Australian Notes

Wednesday, 10th June 2009

President Obama’s speech in Cairo combining ‘a new beginning’ for Muslims of the world with reassurance to old allies like Israel was a fine balancing act.

President Obama’s speech in Cairo combining ‘a new beginning’ for Muslims of the world with reassurance to old allies like Israel was a fine balancing act. But there is no doubting the tilt, however qualified, to the Muslims. The President now supports Palestine, as he has begun to call it, and will engage in dialogue with a moderate Hamas. He will not now oppose Iran’s peaceful nuclear ambitions. He also accepts Islamism, including sharia law, if it is peaceful. He calls for governments to ‘reflect the will of the people’, although most of the relevant dictatorships claim they already do. He says women should have the right to wear the hijab, but does not mention the right not to wear it. You can argue for some or all of these. But once we used to talk grandly about global democracy, the free society, free elections, free speech, independent courts… Not any more. Those days are gone. This is what the ‘new beginning’ means.

Australia should accept its share of the 17 Uyghurs still in Guantanamo. The US courts have found that they are not enemy combatants. They did not fight against our forces or the Americans. (Their enemy is China.) They were captured and jailed in the fog of war. But as an ally of the US, we have de facto used Guantanamo in the war against al-Qa’eda, and we should do our bit to help clear up any mess. The Uyghurs cannot be sent back to China, where they would be arrested and probably executed as Muslim separatists. They are Displaced Persons. We have 3,000 Uyghurs living in peace in Australia. Another few, properly screened, would be easily absorbed.

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