It’s an ugly word. The act of oppression is an ugly deed. And sadly it’s alive and well throughout our world. In America we find the concept difficult to comprehend. Yet I think that we’ve all encountered some form of oppression in our own lives. While our personal experiences cannot come close to the experiences of those living under an oppressive regime I still maintain that even a hint should provide us with at least the means for a compassionate view on this subject.In the sidebar definition of oppression I find it quite interesting that the word is linked to depression. We hear about this word all the time, the media is constantly barraging us with advice, diagnosis, and treatments for depression. So perhaps the clue here is a link between an oppressive regime and the depression of its citizens. This makes sense to me, the hopelessness which must surely paralyze a people living under tyranny explains a lot in this context.
A political view, can democracy work?
It is crystal clear that something big is going on in the Middle East. We are watching history happen and of course everyone has an opinion on how it will turn out. One thing is certain; citizens that are standing up for their freedoms have an uphill battle if they are to succeed.
Remember the old adage united we stand divided we fall? This is a historical reference generally credited to the Greek author Aesop, incidentally the Greeks are also credited with the notion of democracy as we know it. Those guys were really on to something and not just the free and the brave have taken note and made use of this wisdom. Tyranny is no accident. This form of leadership is cultivated through deliberate acts that reinforce power and control over a people. Natural divisions are exploited to undermine the power of their victims.
In the MENA region we have ample evidence of this. Political leaders have led to division by exploitation of religion and geographic isolation (S. H. N. N. 2011. 2011). We’ve all heard the terms Sunni and Shiite. These are simply different branches of Islam, not unlike the differences between Baptists and Methodists. All believe in the same God but have different customs they abide by in their worship. Except last time I checked most socially acceptable forms of worship that we see aren’t dabbling in government (okay this is debatable but for the most part we do uphold the division of church and state pretty well) or killing each other.
A very current example of forcing isolation is the decision of both the Egyptian and Iranian governments to shut down internet communications during protest and riots. The power of communication is not lost on these regimes. While this shutdown was only temporary, it does offer some insight on how seriously regimes take the threat of communication among their people (Seeley. 2011). But severing communication is not the only way to attack this problem. Many regimes are using social networking sites to track down dissidents and silence their voices. This behavior is not unique to the Middle East, China has arrested the outspoken artist Ai Weiwei, while the KGB quotes Facebook comments during interrogations (SHANE, 2011). The use of social networking sites is a valuable tool for both sides of the conflict and quite clearly shows us that the web is not responsible for these uprisings but to minimize its impact is also unrealistic.
With all the odds stacked against the success of the public protests, what is the chance that lasting democratic reform will actually come to this region. Time will only give us the answers but the ability to unite and overcome differences with compassion and respect will most certainly be a critical element. A lesson we can all benefit from.
Stock Photo
References:
n/a (nd) Stock photo. http://stagingweblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/11/bigstockphoto_hand_shake_black_white_1200381.jpg
Seeley, N. (2011, April 4). Arab leaders exploit their countries' divisions to stay in power. Christian Science Monitor. Retrieved from EBSCOhost
SHANE S, (2011, January 30). Push comes to shove: Technology helps ignite change (as in Tunisia). Except when it bolsters oppression (as in Iran). New York Times. p. 1. Retrieved from EBSCOhost..
S. H. N. N. (2011). The politics of social networking. (cover story). Middle East, (420), 20. Retrieved from EBSCOhost.
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