Dr Sawraj Singh

THE controversy over building a mosque near the nine eleven site in Manhattan New York, has led to violent anti Muslim propaganda by the American rightists and racists. Before this controversy, they were promoting Islamic phobia which has now been upgraded to inciting haterd against the Muslims. They have blown the issue completely out of proportion and made it an international issue. The Islamic World is closely following the incident.

Obama wanted to reach out to the Islamic World and convince the Muslims that America is not anti Muslim. However, this new controversy has completely undone his efforts and the moderate Muslims who were trying to convince other Muslims that America is not against all Muslims, have been completely rebuffed. The radical and fundamentalist Muslims have everything to gain from this new anti Muslim campaign in America, because their credibility among the Muslims will rise. They have been telling other Muslims that America is anti Muslim and the Muslims in America will be discriminated and will not be allowed to freely practice their religion.

The rightists and racists have linked their anti Muslim campaign to a movement to discredit and delegitimize Obama. They are spreading the rumor that Obama is a Muslim. More than 20% of Americans believe that Obama is a Muslim, 31% of Republicans believe that he is a Muslim. About same numbers believe that Obama is not a legitimate American citizen.

It is interesting to note the link between religion and politics. We get the impression that if Obama is a Muslim then he cannot be a true American. We also get the message that to be a true American one has to be a Christian and a white. Even the President of the country, if he does not meet their criteria cannot be a true American.

It is not enough to be a Christian to be fully acceptable to them. The Hispanics are almost all Christians but because of their different race, they are not acceptable. Whereas, they want to stop Muslims from building a mosque in a sensitive area, the Christian Hispanics are not welcome either because of their different race. Therefore, we have to pass the Arizona immigration law.

The rightists and the racists who want to keep, America Christian and white do not seem to realize that the Americans are enjoying higher living standards, mostly because of the third World countries, a majority of them are neither Christian nor white. America is exploiting their natural resources and their cheap labor. America is losing its manufacturing base. The services sector of economy has already over taken the manufacturing sector. If we go to any store and see where the manufactured goods are coming from, it will be obvious that most of them are coming from countries such as China, India and Bangladesh.

It is not just the raw materials and the manufactured goods which we need from the other countries, we also need these countries in our efforts to maintain peace and security in the World. If the majority of these countries, many of them Islamic, turn against us then it will be almost impossible to maintain peace and security in the World. Similarly, in Americas, a vast majority of the countries are Hispanics. Among the 27 countries of the Organization of American States, almost all except the U.S.A. and Canada, are Hispanic countries. The bitter truth is that we are dealing with a World which is neither a Christian majority nor a white majority. How will we get along in this World if we are perceived as anti non-Christians and anti non white?

For the black people things can be worse because they can be Muslim also. Therefore, they can be neither Christian nor white. Every black can be suspected of being a Muslim, even if he claims that he is a Christian. Even becoming the President of this great country does not absolve you of the suspicion that if you are not openly claiming to be a Muslim, then you are practicing that religion secretly. In other words, if you are black then it is much harder to prove your loyalty to the country.

All these controversies are deepening the racial divisions in America. Unfortunately, the divisions on the Mosque issue are also primarily based on the race. Just like the Arizona immigration law, most of the white population is on the one side and the minorities are on the other side. The numbers are also very similar in the two situations, about 70% on one side and about 30% on the other side. The forces who claim that majority is on their side should look at the racial breakdown of the numbers and this point will become very clear that they are dividing the country on the racial lines.

America’s future lies in upholding the principles of pluralism and diversity. Tolerance to the different religions and cultures is the foundation of a strong, peaceful and prosperous America. Let people practice freely their religious beliefs.

[Sawraj Singh, M.D. F.I.C.S. Chairman Washington State Network for Human Rights, Chairman Central Washington Coalition for Social Justice]

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Russia and China coming together to counter new American offensive

Dr Sawraj Singh

TRADE between Russia and china has gone up about 50% compared to last year. For the first 7 months, it was 30.7 billion dollars. The trade went up in spite of the global financial crisis. During the first half of the year, Chinese direct investment in Russia increased 58.5% and the Russians direct investment in China increased 18.3%. During the same period, Russia’s high tech exports to China went up 174% all these statistics show that the relations between the two countries are greatly improving.

The big reason for the improvement in the relations between the two countries is the new American offensive in Asia. America is aggressively following the policy of containing China. It is not just limited to containment but America is also provoking, challenging and threatening China. America has lined up China’s neighbors such as South Korea, Vietnam and Japan against China. The just released Pentagon report on the Chinese military improvement is intended to raise concerns about China's military intentions among China’s neighbors. America wants to give a clear message to China’s neighbors that China is increasing its military capability in order to squeeze concessions from them and if these countries want to escape the Chinese domination then they have to come to the American fold. South Korea and Vietnam have fallen in this trap and Japan is wavering whether it should restore its pro American policy or improve its relations with China. At present, India is also tilting toward America.

The countries which are joining America in containing China do not seem to realize that China holds the ace card up its sleeve. The ace card is Russia. Russia has old scores to settle with America and the West. They humiliated, taunted and jeered at Russia when the Soviet Union collapsed. The Russians were very deeply hurt by the Western behavior. There is a very strong Anti Western, particularly Anti American feeling in Russia. This is Russia’s moment of getting even with those who humiliated Russia and deeply hurt Russia’s psyche. While America is busy lining up pygmies against China, the Chinese have a giant on their side.

From the sixties, the Western policy was based upon this fundamental notion that Russia and China should not be allowed to join together, because if they do that then the game is over for the West. In the seventies, Henry Kissinger’s Ping Pong diplomacy was also based on this notion. The West made it sure that China and Russia act more like adversaries rather than friends.

However, in the nineties, after the collapse of the Soviet Union, the West became complacent. America proclaimed a premature victory and declared that the Russian threat was over because Russia was no longer a significant factor in the global equation. America was the unchallenged super power. No country or group of countries had the ability to challenge American domination.
However, this premature declaration of victory was as bad as Bush declaring victory in Iraq in 2003. Now, seven years later the whole World can see the humiliating American defeat in Iraq.

It is difficult to understand the policies of South Korea and Vietnam. They are playing with fire. There is a saying in Punjabi, “If you live in a river you cannot afford to become enemies of the crocodile.” These countries have unrealistic expectations from America. If America could not win the wars against small countries such as Iraq and Afghanistan, how do they expect America to win against China or Russia? Did not these countries see what happened to Georgia when the Russians badly beat it? Neither America nor any other Western countries came to their rescue.

If Russia and China join their forces then no country, group of countries or even the rest of the World combined, have the strength to match their strength. In other words, Russia and China are a unbeatable team. This was the worst Western fear. It seems that their nightmare is becoming true. The West may have to pay a very big price for over estimating its strength and under estimating Russia.

One country which can play a very positive role is Japan. Japan should refuse to join the anti China group. China and Japan have complementary economies. Japan has the sophisticated technology while China has raw materials, the work force and the manufacturing base. China and Japan can become perfect partners because they both need each other. Japan has to give up arrogance and admit the fact that Japan needs China as much as China needs Japan.

If Japan does not join the anti China alliance then America will have to abandon the policy of containing China. This will significantly reduce the chances of a war between America and China. Such a war can be very destructive for Asia and the region. Therefore, it is in the interest of the countries in the region to avoid the war and maintain peace and stability in the region. Good relations between Japan and China are a key factor for peace and prosperity in the region.

No body should have any illusion about the potential Russia – China alliance. For all practical purposes, the alliance already exists. The countries in the region should remember that the Western domination and the American era are over. The twenty first century is Asia’s century. However, Asia’s century will not be like the two centuries of Western domination because the World has actually become multi polar. In the new World order, no country, group of countries or a region can dominate the whole World.

[Sawraj Singh, M.D. F.I.C.S. Chairman Washington State Network for Human Rights, Chairman Central Washington Coalition for Social Justice]

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