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By Madeleine Mezagopian

What has more detrimental impact on the destiny of peoples than war? What has more impact in undermining democracy than war not authorized by the concerned peoples? Dialogue and referendum ceased to be the most democratic tools to invest when national interests are most threatened?

Hypocrisy is further becoming the key feature of many actors at the present. Amid calls by the so called advocates of democracy, with such a self-righteous attitude, for the Arab governments to give in to the wish of its peoples to embrace democracy. These advocates themselves are depriving their own peoples of the most basic right of deciding their destiny overlooking the most democratic tool referendum through launching a war against the wishes of its peoples.

While the emerging democracies in the Arab World suddenly suffer of selective Alzheimer forgetting their recent promises made to their peoples on consolidating democracy foremost its crucial tool of dialogue when adopting policies affecting their destiny, through lending their territories as launching and training sites without consulting their peoples who are most prone to suffer from the repercussions of such adopted policies.

Is unauthorized war and unauthorized lending of facilities and territories justified to punish states that deprive their own peoples of the blessings of democracy?

Unauthorized war and accessibility is a possible accepted approach provided it is just, fair and objective and devoid of double-standard approach.

Is the projected war on Syria and the provision of facilities by the neighbouring states just, fair, objective and devoid of double-standard approach?

Once putting aside one's prejudices and beliefs and looking into all available facts and some reading of recent history, it becomes beyond any doubt the irrelevance of justice, fairness and objectivity and the relevance of double-standard approach pertinent the planned military intervention in Syria. The main if not the only logic derivable from these developments is simply punishing those Arab states that rebel against global powers and opt independence in adopted policies concerning neighbouring states and entering into alliance with regional actors.

This war if materialized will have many victims in the vicinity of Syria and world-wide, foremost the regional associates of global actors. But surely democracy will be one of its hardest hit victims. But again, is democracy alive to stand as a victim?


Madeleine Mezagopian is an academic researcher, adviser, and analyst in the field of conflict resolution, peace, and socioeconomic and political development. She contributed this article to Ammon News English.