Democratic Deficit of Self-declared Democracies

Biden’s so-called Summit for Democracy, attended by the heads of the state of some 110 countriesdeclared its purpose as: to “Defend Against Authoritarianism, Fight Corruption and Promote Human Rights.” But why did Biden fail to even mention India’segregious human rights violations much less condemn them? Equally importantly why is the torture chamber at Guantanamo Bay still holding prisoners without charge or a fair and open trial for more than 10 years? Are they not human beings that have any rights? Representative Ilhan Omar, a member of Congress and woman of color received death threats but there is little or no reaction to such criminal conduct. What kind of democracy would allow that?Is it a democracy or an oligarchy? Not surprisingly, Eric Zuess, writing in Counterpunch, declared: “American democracy is a sham, no matter how much it’s pumped by the oligarchs who run the country (and who control the nation’s ‘news’ media).” He went on: “The US, in other words, is basically similar to Russiaor most other dubious ‘electoral’ ‘democratic’ countries. We weren’t formerly, but we clearly are now.”

Such repeat offenders as the Zionist entity, populated by thieves and hustlers from Europe and North America, is called the ‘only democracy’ in the Middle East. Presumably, this entitles the Zionist thugs to kill and maim Palestinian children and women and steal their land.According to the Israeli human rights organization, B’Tselem, “At the end of September 2020, there were 4,184 Palestinian security detainees and prisoners being held in Israel Prison Service (IPS) facilities, including 254 from the Gaza Strip. In addition, 545 Palestinians, 8 of them from the Gaza Strip, were in IPS prisons for being in Israel illegally. The IPS classifies these Palestinians – both detainees and prisoners – criminal offenders.”According to Addameer, the Palestinians’ Prison Support and Human Rights Association, there are 4,550 Palestinian political prisoners languishing in Israeli jails. These include 500 administrative detainees, 170 children and 32 women. There are also eight Palestinian legislative council members held as prisoners. The ‘only democracy’ in the Middle East has a fine sense of democratic values!Torture is rampant and denial of basic rights including the denial of medication are common practices in Israeli prisons. Zionist occupied West Bank is dotted with military checkpoints where the humiliation of Palestinians is routine. Israel gets away with such criminal conduct because, well, it is the ‘only democracy’ in the Middle East!

And then there is India, the self-proclaimed ‘largest democracy’ in the world. Indian democracy, however, no longer includes the rights of religious minorities, especially Muslims and Christians. India’s 200 million Muslims have faced the wrath of Hindutva fascists that insist on turning India into an exclusivist Hindu state. The current ruling party, the Bhartiya Janata Party (BJP) has its roots in the Hindu fascist outfit, the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS). Between December 17 and 19, last year, at a ‘Dharma Sansad’ (Religious parliament) organized at Haridwar in Uttarakhand a number of Hindu leaders openly called for the genocide of Muslims. They have made no secret of their desire to turn India into an exclusivist Hindu state.Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s silence makes him complicit in the call for genocide!Western media and regimes that immediately go berserk if Christians are attacked in any Muslim country, there is deafening silence about Indian crimes. Why?The US considers India an important ally. “The U.S.-India partnership is founded on a shared commitment to freedom, democratic principles, equal treatment of all citizens, human rights, and the rule of law,” says the State Department website.India’s brutal suppression of Kashmiri aspirations predates the creation of Pakistan and India in 1947. Nearly 96,000 Kashmiris have been killed by India’s 900,000 occupation forces since 1989 and more than 11,000 women have been raped. Despite such well-documented crimes, Indian officials, including Modi are welcomed in Western capitals and accorded red carpet reception.

Even the American democracy is a sham. It is evident from voter suppression in Florida in 2000 disenfranchising millions of African-Americans. Current voter-suppression laws in Georgia and Texas reconfirm this. Greg Palast has reminded us that “America has the best democracy money can buy.” Let us look at the 2020 elections for president and Congress. More than $14.4 billion were spent on these elections, the highest total since records have been kept. It was also more than double the amount spent in the 2016 election cycle. With such massive sums spent on elections, it is evident that individuals and corporations that donate large sums are able to buy candidates to do their bidding. Sheldon Adelson, the casino mogul and a notorious Zionist, before his death earlier this year, had the Republican Party in his pocket. Haim Saban, the Israeli-American, has the Democratic Party in his pocket! America indeed has the best democracy money can buy. The Zionists bought it a long time ago and that is where it stays!

Courtesy: Adapted from an article by Waseem Shehzad in The Truth Journal