Misdirected Criticism

By Hassan Elsawaf

As far as we Egyptians are concerned, in dealing with Israel we are both anachronistic and schizophrenic. The anachronism is based on living in the past and refusing to accept Israel as being an unavoidable part of the region, as have many erstwhile enemies around the world, now living in perfect harmony. As for the schizophrenia, it has to do with the Egyptian government. Despite having made official peace and agreed to conditions of co-existence and cooperation, the actual policy is to continue to treat anyone showing interest in dealing with Israel with extreme suspicion, to the point of harassment and occasional flagrant intimidation. Seldom do Egyptians contemplate a visit to Israel unless they have a strong reason, despite proximity and much curiosity. The phrase ‘Israeli agent’ is still a favourite among regime bullies and the official media.
Even though Israel’s record contains a plethora of blemishes, it is still a nation we need to emulate. Many criticise the way the Palestinians are treated and some ethnic discrimination in Israel proper; they are right. Israel’s demeanour with the Palestinians is reminiscent of apartheid in South Africa.
However, they overlook an important point, namely how a government treats its own citizens. Then comes the treatment of others. In the case of Israel, the bulk of the population can expect from their government the sort of respect a Norwegian can expect from his government. If not conducting its duties in a manner that pleases its people, an Israeli government is easily voted out, and we have seen that several times; in other words, a democracy.
Allegations that Israel is not a democracy do not make sense. Israel has a system we would do well to learn from. Its leaders are civil servants, not gods. Prime ministers can serve as cabinet ministers in subsequent governments without feeling humiliated. Freedom of speech is sacred. It is inaccurate to describe governments that treat others badly as ‘undemocratic’, for when a government is fairly elected and can be removed, it is democratic, irrespective of how it behaves with others. A case like Israel indicates a people who can be described as unfair, even evil, but not an undemocratic society.
If we take a look at Egypt, a shambles of a political system, and how fond its government is of lambasting Israel, blaming it for most of our local problems, we realise how convenient a decoy Israel has become. The way the people of Egypt are treated by their own government is worse than the way the Israelis treat the Palestinians. Take a trip to Upper Egypt and ask the locals how they see their own government. Or peep into an Egyptian prison and see how inmates are treated, some yet to face charges, others having served years beyond their sentences.
It is important to compare in order to discover what we are really like when treating our own people and how we can use the Israeli model to get better.
The reason we need to look at the behaviour of our government with its own people is that a country like Egypt, given the way it is ruled, would certainly, in the event of being in charge of the Palestinians, treat them far worse. Indeed, to judge from the difficulty Palestinian refugees in Egypt encounter in everything to do with living in Egypt, it is laughable to rebuke the Israelis.
I believe it is right to put oneself into another person’s place before criticising. In Israel’s place, it is my opinion that Egypt would have treated the Palestinian people in the style of the late Assad or the Iraqi henchman now languishing in prison. The only impediment to the present Egyptian government not going all out against its own growing opposition is fear of the consequences, pure and simple.
I only wish a small part of the barrage of criticism levelled on Israel is steered towards its rightful destination: our own corrupt government. Please remember that we would not be any better off, even if Israel were annihilated.