Obama Offers Full U.S. Embrace for Mideast Democratic Change
By Stephen Kaufman | Staff Writer | 19 May 2011
Obama outlined economic support for Egypt and
Tunisia to help their people "solidify the accomplishments of the
street" through their democratic transitions.
Washington — Because of its own history and
democratic values, the United States must stand with the people of the
Middle East and with others who peacefully demand their universal rights
and seek greater opportunities, President Obama says.
Speaking in Washington May 19, Obama said the current wave of political uprisings is a response to an unsustainable status quo in the region, and described the suicide of Tunisian fruit seller Mohamed Bouazizi, which sparked the first protests in the region, as a reaction to the relentless tyranny of governments that deny dignity to their own people.
“Our own nation was founded through a rebellion against an empire. Our people fought a painful civil war that extended freedom and dignity to those who were enslaved. And I would not be standing here today unless past generations turned to the moral force of nonviolence as a way to perfect our union,” the president said.
The United States believes that repression will fail, that tyrants will fall and that every man and every woman is entitled to certain inalienable rights, he said.
“We have the chance to show that America values the dignity of the street vendor in Tunisia more than the raw power of the dictator,” he said, adding that there must be no doubt on the part of those living in the Middle East that “the United States of America welcomes change that advances self-determination and opportunity.”
The people have risen up on their own, and it is they themselves who will determine the outcome of their efforts, Obama said.
The United States opposes the use of violence and government oppression, and supports universal human rights. It can offer “concrete action” in support of political and economic reforms to help ordinary people of the region achieve their legitimate aspirations for greater freedoms and opportunities, he said.
The energy sweeping the region must be channeled “so that economic growth can solidify the accomplishments of the street” by expanding growth and broad-based prosperity, Obama said.
The president outlined proposed economic support for Tunisia and Egypt, which are undergoing a democratic transition, and said those nations can set strong examples for the rest of the region by holding free and fair elections, having a vibrant civil society and building accountable and effective democratic institutions.
Obama said his administration has asked the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund to present a plan at the upcoming Group of Eight summit on how best to stabilize and modernize the economies of both countries.
In addition, Obama said the United States will relieve Egypt of up to $1 billion of its debt and channel that money into its medium-term development needs and job creation. It will also guarantee Egypt an additional $1 billion in loans through the Overseas Private Investment Corporation (OPIC) to allow it to fund additional infrastructure projects and employment opportunities for its young people.
The president proposed an Egyptian-American enterprise fund that would help stimulate private investment and promote job creation, and said the United States will work with the European Union to help boost trade both within and outside the region.
He called for the tearing down of “walls that stand in the way of progress,” such as corruption, bureaucratic red tape and patronage based on tribe or religious sect, and said the United States will help officials and activists develop reforms, increase transparency and help to hold governments accountable.
Obama said the May 1 death of al-Qaida leader Osama bin Laden had dealt his terror organization a “huge blow,” and added that many in the region had already come to see bin Laden’s agenda, which promoted destruction and opposed democracy, as “a dead end.”
The people of the Middle East have taken their own future into their hands, he said, and “through the moral force of nonviolence, the people of the region have achieved more change in six months than terrorists have accomplished in decades.”
U.S. interests in their region are not hostile to their hopes, but essential to them, he said, because the United States not only has a stake in the region’s stability, but is fundamentally committed to the self-determination of its people.
Speaking in Washington May 19, Obama said the current wave of political uprisings is a response to an unsustainable status quo in the region, and described the suicide of Tunisian fruit seller Mohamed Bouazizi, which sparked the first protests in the region, as a reaction to the relentless tyranny of governments that deny dignity to their own people.
“Our own nation was founded through a rebellion against an empire. Our people fought a painful civil war that extended freedom and dignity to those who were enslaved. And I would not be standing here today unless past generations turned to the moral force of nonviolence as a way to perfect our union,” the president said.
The United States believes that repression will fail, that tyrants will fall and that every man and every woman is entitled to certain inalienable rights, he said.
“We have the chance to show that America values the dignity of the street vendor in Tunisia more than the raw power of the dictator,” he said, adding that there must be no doubt on the part of those living in the Middle East that “the United States of America welcomes change that advances self-determination and opportunity.”
The people have risen up on their own, and it is they themselves who will determine the outcome of their efforts, Obama said.
The United States opposes the use of violence and government oppression, and supports universal human rights. It can offer “concrete action” in support of political and economic reforms to help ordinary people of the region achieve their legitimate aspirations for greater freedoms and opportunities, he said.
The energy sweeping the region must be channeled “so that economic growth can solidify the accomplishments of the street” by expanding growth and broad-based prosperity, Obama said.
The president outlined proposed economic support for Tunisia and Egypt, which are undergoing a democratic transition, and said those nations can set strong examples for the rest of the region by holding free and fair elections, having a vibrant civil society and building accountable and effective democratic institutions.
Obama said his administration has asked the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund to present a plan at the upcoming Group of Eight summit on how best to stabilize and modernize the economies of both countries.
In addition, Obama said the United States will relieve Egypt of up to $1 billion of its debt and channel that money into its medium-term development needs and job creation. It will also guarantee Egypt an additional $1 billion in loans through the Overseas Private Investment Corporation (OPIC) to allow it to fund additional infrastructure projects and employment opportunities for its young people.
The president proposed an Egyptian-American enterprise fund that would help stimulate private investment and promote job creation, and said the United States will work with the European Union to help boost trade both within and outside the region.
He called for the tearing down of “walls that stand in the way of progress,” such as corruption, bureaucratic red tape and patronage based on tribe or religious sect, and said the United States will help officials and activists develop reforms, increase transparency and help to hold governments accountable.
Obama said the May 1 death of al-Qaida leader Osama bin Laden had dealt his terror organization a “huge blow,” and added that many in the region had already come to see bin Laden’s agenda, which promoted destruction and opposed democracy, as “a dead end.”
The people of the Middle East have taken their own future into their hands, he said, and “through the moral force of nonviolence, the people of the region have achieved more change in six months than terrorists have accomplished in decades.”
U.S. interests in their region are not hostile to their hopes, but essential to them, he said, because the United States not only has a stake in the region’s stability, but is fundamentally committed to the self-determination of its people.
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