Democracy: Hypocrisy

Double Standards in Double Time:
Bush’s Plan to “Democratize” the World

by Ivan Eland

Critics of U.S. foreign policy overseas often use the word “hypocrisy” to describe American actions. U.S. leaders have often adopted the high-flying rhetoric of exporting freedom to the world, while supporting petty dictators or overthrowing democratically elected leaders that didn’t tow the U.S. line. Bush’s speech continues that divergence.In his comments, the president treated countries the United States considers “rogue regimes” (Syria, Cuba, Burma and North Korea) much harsher than “friendly” states (Egypt and Saudi Arabia) and powerful nations (China). He declared that dictators in Syria left “a legacy of torture, oppression, misery, and ruin.” The president correctly accused Cuba, Burma, Zimbabwe and North Korea of being “outposts of oppression in our world.”Such harsh rhetoric, however, should be compared with the praise the president doled out for at best slight advances in political freedom by the equally tyrannical regimes in Egypt, Saudi Arabia and China. Egypt, which has made no progress at all, got this timid, but gushing, nudge: “The great and proud nation of Egypt has shown the way toward peace in the Middle East, and now should show the way toward democracy in the Middle East.” Similarly, Bush praised the despotic, medieval Saudi regime as “taking first steps toward reform, including a plan for gradual introduction of elections.” And the president is confident that the leaders of China--a powerful nation that has enormous potential as a market for U.S. exports--“will also discover that freedom is indivisible--that social and religious freedom is also essential to national greatness and national dignity.” He also found something nice to say about progress in the autocratic, but “friendly,” countries of Bahrain, Oman, Qatar, Yemen, Kuwait and Jordan.