human Rights Policy, Harvard Univ.
Atef Saadawy Al-Ahram Democracy Review
Obaida Fares Arab Foundation for Development and Citizenship
Mona Eltahawy Commentator and public speaker, Egypt
Usman Bugaje Action Congress, Abuja, Nigeria
Dogu Ergil Ankara University, Turkey
Mohamed Elshinnawi Journalist/Consultant
Mohammad Fadel University of Toronto Faculty of Law
Jamal Eddine Ryane Global Migration and Gender Network, Amsterdam
Najah Kadhim International Forum for Islamic Dialogue-London-UK
Maajid Nawaz The Quilliam Foundation, London, UK
Sameer Jarrah Arab World Center for Democratic Development, Jordan
Ihsan Dagi Insight Turkey
Santanina T. Rasul Former Senator, The Philippines
Can Kurd Kurdish PEN Club / Germany
Muna AbuSulayman UNDP Goodwill Ambassador in KSA
Saoud El Mawla The Islamic Council for Dialogue, Justice and Democracy, Lebanon
Amina Rasul-Bernardo The Philippines Council on Islam & Democracy
Sayyed Nadeem Kazmi The britslampartnership Ltd, UK
Muhammad Habash Islamic Studies Center, Damascus, Syria
Boudjema Ghechir Algerian League for Human Rights
Kais Jawad al-Azzawi Al-Jareeda Newspaper, Baghdad, Iraq
Rola Dashti Kuwait Economic Society
Zainah Anwar Sisters in Islam, Malaysia
Jafar M. Alshayeb Writer and Advocate, Saudi Arabia
Daoud Casewit American Islamic Scholar, Morocco
Anwar N. Haddam Mvt. for Liberty & Social Justice, Algeria
Ashur Shamis Libya Human and Political Dev. Forum
Hamdi Abdelaziz Journalist & Human Rights Activist, Egypt
Dalia Ziada The American Islamic Congress, Cairo, Egypt
Abdulkhaleq Abdulla Dept. of Political Science, United Arab Emirates
Wajeeha S. Al- Baharna Bahrain Women Association for Human Development
Abdullahi Mohamoud Nur Community Empowerment for Peace and Integrated Development, Somalia
Brendan Simms The Henry Jackson Society: Project for Democratic Geopolitics, London, UK Alan Mendoza The Henry Jackson Society: Project for Democratic Geopolitics, London, UK
Ashraf Tulty Justice & democracy for Libya
Hadi Shalluf International Criminal Court, Paris
Aref Abu-Rabia Fulbright Scholar
Omar Affifi Hukuk Elnas
Jacqueline Armijo Zayed University, United Arab Emirates
Sliman Bouchuiguir Libyan League for Human Rights
Mohammed Mahfud Al-Kalima Magazine, Saudi Arabia
Walid Salem Panorama, East Jerusalem
(Names are listed in the order they were received. Organizations are listed for informational purposes only.)
For the complete list of signatures to date, please click here. |