God like marx is dead in Iraq

By Abhijit Patwardhan

One hundred eighty six American servicemen have been killed in Iraq till 24 November. The body bags and the political costs of war in Iraq will cost President George W. Bush dearly. If one goes by opinion polls, his chances of re-election for the second term appear bleak. Angry young Muslim men from several European and West Asian countries, inspired if not actually organised by the Al-Qaeda, are hot-footing to Iraq for jihad against America.

Much of this is understandable to people and governments who could not find merit in Washington’s case for war against the dictatorial regime of Saddam Hussein. Many point out that the Iraqis are a proud people, heir to a 7,000-old history, who are resisting oil-greedy Americans out of national pride, not loyalty to the brutal Saddam. I do not know the strength of Iraqi nationalism, but I agree that hatred of the occupying Americans drives the suicide squads of Baghdad, just as it attracts non-Iraqi Muslim youth to that city.

Discerning Americans are beginning to realise that Islam is a force they will have to engage with, sooner rather than later. They are fearful when they learn that Islamic fundamentalists are teaching potential recruits that America is the "Great Satan," and hence a fitting object of holy war. They also know in their hearts that they belong to a soft state–one that can mindlessly bomb a nation into the Stone Age, as in the case of Afghanistan– but one that is unwilling to pay the costs of controlling the ground, as in the case of Iraq.

Washington’s increasingly obvious failure in Afghanistan, where the Taliban are regrouping and war-lordism is rampant, its pussy-footing with Saudi sponsors of Wahabi fundamentalism and its weak-kneed capitulation to the likes of General Pervez Musharraf, have convinced Islamic militants that America is unworthy of either fear or respect.

This is why US officials are beginning to fear that the twin towers tragedy can revisit them, and incidents of the kind that India grapples with daily can become a reality in their own back-lanes. The Americans, of course, have no solutions for their fears, because courage is not a commodity that can be bought off the shelf in a supermarket.

My own concern is with the larger, hitherto unrecognised, significance of Iraq as a stage for the eventual meltdown of the two great monotheisms that have so tormented the world (not to mention their own people) since their inception. Here I would like to warn readers not to fall for callow slogans like Samuel Huntington’s so-called clash of civilisations. To begin with, the two conflicting entities do not meet traditional Indian standards of civilisation, but more fundamentally, the crises gnawing at their insides are internal and not external.

Thus, what appears on the surface to be a physical war on the streets of Baghdad is on another plane two separate wars restricted to the adherents of these exclusivist faiths.

The crisis in the white Western world, centred on the Christian ethos despite lip service to pluralism, is too obvious to be seriously denied. The liberating material quest unleashed by the Renaissance has long exhausted itself, and even though the relentless driver for higher profits continues unabated, the limits of growth without general welfare are beginning to manifest themselves in poverty, starvation and growing unemployment in cities whose streets are supposed to be paved with gold.

Far worse for the West is its complete spiritual vacuum, which has left whole societies, bereft of moral anchorage. This is best exemplified in the sexual scandals ripping apart parish after parish across the globe, which cannot be overcome merely by financially compensating the victims of abuse.

Christian leaders may recall that the total degeneration of the Roman state made it possible for their faith to strike root, after which they perpetuated themselves by the sword. Today, when American generals and writers try to invoke the Bible against the Quran, and posit Iraq as a form of the Crusades, they would do well to realise that well-exposed sex scandals and rumours of financial malpractices have made a mockery of the Church’s moral pretensions.

Such an exposed entity does not inspire heroism or devotion. Nor can the White House invoke ordinary nationalism, because Americans never perceived a threat from Saddam Hussein. President Bush, therefore, will have to explain to his people why he forced them to war. And the European nations that sided with the war, and even those that opposed it, will alike have to face the issue of whether Christianity can be posited as a viable moral and spiritual force against Islam. Or will they admit that God, like Marx, is dead?

Islam, notwithstanding its apparent vigour, faces serious problems. Perceptive Western scholars have observed that Islam has been on the retreat in the political and economic spheres for over four centuries, since Europeans overcame Arab domination of the high seas. Islam since then has sought to recover it former glory, not by equipping itself for the contemporary world, but by seeking retreat into a pristine past when faith and power were united in the person of the Prophet and the Pious Caliphs. This dominant revivalist impulse has caused the failure of all reformist movements in Muslim societies all over the world.

The Iraq crisis, however, is of an entirely different genre. In the backdrop of Vietnam, it may not be unreasonable to presume that the US may withdraw from the country if the costs of war prove too high.

The Muslim world will then have to face the fact that the old Iraq cannot, be put together again. Unlike Iran, which was a cohesive ethnic–religious society that could invite Ayatollah Khomeini to overthrow Shah Reza Pahlavi, Iraq is a Shia majority nation that was ruled by a Sunni oligarchy. But its tallest Shia leader (who was by no means accepted by all Shia clerics) was murdered soon after his return to the country, making it unlikely that faith and power can be united in Iraq in the foreseeable future.

Sunnis may also not easily accept the loss of power accompanying the fall of Saddam Hussein. With no eminent secular leader to unite the two sects, so-called Iraqi nationalism may soon come apart. Wishful thinking alone cannot guarantee the cohabitation of a people bent upon divorce. The ethnic Kurds, on their part, will not miss an opportunity to strike a blow for freedom.

In Iraq, the Muslim world will have to acknowledge that Islam cannot transcend sectarian differences and serve as the basis of a viable polity. It will have to accept that faith and power must remain separate realism if a coherent society is to be built upon the remains of America’s failed imperialism. INAV

New dimension to Indo-Swiss ties

By Subhashis Mittra

For long, a country known for its sylvan surroundings and a place for tourist attraction, Switzerland has now gone high up on India's international map with both countries forging a new dimension to the bilateral ties.

The visit of Swiss President Pascal Couchepin to India saw signing of agreements for cooperation in disaster management and science and technology. Both the countries also decided to explore prospects for diversifying bilateral cooperation in economic and other sectors.

The fact that Couchepin's visit heralded a new dimension to bilateral issues is borne out of the visiting dignitary's remark that Switzerland was keen to have ''brain exchange'' programme with India.

Describing India as an ''important country'', the Swiss President said ''instead of doing brain drain as other countries are trying to do,.. we want to have a brain exchange programme.''

New Delhi has attached special significance to the visit, the last Presidential tour from Switzerland being in 1998 by Flavio Cotti.

After holding wide-ranging discussions on host of important bilateral, regional and international issues, the two sides inked an agreement on cooperation in science and technology to combine their strengths in research for mutually benficial spin offs and enable them explore new avenues of cooperation in bio-technology, life sciences, Genome research and environmental technologies where the Swiss have made considerable progress.

Under the accord on disaster management, detailed procedures have been outlined whereby Swiss assistance will be forthcoming in the event of any natural disasters. It also provides for training programmes and other measures for enhancing early warning system, teaching rescue teams and exchange of relevant experience and information.

On the economic front, Switzerland is India's 13th largest trading partner and ranks 16th in terms of approved investments. Bilateral trade at one billion US dollars in 2002 is in favour of Switzerland.

Describing India as one of the few countries with a major potential for development, Switzerland admitted that the current volume of Indo-Swiss trade and investment was much below what could be achieved.

''Taking into account the complementaries of the Swiss and the Indian economy, the current volume of bilateral trade and investment is much below of what can be achieved,'' Couchepin said at an industry conclave jointly hosted by Confederation of Indian Industries (CII) and Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FICCI).

Switzerland expressed its keenness to continue its dialogue with the Indian authorities and economic players to promote mutually beneficial relations as there was a huge growth potential in trade and prospects were good.

Trade flows grew rapidly in the beginning (1992-96) but the momentum could not be sustained in most of the following years.

Couchepin said he was nevertheless happy to note that this year the bilateral trade was once again showing good improvement.

While machinery and chemical and pharma sectors were traditional sectors of financial and technical collaborations, the service sector, after further liberalisation, was also attracting higher investments from Switzerland.

According to Minister of State for External Affairs Vinod Khanna, Switzerland had emerged as one of the favourite destination for tourists from India with an annual average growth rate of 25 per cent, mainly because of extensive shooting of Indian feature films there.

Agreeing with Couchepin, Khanna said the bilateral trade in 2001-02 at one billion dollars was well below its true potential. Switzerland is India's 13th largest trading partner and ranks 16th in terms of approved investments.

Bilateral Investment Protection Agreement and Double Taxation Avoidance Agreement were in place to facilitate greater economic interaction.

An emerging facet of the bilateral trade is the increased export of software services to major banks, financial institutions, manufacturing concerns and stock exchanges of Switzerland. In 2000-01, India's software exports to Switzerland stood at 66.1 milion dollars.

On multilateralism, the Swiss President said, for both countries, ''Cancum WTO failure has been a negative result, and I note with satisfaction that India, like Switzerland, hopes 'Doha negotiations' will start again as soon as possible.''

The Swiss President, in course of his week-long visit, called on President A P J Abdul Kalam, who hosted a banquet in his honour. He also had meetings with Vice President Bhairon Singh Shekhawat, Deputy Prime Minister L K Advani and External Affairs Minister Yashwant Sinha.

In his speech at a banquet hosted in honour of Couchepin, President Kalam appreciated Switzerland's efforts at making it almost impossible for terrorist organisations to use Swiss financial institutions to fund their nefarious activities.

''We appreciate your efforts at making it almost impossible for terrorist organisations to use Swiss financial institutions to fund their nefarious activities. All forms of terrorism wherever they emanate must be resisted and condemned, '' Kalam said in his speech.

He said all efforts for improvement of the quality of life of the citizens were constantly under threat of terrorism which does not respect our shared values but targets innocents in its misguided and unacceptable mission. ''Both our countries must oppose this global terrorist network with all the means at our disposal.''

Asserting that the ongoing economic reform process in India has opened up vast opportunities in many new areas of interest to foreign investors, Kalam said Swiss business houses could use them to generate higher and stable returns for their shareholders.

He said though the bilateral trade between the two countries has now reached almost one billion US Dollars, the ''figures still do not do justice to the true potential that exists for cooperation between our countries''.

Noting that the institutional arrangements for promotion of bilateral trade between the two countries were well established, Kalam said, ''we should not focus on how to optimally utilise them to further trade relations.''

The President said that India could cooperate and collaborate with Switzerland in high-tech areas for the mutual benefit of the people of both countries.

Both India and Switzerland have their history rooted in the distant past. The geologically young Alps emerged about the same time as the Himalayas. Being in the centre of Europe, Alpine passes became crossroads of history which since the Roman times have seen the passage of many conquerors and empires until the Swiss Confederations became a nation and country committed to following a policy of positive neurality in war and which supports all humane and humanitarian causes worldwide.

Switzerland is also home to a unique model of grassroot democracy implemented in a creative manner. It sets itself apart by adopting benchmarks in its developmental model with centrality accorded to environmental protection and sustainable development.

The Swiss people have determinedly withstood the onslaught of conquering feudal empires on the one hand and divisive sectarian, linguistic and ethnic differences on the other.

Though the country is divided by deep mountains and valleys, it is also crowned by high snow-capped Apline peaks and, like them, the spirit of the Swiss transcends all differences, which usually divide people.

India's relations with Switzerland are cordial and characterised by respect for democracy, rule of law, independent judiciary and free press.

PTI Feature