The coming of Obama

[arsa]

Rasul Bakhsh Rais
Over the past eight years, particularly after 9/11, the US has not handled world affairs well. The Bush administration has messed up every major issue, and has entangled the country in two unnecessary, ill-intended and unwinnable wars

It is perhaps the greatest event of the twenty-first century that a black American has been elected as the president of the most powerful nation in the world. Barack Obama’s historic win is as much a tribute to the openness of American society as it is a recognition of the talent, merit, quality of leadership and message that Obama gave to the people of the United States.

The agenda of hope and change which Obama presented during one of the longest election campaigns in American history pulled large crowds to the polling booths on Election Day and also attracted worldwide attention, even in the most remote areas of the globe.

The 2008 American presidential election was truly a global affair for more than one reason. Obama’s political challenge in the primaries to Hillary Clinton, and then in the presidential contest to John McCain raised important questions about race, history, the quality of American democracy and the character of American society. The biggest question on everyone’s mind was: is America ready for a black president?

That question has been answered by a landslide victory and the debate about whether or not the white majority of the United States would elect a member of the black minority — given the history of slavery, civil right abuse and victimhood — is now history.

In this respect, Obama’s win truly represents a social revolution in attitudes towards the complex question of race and politics, and reconfirms the enlightenment truth that equality and freedom are foundation stones for constructing a society of individuals, social groups, ethnicities and races.

But it also demonstrates the significance of the political struggle of individuals and social groups from the days of slavery to the civil rights movement in bringing about the change that Obama represents. Perhaps without the anti-slavery platform of Abraham Lincoln and then the civil rights movement led by Martin Luther King Jr in the 1960s, Obama would not be in the White House.

The lesson is that political struggles have cumulative effects, and those committed to the ideals of human freedom, dignity and equality may not see the results of their struggle in their lifetimes. But they leave a legacy on which others build their movements. Obama’s election may not be seen as an independent political event, but as intrinsically linked to a long chain of relentless political struggles.

American society, sick and tired of establishment politicians, wanted change in the White House, and it has got it. With this momentous shift, Americans seem to be harbouring major expectations.

It is another issue of how much change is possible in an established democracy with strong lobbies, interest groups and settled ideological issues. American politics is incremental and the political culture of the United States is oriented to staying close to the mainstream, rather than oscillating between extremes. The system of checks and balances also works against radical change.

We may see changes in American society, but only to the extent of what is politically possible, and what will not drastically alter the balance of social and economic forces; not that Obama has promised anything like that. He may strive to reform healthcare, education, and homeland security, promote green technologies and create jobs within the country. But that will require coalition building in Congress in addition to the popular support he enjoys.

On the external front, Obama is the best thing that has happened to the United States, which has serious image problems in the world. Even its best intentions to promote peace and democracy and help the needy around the world are looked at with suspicion. It shouldn’t be difficult to figure out why.

Over the past eight years, particularly after 9/11, the US has not handled world affairs well. The Bush administration has messed up every major issue, and has entangled the country in two unnecessary, ill-intended and unwinnable wars.

The real issue, then, for the US is handling power with responsibility. We did not see that happen when intelligence reports were cooked up to prepare American society for a war, or in the invasion of Afghanistan without exploring alternatives to achieve goals against Al Qaeda and its affiliates.

Will Obama change the course of American foreign policy? Will he be able to bring an end to the two wars? Will he succeed in helping resolve the Palestine and Kashmir issues? In addition, there are many issues relating to Islam and the West and US-Iran relations. While these are some of the issues that concern Pakistan and the region around us, the focus of American policy will be much broader and their priority list will be very different from ours.

There are high hopes — unrealistically high, perhaps — for Obama. There is only so much that big power influence, persuasion and robust diplomacy can accomplish. Much depends on the balance of contending forces and their rational choices to secure their interests within a given environment. Nobody would like to do anything just to please Obama, else he would be able to get anything done without assuring other parties that whatever is done will serve their interests.

There are certain things that he can, and perhaps might, do without much resistance within or without. The closure of the Guantanamo Bay prison and fair trials for all accused may restore some basic elements of the American legal-democratic system that have been lost under Bush. Ending American unilateralism, though difficult, would be another good gesture to re-engage old allies on important global issues.

The Muslim world will watch Obama’s first steps very carefully. America and the West have a better face in Obama to start a dialogue between civilisations. The idea of a clash among them — which unintelligently has claimed much space and time during the last two decades — needs to be rethought.

Change in America may be the beginning of change in inter-cultural relationships, but that may require a lot of effort and patience, and hang-ups of the past would have to be overcome. Obama offers a fresh opportunity for America, its antagonists and the world at large to make it a better place for our coming generations. Any change, however, would require finding common ground and intersections of interests.