2/20/2011
A new model for Egypt?
Yang Razali Kassim wrote an article in the ST yesterday on Indonesia as a possible role model for the new Egypt. The assumption is that there is real change with the fall of Mubarak. Some are wondering whether there is any change at all and whether everything is as before with power in the hands of the old guards, and the Emperor still in control. But this is another issue that will become clearer when the dust settles.
Yang Razali has pondered whether Indonesia is a good alternative political system for Egypt and the Middle East. The thought of Indonesia as a model for an ancient civilisation which is the pride of the Arab world is a refreshing change. It shows a shift in the mindset of what can be good for the Islamic world. And now, Indonesia and even Malaysia, could stand out as good alternatives to the Middle Eastern political system. They have not been doing well and not exemplary on any count. Nothing to crow about. At least Indonesia and Malaysia are truly independent countries and not controlled by foreign powers, and are models of economic growth and development.
The rest of the Islamic world outside the Middle East have always looked towards this centre for everything, education, culture, social and lifestyle, and of course religion. The question is whether the Middle East lives up to its reputation or perceived greatness for the rest of the Islamic world to emulate. Looking at Indonesia and Malaysia, it is apparent that these two countries are more successful in their social and economic development. Should it then be the Middle East looking to Southeast Asia, particularly Indonesia and Malaysia, as the role model for the future? Should Indonesia and Malaysia look West to the Middle East and give up their rich cultural heritage to be more like Arabs or vice versa?
What the Middle East can offer so far is religion and an ancient culture that is not going anywhere except towards the medieval age. In contrast, Indonesia and Malaysia are moving forward to science and technology, with religion as one of the pillars of their social political framework. The Middle East is all about religion and religion and the times of Muhammed.
There is a contention between modernity, science and technology versus religiosity, tradition and ancient conservatism. Which shall be the light of the Islamic World? America was the new world of Europe. Can Southeast Asia be the new model for the Middle East?
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7 comments:
How old indeed is the Egyptian civilisation? The little early history that I studied about Egypt tells me they have existed for thousands of years, well before red dot or the evil empire was founded. And we think we know what is good for them?
Old civilisations are not necessarily better civilisations. The Chinese and Indian civilisations almost gone to the dogs. They have to reinvent themselves, adapt to the changes of environment and technology to remain relevant and alive.
The Red Indian civilisation is almost extinct. The Incas...history. The Mesopotamia, the Pharoahs, the Romans, the Greeks, either history or a shadow of their glorious past.
History is a lesson to be learnt. Sticking to old and decadent ways, unprogressive ways, will not do any civilisation any good.
The world used to laugh at China for crowing about its glorious past. They will continue to sneer at China if it remains in its decadent and obsolete past and not adapt itself to the new world.
What has Egypt got to offer to the world and to its people today other than the pyramids?
The pyramids are still baffling modern engineers. How did the Egyptians of old managed to construct them without modern machinery is still a question.
Same with the Incas temples and some other monuments of the old world, incorporating within those structures, scientific and astronomical studies of the heavens that even astronomers of today are baffled. And we still have that mentality that they are backward and unprogressive.
And we continue to sneer at the old civilisations as decadent and obsolete.
By the looks of it, modern civilisation itself is not going to last that long. Many things today are far more decadent than the past.
The people of the more developed countries may become extinct with dipping procreation getting more serious. The people of the less developed countries may still last a lot longer because they are multiplying.
In the end we will know who has more to offer.
The world should encourage the Red Indians and Aborigines to hold protests to fight for and regain their rights.
After all they are encouraging people of the Middle Eastern countries to fight to regain their rights.
Or are they different?
Whatever it is, it is never going to be better for the people of Egypt. Afghanistan and Iraq are in tatters despite initial claims of change for the good of the people.
The world only knows better ways of parroting the spouting of the Imperial Empire. Lessons are never learned from reality.
The truth hurts. Ignore the truth.
The excellent engineers of the Pyramids and the Incas civilisations are gone. None of their new descendents inherited their knowledge and did not have a clue how they were built. The expertise were lost.
Both civilisations did not become better then their forefathers. If they do, they need not become subjects of the Empire and their lives dictated and controlled by the Empire.
The choas, economic and political asunder taking place in the Middle East do not just happen overnight. It is the cumulative effect of two factors. One it is the result of centuries of Western extreme grievous exploitation of the resources of these Arab countries when they were then under Western colonial rule including the White Americans. The white colonial masters first manipulated the local tribal leaders,the sheiks and sultans or what not to toe the line under Western colonial leadership. The common people, the large majority of the Arabs were irrelevant and inconsequential. The white men, especially the white Americans have been practically taking the oil for free for the last one hundred years . Of course the tribal sheiks or sultans benefited quite substantially from this economic exploitation while the people at large werfe left to rot in extreme poverty. This builds up a scenario of pent up frustration waiting to explode both against the West and the insentive tribal leaders.
Next, the tribal leaders who also sit as theocratic leaders and together with other crony theocratic leaders ,the so called imams or ayatollahs were able to psycho and con the commoners to blind total obedience to their hideous dictatorial theocratic rule, all in the pretentiouis obeisance to the rules of their almighty holy book of their almighty God. While the citizens or commoners at large are lulled into complete holy uncritical obeisance to the so called sacred book of the Almighty God, the tribal leaders, the sheiks, the sultans and certain theocratic leaders indulge in sinful pleasure and wallow in untold incomprehensible wealth of billions of dollars, though at the same time the commoners have to withstand extreme economic suffering in silence.
Thus the economic exploitation of the Europeans and the white Americans with the connivance of tribal leaders, the sheiks and imams have a cumulative effect of a long term pent up frustration waiting to explode. So actually the present peoples revolt is both a rejection against evil Western exploitation as much as against pretentious theocratic rule. Lets hope the Middle East people will succeed in securing a more enlighten secular type of government.
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