Partnership for Peace, Democracy and Development in the BMENA: Civil Society Statement for the "Forum for the Future"

New York, New York
September 2004

We would like to welcome the G8 initiative to support political, economic, and social freedom in the broader Middle East and North Africa (BMENA). This initiative finally converges with civil society's continuous efforts for reform in this region. We particularly welcome the G8 intention to engage civil society of this region in their reform initiatives. International initiatives for reform are particularly important because they lend support to pro-reform forces in BMENA societies and pro-reform leaders among BMENA ruling elites.

We are here, as individuals, simple members of the BMENA civil society, women and men who believe in the rule of law, an independent judiciary to protect it, an active and freely elected parliament to enact laws, an accountable, freely elected government to carry them through, and in meaningful human rights, including foremost the freedom of expression.

We do not claim to represent our societies: only a free vote will. And while most of our countries have parliaments and, occasionally, courageous and outspoken members within them, their efforts are curtailed by executive power, as indeed is the power of our judges which is constantly undermined by executive interference. What we can confidently claim to represent is a pressing voice in our societies that calls for a profound, non-violent change at all levels. We do recognize that diversity of reform instruments goes hand in hand with the diversity of circumstances in the various countries of the BMENA region.

The Basis for our Claims

We did not wait for this occasion to defend democracy and call for the respect of human rights. The three religions which emerged from our lands and the cultural and religious diversity, of which we are proud, have claimed justice and freedom as their call and our societies, like all societies on the planet, have time and again resisted "the patterns of authoritarianism" . Yet this tradition has been often tarnished. Abdalrahman al-Kawakibi, the author of the famous pamphlet "The Patterns of Despotism" in the 19^th century was poisoned for his frankness and courage, and for identifying despotism as a crime against society. Religion has been sometimes used to justify human rights violations and undemocratic forms of Government. The Arab Human Development Reports, the Sanaa and Alexandria Declarations, the Beirut First Arab Civil Forum organized parallel to the Arab Summit and numerous civil society initiatives and declarations ^[1] are an extension of civil society efforts for reform. All these reform initiatives have a shared interest in countering all forms of fundamentalism, the causes of violence, discrimination and hatred in a free and open public sphere for debate and creativity.

I. The Democratic Imperative: Increasing the Value of Individual Life

An Arab Reform Agenda needs to raise the value of life of all Arab citizens. This requires a relentless push for pro-poor economic development, a serious program to improve the quality of education, both secular and religious, and most importantly an unconditional respect for human rights of all citizens of the region and for civic liberties without emergency laws, exceptional and military courts. As a handful of us seek your attention and action, many more free men and women have suffered for their courage by being silenced, more often than not by violent means. We request their release and their right to rehabilitation and integration in a non-violent, meaningful political process.

II. Commitment and programmes

Within the framework of set goals and clear milestones for reform within a foreseeable time plan, each state will have to choose the policy instruments which suit its conditions based on a real partnership between state and society. Only then will commitment be genuine and reform sustainable.

To enact this commitment, we propose a list of problem areas in which we all recognise profound deficits in need of correction.

Human Rights and Civil Liberties

• A program for citizenship equality, especially gender equality, and the inclusion of the cultural and religious diversity of the region in the national process, while respecting this diversity.
• A program that protects and enlarges freedom of expression, especially the freedom of the press, TV and Radio. Laws regulating funding, libel, etc. should be revised according to international practice.

• A program to promote and secure state neutrality in issues that impact upon the freedom of expression in the public space.
• Ending administrative and preventive detentions and releasing prisoners of conscience and those detained without charges or trials, with special programs of rehabilitation and inclusion for those who suffered in detention.

" A program identifying legislations that are too weak in combating violations of human rights in the BMENA region. Such program should take a close look at the resort to emergency and exceptional laws, special and military courts, undue police detentions and regular reliance on torture in order to put an end to such violations of the rule of law. " A program for combating corruption, ensuring the accountability of bureaucracies and the transparency of financial institutions. " A program for enhancing judicial independence and competence. " Constitutional reforms that limit the terms of office.

Socio-economic Development

• A program to secure jobs for the 5 million Arab new entrants into the job market annually. This program should aim to promote investment in services and value-added products, promote small and micro enterprises, increase competitiveness and product quality, innovation, environmental sustainability and social services with creative partnerships between the state and the private sector.
• Enhancing the ability of BMENA parliaments and civil society organizations to make governments accountable to measurable objectives to achieve the aforementioned goals.
• A thorough revision of education generally, and of religious education where intolerance is actively advocated in its name, where basic and high quality skills are trained and critical inquisitive thinking is promoted.

Each one of these is a long, complex program, and in many cases, civil society has already started it. From Sanaa to Alexandria, Beirut and now New York, these issues have been largely identified and the emerging consensus has rallied the reluctant acknowledgment of Arab governments in the last Arab Summit meeting.

III. The Mechanisms of Partnership for Reform

We need commitment, which we request from all, to start at once, in an open and convincing manner. We shall be partners of our governments and partners of the international community in these programmes. Implementation of these programmes must however be carried out by vectors of civil society, persons and institutions, and NOT by international institutions or governments alone.

The Imperative of Partnership

It is necessary for any reform initiative to be based on a real partnership with civil society organizations, political parties and pro reform forces in each state. This partnership should lead to the establishment of institutions accountable before the peoples of the Arab world and the international community. Civil society organizations must have a central role in drawing up the priorities of reform, in their implementation and in the process of monitoring the reforms and identifying benchmarks for reform evaluation. Knowing that some rulers and some ruled may sometimes prefer the status quo to the unknown (which comes with reform), knowing that the G-8 members can only deal with governmental partners, what civil society can provide in such partnership is the power to pressure reluctant governments (and reluctant fellow citizens), keeping a watchful eye on processes of and progress towards reform.

Civil Society with Observer Status $ Electronic Platforms

One constructive way to do that is to give one or more Civil Society Fora an observing member status with the right to comment on drafts and initiatives early enough for these comments to be seriously considered. These representatives of civil society should be assisted in establishing electronic platforms by which they can be in constant dialogue (via active links and the like) with other civil society organizations. The experience of the UN in establishing such electronic dialogues and platforms in preparation for UN conventions should be tapped and transferred. Besides, Civil and Human Rights Regional Organizations, Lawyers Associations, and Journalists Associations should be included. An interdisciplinary think tank and knowledge bank can be easily provided by institutions in the region which have the competence and capacity to benchmark progress and monitor trends towards reform. Their work over the years has included the collection of data, the management of information and the creation of knowledge regarding all aspects of good governance. They could work together with other similar think tanks outside the region to establish a knowledge bank for reform.

Societal Observatories of Reform

For this to work, societal observatories need to be created with a system of accountability. ^[2] Such observatories would help create structured action plans with clear and realistic benchmarks. Successful examples of reform and country specific alternative solutions collected and analysed by such observatories could widely circulate these examples via regional, south-south networks and international networks which link BMENA civil society to counterparts all over the world.

IV. Regional Security and Reform

But we do not feel this would be sufficient. For while BMENA societies confront problems which are universal, they are still plagued by a unique intensity of violence in which the first victims are our relatives and friends. In recent years, such violence has spilled over to the planet, and this explains the present, unusual, meeting. This is because violence in our region carries complications of its own, which need to be addressed alongside the medium to long-term progras identified above.

The issue, in brief, is one of human rights and political accountability, mostly at the top of decision-making in each state. It is eminently political, and concerns the regular, non-violent, institutionalised change of the executive leaders in our countries. This is further complicated by regional problems, mostly the one occasioned by the emergence of Israel on the ruins of Palestine.

We shall not simply demand a peaceful, fair and comprehensive solution to the Palestinian Israeli conflict nor simply demand peace, democracy, and territorial integrity in Iraq or a peaceful and fair solution to the Kashmir conflict and the establishment of democracy in Afghanistan. Governments in the region have often used these regional security issues to delay political, economic and social reform, as if solving these issues can only come at the cost of suppression and oppression. Instead, BMENA civil society has over and over again asserted that internal reform is urgent with no buts or ifs related to regional security and peace. Yet it is imperative to note that a solution to regional security issues, including the end to all mass destruction weapons programs in the region, can only enhance reform, pulling the rug from underneath the feet of governments and radical movements alike. Sincere efforts to solve regional security issues can only enhance the credibility of international initiatives for reform in the eyes of civil society and the public at large.

^[2] There are various initiatives by BMENA civil society, such as the Arab Reform Forum, created through the Alexandria meeting on "Arab Reform Issues: Vision and Implementation" and the First Arab Civil Forum to create such observatories with the objective of providing information on human rights violations and monitoring and analysing legal and judiciary reform trends and processes.