Yezzi Fock
by zunguzungu
On Tunisia:
SECRETARY CLINTON: Well, we are worried, in general, about the unrest and the instability, and what seems to be the underlying concerns of the people who are protesting — it seems to be a combination of economic and political demonstrations — and the government’s reaction, which has been, unfortunately, leading to the deaths of some of the protestors. So we are not taking sides in it, we just hope there can be a peaceful resolution of it…we have got a lot of very positive aspects of our relationship with Tunisia. And what the Ambassador and what the State Department back in Washington did was just express concern that this is a protest that has, unfortunately, provoked such a reaction from the government, leading to the deaths of mostly young people who were protesting. And, as I say, we are not taking sides, but we are saying we hope that there can be a peaceful resolution. And I hope that the Tunisian Government can bring that about.
Fuck that shit, Secretary Clinton. Protests do not “provoke” a government into killing protesters, and what you really mean by “not taking sides” is that the United States is, officially, not all that bothered by violent authoritarian repression. That’s taking sides. Saying things like “lead to the deaths of some of the protesters” is signaling that an authoritarian regime can shoot people, jail them, suppress dissent, and there will not be consequences to its official relationship with the “free world.” That’s officially telling the world that when security forces with guns shoot protesters, it’s really the protesters’ fault for provoking it.
Here, Secretary Clinton, is what Ambassador Robert F. Godec wrote to you about the situation in Tunisia on the 17th of July, 2009:
Tunisia is a police state, with little freedom of expression or association, and serious human rights problems…for every step forward there has been another back, for example the recent takeover of important private media outlets by individuals close to President Ben Ali.
The problem is clear: Tunisia has been ruled by the same president for 22 years. He has no successor. And, while President Ben Ali deserves credit for continuing many of the progressive policies of President Bourguiba, he and his regime have lost touch with the Tunisian people. They tolerate no advice or criticism, whether domestic or international. Increasingly, they rely on the police for control and focus on preserving power. And, corruption in the inner circle is growing. Even average Tunisians are now keenly aware of it, and the chorus of complaints is rising. Tunisians intensely dislike, even hate, First Lady Leila Trabelsi and her family. In private, regime opponents mock her; even those close to the government express dismay at her reported behavior. Meanwhile, anger is growing at Tunisia’s high unemployment and regional inequities. As a consequence, the risks to the regime’s long-term stability are increasing.
He insisted that the US needed to let it be known that empty slogans would not be enough, that “US cooperation depends on real Tunisian engagement”:
For too long Tunisia has skated by. A small country, in a tough region, the GOT [government of Tunisia] relies on vague promises of friendship and empty slogans. More can and should be expected of Tunisia. The GOT frequently says it is a US ally and calls for greater US engagement. We should respond clearly: yes, but only if we get genuine help from Tunisia on the challenges that matter to us all. The Tunisian government loves the illusion of engagement. The US government should press for the hard work of real cooperation.
That was in July of 2009, when things were still at a low simmer. Since then, they’ve boiled over. Ethan Zuckerman:
On December 17, a 26 year old Tunisian man named Mohamed Bouazizi reached the end of his rope. An unemployed university graduate, Bouazizi had become a seller of fruits and vegetables in the southern Tunisian town of Sidi Bouzid. When authorities confiscated his wares to punish him for selling without a license, Bouazizi set himself on fire. He died in hospital on January 4, 2011.
Bouazizi’s suicide struck a chord with other frustrated Tunisians. Thousands took to the streets in Sidi Bouzid to protest widespread unemployment, government corruption and lack of opportunity. Another frustrated youth in Sidi Bouzid, Lahseen Naji, killed himself by climbing an electricity pylon while crying out “No for misery, no for unemployment!” before grasping the high voltage line. The Tunisian government responded by sending baton and teargas-wielding reinforcements to the city and by promising future economic development projects. But riots have spread from Sidi Bouzid across the country, and the government has responded by closing the high schools and universities, arresting those they perceive to be ringleaders and imposing a curfew…There’s good reason to believe the Ben Ali government could fall – trade unions and lawyers have both gone on strike in support of the protests, and the situation appears to be rapidly spiraling out of the government’s control.
Enough. For too long, our state department has skated by on this issue. They rely on vague promises and empty slogans. More can and should be expected of them. Secretary Clinton frequently says that Tunisia is a US ally and calls for the Tunisian Government to bring about a peaceful resolution to the conflict. We, the people of the United States, should respond clearly: what part of shooting people to suppress protesters looks anything like a “peaceful resolution”? The Tunisian and American government loves the illusion of engagement. We the people of the United States should press our elected officials to stop shitting in our ears.
Update: Apparently Clinton gave a speech today that sort of vaguely calls on the “leaders of the region” to do more or something for the future maybe. The delighted Times headline was “Clinton Bluntly Presses Arab Leaders on Reform” and Blake Hounshell is impressed, but in reading it, I’m struggling to think of a more vague and meaningless set of cliches than that; apparently leaders are to partner with civil society, just like the US has been urging for decades, and some Orientalist nonsense about sinking into the sand. Meanwhile, as the shit goes down for real in Tunisia, she says nothing. See, she’ll talk in general terms about “leaders of the region” and repeat platitudes about vacuums and visions. But she wouldn’t want to actually suggest that Ben Ali’s security forces stop shooting people; that would be undiplomatic.
zunguzungu 
Fuck all that shit about Clinton, she is part if not all of the problem. By the way, her and her husband the pedophile are both felons and war mongers and they want Africa for another jewel in their war crown. You all better be leery of America, she speaks with a crooked tongue and is to be feared and stopped by any means necessary when they have designs on African territory. Be warned be armed for aggression from America and trust no one.
we already do you loser fagogt. you can only talk from behind a keyboard. the only thing a jew trash like you is capable of doing is to hide behind other and send to fight for you. I have more respect for them because at least they fight while you are busy pissing in your undies.
Could you write about Physics so I can pass Science class?
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“Fuck that shit, Secretary Clinton.”
Man, I didn’t dare, but well put. I’m furious at her response, completely furious. Word from friends in Tunis indicates that, even though many would prefer the US to just stay out of it, Clinton’s words have further driven a knife into popular opinion of the US (as well it ought to).
That was my first reaction. My second reaction was a sort of “Well, the last thing I want is direct US involvement in this.” And then my third was “Goddamn! That *is* involvement.” And then some profanity had to be allowed to flow.
Thanks for all your writing on this, by the way. Immensely helpful for me in keeping up.
Nc3a9jib Belkhodja | The Artist | The Prophet Has DIEDThis is merely a whiespr being sent out to the world about the genius of the late, great Nc3a9jib Belkhodja. He lived amongst us for seventy-four years and consumed life and lived like so few. He had integrity, something that is lacking in the world today. He set such high standards for himself and others around him. He was the man to teach the world about the power of art and the way in which we should conduct ourselves in our lives. It is difficult to put into words the importance of this man. He lived an outspoken existence with courage and conviction. The word Prophet is a word that best describes the giant that is, Nc3a9jib Belkhodja. During his lifetime he was a Nation builder and a world guide. He was often ignored and marginalised yet still he bore the troubles of his Independent Nation on his shoulders. His work is so important, to see it and understand it will change the way you see yourself and all that is around you. Throughout his life the Leaders were fully aware of the power of Belkhodja; a man who would not be broken by the State or who could not be used as a political toy. He suffered enormously throughout his life, humiliated and disregarded by the Nation. On the 16th June 2007 in the Medina in Tunis I heard such pitiful tributes to a man of such stature who, at the end was honoured by hyocrites. He died virtually penniless and his work is jailed in Banks and Five Star Hotels around his native country of Tunisia. You wont see the work of Belkhodja in any Museum around the world. No. His work is too powerful to be released by his jailers. He sheds light on all the World Leaders. He opens our minds to what is the function and meaning of Art. His work develops Nations and his contribution to the world is beyond compare. His departure from this world has come at just the right time; when the world needs him most. Here is a man, who belongs to us all and in his lifetime has shown us the meaning of generosity. His work introduces us to poets and architecture, to calligraphers and musicians. The subtly within the work is breathtaking and he puts into place the order in which art should be seen, heard and spoken.Born in 1933 his mother was Dutch and his father Tunisian. He grew up in the Medina in Tunis, the capital of Tunisia, North Africa. For those that don’t know what the Medina is, it is the heartbeat of the city, where all the aristocracy resides. It is a walled city within a city, with narrow streets as arteries and huge colourful studded doors, which break up the continuity of the whitewashed wall. The Medina has it’s own language, it own specific architecture. The Medina is the untouchable heart of North Africa. The reason Belkhodja chooses to focus his work on the importance of the Medina is that it is the heart of life. It is beyond the control of modern dictatorship. So his work is about the spiritual heartland of the World. The significance of the Medina in Belkhodja’s work is constant. For nearly forty years he focused his whole artistic life around the idea of the Medina and his work reads like a biblical message to us all. His work is invincible and belongs to us all, to cage it would be a travesty of justice. I would like the World to stop for just 2 minutes to Honour the Life of Nc3a9jib Belkhodja | 1933 e2€“ 2007.Personal link is EDITED due to spam violations.
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This seems, sadly, like another instance where we’re going to end up just sort of grinning (well, grimacing) and bearing our own foreign policy? Am I being too pessimistic? Also, is there a good blog or website anyone can recommend to become more educated about what’s going on in Tunisia?
http://jilliancyork.com/2011/01/12/letters-from-tunisia/
and Global Voices: http://globalvoicesonline.org/-/world/middle-east-north-africa/tunisia/
are good places to start.
hey, thanks. I see your next post covers this as well.
in John 16:2-5 2They shall put you out of the synagogues: yea, the time ctoemh, that whosoever killeth you will think that he doeth God service. 3And these things will they do unto you, because they have not known the Father, nor me.4But these things have I told you, that when the time shall come, ye may remember that I told you of them. And these things I said not unto you at the beginning, because I was with you.
That’s a sensible answer to a challenging question
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The accident of finding this post has brightened my day
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[…] Aaron Bady makes a strong case at his zunguzungu blog. […]
Fuck all that shit about Clinton, she is part if not all of the problem. By the way, her and her hnasbud the pedophile are both felons and war mongers and they want Africa for another jewel in their war crown. You all better be leery of America, she speaks with a crooked tongue and is to be feared and stopped by any means necessary when they have designs on African territory. Be warned be armed for aggression from America and trust no one.
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Yours is a clever way of thinking about it.
That’s the best answer by far! Thanks for contributing.
“…The workers and youth who are fighting the police on the streets of Algeria and Tunisia are engaged in a life and death struggle with states that represent the interests of the local elite and the global financial aristocracy. That struggle cannot be brought to an end by shuffling the pack and creating some kind of government of national unity that still jumps to the tune of Washington, Paris and London. The only governments that can genuinely represent the interests of the mass of the population are workers’ governments, which must be formed through the bringing down of all the dictatorial regimes in the Maghreb.”
“To achieve that it is necessary to form organisations that are independent of the trade unions and existing pseudo-left parties. What are needed are committees of action that will unite workers, youth, the unemployed and the rural poor in a common struggle against the political elite and the financial aristocracy. These committees must reach out to French and other European workers, while extending the struggle that has begun in the Maghreb to the rest of North Africa and the Middle East….”– Ann Talbot
http://wsws.org/articles/2011/jan2011/pers-j14.shtml
Aaron, you should really think about a redesign of your site. The default font is far too small and the reading pane too wide (the human doesn’t parse long horizontals well). I realize these things (font size, at least) can easily be adjusted by readers, but it makes a difficult first impression.
I suggest leaving your side columns the same size and dramatically increasing the size on the body font to something closer to this, which is infinitely more readable: http://img547.imageshack.us/img547/3717/bigger.png
This is what it looks like on my screen as it loads. http://img214.imageshack.us/i/smaller.png/ This default font is smaller than most websites I visit by an order of magnitude. I have a feeling that you may do most of your work on a relatively small laptop sreen, which would minimize the effects of this problem.
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[…] Yezzi Fock « zunguzunguJan 13, 2011 … Yezzi Fock. with 11 comments. On Tunisia: … should respond clearly: what part of shooting people to suppress protesters looks anything … […]
[…] Aaron Bady makes a strong case at his zunguzungu blog. Update: the Tunisian president has been ousted after 23 years in power. […]
What a pleasure to find someone who thinks through the issues
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