Judging by the standing ovation President Barack Obama received when he reached out to the Muslim world at Cairo University, his words have been accepted as balm on hurt wounds.
Towards the religion of Islam he was respectful: “I have come here to seek a new beginning between the United States and Muslims around the world, he began after greeting the audience with “assalaamu alaykum . At a time when a new CNN/Opinion Research Group poll has found that 46 percent of Americans hold an unfavorable view of the Muslim world his visit couldn t be more opportune. He spoke of the Muslim antecedents of his Kenyan father and of the years as a child spent in Indonesia, where he heard the call to prayer. On several occasions he used direct quotes from Islam’s Holy Book to reinforce his message of peace and belief in human rights. He also spoke glowingly concerning the innovation of Islamic civilizations that paved the way for Europe’s Renaissance and Enlightenment and the contribution that Muslim Americans have made towards making America great. Moreover, he praised he praised Saudi Arabia s King Abdullah for his interfaith dialogue. Much of this long-awaited address was philosophical, even visionary. Even a representative of Hamas has likened it to that of Martin Luther King’s famous “I have a dream speech. “All of us share this world but for a brief moment in time, Obama said. “The question is whether we spend that time focused on what pushes us apart, or whether we commit ourselves to an effort – a sustained effort – to find common ground, to focus on the future we seek for our children, and to respect the dignity of all human beings . On substance there was little we didn’t already know and there were no direct apologies for the post September 11 2001 culture towards Muslims.
However, Obama admitted that although the “fear and anger that the attacks on American soil provoked was understandable “in some cases it led us to act contrary to our ideals. In this respect, he repeated his commitment to close the prison at Guantánamo Bay by early next year and once again highlighted his prohibition of the use of torture. And while he reiterated his intention to pursue Al Qaeda, he was careful throughout not to use the word “terrorism or the phrase “war on terror .
Instead the mot du jour was extremism . He also supported the right of Muslim women everywhere to wear the hijab and intends supporting the right of American Muslims to give zakat to Muslim charities without being held under suspicion, as was the case under the Bush administration. While strongly justifying his country’s invasion and ongoing occupation of Afghanistan, he conceded that Iraq was a war of choice, which has reminded “America of the need to use diplomacy and build international consensus to resolve our problems whenever possible. In this connection he quoted former US President Thomas Jefferson as saying, “I hope that our wisdom will grow with our power, and teach us that the less we use our power the greater it will be. He stressed that America is responsible to “help Iraq forge a better future – and to leave Iraq to Iraqis . Music to most Iraqi ears will surely be Obama’s undertakings to remove all combat brigades by August and not to pursue US bases on Iraq’s soil. Similarly comforting is his statement that America has no claim on Iraqi territory or resources. “Iraq sovereignty is its own, he said. Despite the predictions of several Middle East pundits, Obama did not come up with any grand solution to resolving the Israel-Palestine conflict, although he made his commitment to a Palestinian state crystal clear along with his intention to work hard towards that goal. That is in Israel’s interest, Palestine’s interest, America’s interest and the world’s interest, he said.
“That is why I intend to personally pursue this outcome with all the patience that the task requires. Predictably, he took the opportunity to chastise Palestinians for their use of violence and he insisted that Hamas must recognize Israel’s legitimate right to exist. However, he also acknowledged that Hamas is supported by some Palestinians. On the other hand, he came out firmly against the expansion of Israeli settlements, which, he said, “violates previous agreements and undermines efforts to achieve peace. On this he was unequivocal. “It’s time for these settlements to stop, he said. That admonishment will not go down very well in Tel Aviv and neither will his call to the Israeli government to live up to its obligations “to ensure that Palestinians can live, and work and develop their society. “Israel must take concrete steps to enable such progress, he said. He further appeared to equate the Palestinian struggle for dignity with the way “black people in America suffered the lash of the whip as slaves and the humiliation of segregation. A surprise to some commentators was his use of the word “occupation in relation to the Palestinian plight; something that previous US presidents have generally refrained from doing. Israeli hawks who want Jerusalem to be their capital city will also be perturbed by Obama’s vision of the holy city as a “secure and lasting home for Jews and Christian and Muslims . Once again, Obama took the opportunity to mend bridges with Iran. “It will be hard to overcome decades of mistrust, but we will proceed with courage, rectitude and resolve, he said. “There will be many issues to discuss between our two countries, and we are willing to move forward without preconditions on the basis of mutual respect. Interestingly, Obama chose to highlight the role of the US in overthrowing democratically elected Iranian government – a reference to the ousting of Premier Mohammed Mosaddeq in 1952 – which has already incensed Fox News anchors. Other issues tackled included democracy, religious freedom, human rights and women’s rights. It’s too soon to know whether Obama’s attempt to heal divisions between his country and the Muslim world has had the desired impact, but it was certainly well received in Cairo, where he received a standing ovation amid chants of “Obama, Obama.
Perhaps the students of Cairo University won’t mind that their final exams were postponed after all.
Linda Heard is an Egypt-based syndicated political commentator.
