http://www.atimes.com/atimes/Middle_East/MH27Ak02.html
Aug 27, 2011
Arab Spring's cruel truth
By Hossein Askari
The protests for regime change that are sweeping across the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) have been interpreted as the quest for democracy. While democratic reform is undoubtedly in the hearts and minds of the protesters, the core of the struggle is for economic justice. How to divide up the pie in all these countries, especially in countries where the pie is largely baked by depleting oil and natural gas resources?
The ruling elite in all these countries wants to control the levers of power not for political power per se, but to grab a disproportionate share of the economic pie. But the quest for economic justice and a more equitable division of the pie is made all the more problematic because of intertwined foreign economic and financial interests.
Although the autocratic rule and the subpar economic performance of these Arab countries (and Iran) over the past 50 or so years, especially given their vast oil and natural gas resources, is widely recognized, it recently appeared that the corruption and self-enrichment of the rulers was a surprise to some in the sophisticated global press.
The wealth, lifestyle and excesses of Zine El Abidine Ben Ali in Tunisia, Hosni Mubarak in Egypt and especially Muammar Gaddafi and his family in Libya seemed to be a surprise to the media. Yes, they had not reported it in any detail before, but to be surprised? Frankly, it was much more surprising that the media was surprised. Where have they been all these years?
All available corruption indicators point to these rulers as some of the most corrupt in the world. The paparazzi have captured some of their lavish lifestyles. The revelations in The Economist's August expose of Chinese dealings with African leaders are dwarfed by what has been going on in the Middle East and North Africa region, not for a few years but for decades.
While all corrupt rulers should be exposed, most of the rulers in MENA are even more "deserving" of exposure. On top of their theft, they have created little of value in their countries - that is, economic progress that would continue once the oil and gas runs out. Per capita economic growth has been low; inflation and unemployment have been generally high in many of these countries, with sub par education and health services.
Most importantly, effective institutions, the foundation of development and more rapid sustained economic growth, have been expressly and deliberately undermined because effective institutions, such as an independent legal system the rule of law, would impinge on the corrupt activities of rulers.
Instead, they have robbed their citizens and all future generations of their birthright, namely the limited oil and natural gas reserves that rightfully belong to all citizens. In many of these countries, especially in Libya, Qatar, the United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia, the rulers and their families take what they want, amassing fortunes that they do not deserve or earn.
Some of them even behave as if oil revenues were theirs and they were generous and magnanimous in allowing the government to spend it. All the while their foreign supporters say little and do even less, especially given that major Western governments have all the dope on their corrupt activities, on their relations with major multi-nation companies, with retired politicians and military officials, including all the details of their external assets and bank accounts. Why?
Well, it's quite simple. The autocrats of MENA have figured out how the developed world operates. Influential people can be bought. So they have found a variety of ways to access influential Americans, Europeans and others from around the globe, be it through personal consulting contracts, gifts to their favorite universities or foundations, and through lucrative contracts for influential oil, defense industry, engineering and financial corporations.
These highly placed individuals, foundations and corporations, in turn, lobby to promote the interest of these autocratic rulers around the world. This is an important reason why dictators are looked on with favor in capitals around the world, the "watchdog" media reveal little and official support is justified on the basis of empty phrases such as "national interest" and "access to oil".
What makes this web of personal financial interest even tighter is that if, and when, dictators are overthrown, the new rulers are soon approached by the same set of foreign actors, adopt the same undemocratic policies and rely on the same web of personal financial interests to garner foreign support and then begin their own quest for amassing fortunes - a new group in power relying on the same cast of characters in major capitals around the globe.
In a sense, it is the modern morphed structure of colonialism; before, governments robbed underdeveloped countries, and now the rulers of these underdeveloped undemocratic countries collude with influential individuals and corporations in the "advanced" countries facilitate the same for themselves and their foreign supporters.
If the Western world were serious about supporting democracy in MENA, it would cut off the support of their own lobbyists - individuals and corporations - for these autocratic regimes through a number of measures:
1. Barring lobbying on behalf of foreign governments and rulers. Individuals and corporations could have financial dealings, but they have to be fully disclosed and they must be barred from contacting any government officials to discuss anything that might be interpreted as support for foreign governments and rulers.
While some may find such a measure as against free speech, it really is not. They can write what they want. They can express them on the radio, on television and in any public forum, but not to government officials, including members of the legislature.
2. Disclosing all assets of foreign rulers and their governments everywhere in the world. Again, some may decry that this robs individuals around the world of their privacy, but remember that we require such disclosures of senior officials and we should ask more of foreigners, not less.
3. Governments should detail the specific reasoning and basis for their support of autocratic rulers, not resorting to nebulous phrases.
These three simple measures will undermine support for autocratic rulers around the world; reduce their personal principal benefit from their autocratic rule; afford more encouragement and hope to deprived masses around the world; give tangible support to those who struggle for democratic reform and economic justice around the world; and believe it or not, slowly improve the reputation of Western, Russian and Chinese governments in the developing world.
In the end, it is a story as long as time: "Follow the money".
Hossein Askari is Professor of International Business and International Affairs at the George Washington University.
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