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Al-Ahram Weekly 8 - 14 April 1999 Issue No. 424 
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Published in Cairo by AL-AHRAM established in 1875 |
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Al-Ahram Weekly 8 - 14 April 1999 Issue No. 424
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| Published in Cairo by AL-AHRAM established in 1875 |
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Egypt Region International Economy Opinion Culture Focus Profile Features Travel Living Sports People Time Out Chronicles Cartoons Letters Our fascists
By Mohamed El-Sayed Said *
Why do the Albanians of Kosovo deserve self-rule, but not the Kurds in Turkey? Why do the Albanians merit being defended, while the Kurds deserve the humiliation of watching the capture of their leader and his dispatch, blindfolded, to stand trial for high treason by the Turkish military? Why does the US support Turkey's assault, inside Iraq, on the forces of the Kurdistan Workers Party, while it strikes Belgrade to prevent it from attacking Kosovo Liberation Army bases in a province which is still under the control of the Serb Republic?
It will be a long time before all the secrets behind the US's double standards vis-à-vis national minorities are disclosed. Nevertheless, two points are clear. First, NATO's war against the Serbs is devoid of any true global support. This is especially evident in the Arab region, despite NATO's allegations that the strikes are in defence of the Muslims in Kosovo.
Second, Turkish military fascism has always been a strategic ally of the US. In contrast, Serbian fascism, from its inception, has been "independent" of the US and its European allies.
Ronald Reagan overtly supported dictators in Central and Latin America because it was in the US's interest. He referred to the rulers of those countries as "our dictators". The difference, therefore, between Turkey and Serbia is that the Turkish military are, to adapt Reagan's phrase, "the US's fascists".
*This week's Soapbox speaker is deputy director of Al-Ahram Centre for Political and Strategic Studies.
