Egypt has a peace accord with Israel and is supposed to be discouraging antisemitism within the country. But the Farouk Hosny bid to become chief of UNESCO reveals just how spectacularly Egypt has failed to live up to that commitment. And that, of course, is not surprising, given the deep Koranic roots of Islamic antisemitism. But that is something no one is supposed to notice. More on this story. "Egypt Ponders Failed Drive for Unesco," by Michael Slackman for the New York Times, September 29:
Good question!CAIRO -- For days after Egypt's culture minister, Farouk Hosny, failed in his bid to lead the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization, Egyptian newspapers and government officials presented the defeat as a sign of Western prejudice against Islam and the Arab world, the product of an international Jewish conspiracy.
"America, Europe and the Jewish lobby brought down Farouk Hosni," read a headline in an independent daily newspaper, Al Masry Al Yom. The foreign minister, Ahmed Aboul Gheit, criticized "international Judaism and Western powers" in a television interview. Mr. Hosny himself helped stoke those sentiments, saying, "There was a group of the world's Jews who had a major influence in the elections who were a serious threat to Egypt taking this position."
All of Egypt, indeed all of the Arab world, was talking with one voice of outrage and insult.
Or so it seemed....
The defeat provoked a degree of quiet soul-searching here. The state's retreat to anti-Zionism and to some extent, anti-Semitism, underscored for many here the region's collective political impotence, a failure of Arab leaders to form a powerful regional bloc capable of winning support from power brokers in Washington, London or Paris that has lasted decades.
The pan-Arab daily newspaper Al Quds Al Arabi wrote that Mr. Hosny's loss "comes as yet another confirmation of the Arab world's -- and Egypt's in particular -- backslide on the international arena, and the general lack of respect towards it in all areas, not exclusively culture."
Mr. Hosny, 71, is a well-known figure in Egypt. He has been the minister for more than two decades. Oddly enough, considering the charges of anti-Semitism that derailed his candidacy, he has never been known as a strong opponent of normalizing ties with Israel.
True, he has resisted a warm peace, refused to visit Tel Aviv and was quoted as saying that he would burn Israeli books if he found them in a library. But proponents say he took these actions as the bare minimum to defend himself from a population that views Israel as the enemy.
Throughout his candidacy, Mr. Hosny struggled to mute the charges of anti-Semitism, efforts that caused many people in Egypt to wince as they watched a stalwart of the state apologize, to Israel no less. And they winced again, when he blamed a Jewish-Zionist conspiracy for his loss.
"He did not take an anti-normalization stand until the end," said Hossam el-Hamalawy, an independent Egyptian blogger and journalist. "The moment he lost he came back and started saying some of the most foul anti-Semitic statements against the Jews, confirming what the West had said about him."
Mr. Hosny lost his bid for Unesco, but tried to turn that into a victory at home, returning as a victim, and for the state-run media a hero. The charges of a Western, Jewish-Zionist conspiracy may have been amplified by a government eager to limit its embarrassment after having staked its credibility on Mr. Hosny.
But they are not new, said Hala Mustafa, editor in chief of the weekly magazine Democracy and a member of Mr. Mubarak's governing party. When it comes to domestic politics, she said, Egyptian officials often try to present themselves as anti-Israeli, even while serving as a mediator between Israel and the Palestinians.
Ms. Mustafa has been squeezed by that dual identity.
In her capacity as an editor and academic in the state-financed Ahram Center, she recently met with Israel's ambassador to Egypt, Shalom Cohen. She has since been tarred in the press as a "normalizer," and the Egyptian Journalists Syndicate has tried to blacklist her. Ms. Mustafa said she saw the state's rush to blame Israel for Mr. Hosny's loss as stemming from the same forces busy attacking her.
"We have been under this propaganda for 30 years," she said. "Like Egypt doesn't have a peace treaty with Israel? Like Egypt does not play a peace role between Israel and the Palestinians? If that is Egypt's role, why are we not allowed to play the same role?"
There is another view, too, one that was published in English, allowing, perhaps for a degree of candor not found in the Arabic news media. Writing in the English-language Daily News, the chief editor, Rania al-Malky, suggested that Mr. Hosny might have done as well as he did because he was Arab and Muslim, not because he was qualified. His defeat, she wrote, should not surprise anyone.
"I will say this at the risk of being branded unpatriotic, but no matter where you stand on the political spectrum," she wrote, "you must admit that the Egyptian administration did not deserve to win this bid. How can a 22-year minister of a country where culture, education, health and science have regressed to the Dark Ages become the head of Unesco?"
The UN? Don't make me laugh FFS! It's just a debating platform for 3rd world loonies and weirdoes.
Who gives a sh1t about the UN?
OT but important:
LSU student group fights back against Muslims' attempts to muzzle criticism about Islam and Mohammed! A must-read!
http://www.lsureveille.com/news/group-plans-for-blasphemy-day-1.1930078#comment1132984
Applied Muslim Logic: A Lesson.
1. Apply for the job of the Head of UNESCO.
2. Line up all your potential referees and sponsors.
3. Call for the burning of Jewish books.
4. Uncharacteristically - (we thought 3. would have clinched it for you at the UN) - get turned down for the position because of anti-Semitic remarks
5. Blame the Jooooooooz.
Isn't it about time Israel cut off diplomatic ties with Egypt? And, by the way, cutting off diplomatic ties with Erdoganistan/Turkey would be a next logical step, since no one needs enemies with an "ally" like the one led by Recep "the-filthy-self-righteous-barking-madman", swine-faced Erdogan.
It is quite instructive to read about the Nazi - Muslim Brotherhood connection. There's a booklet at Terrorism Awareness Project about it. Brief and to the point. Read it, and this will be no surprise at all.
Oh. Please make your politician do so as well. It makes a difference.
And just what type of culture had Farouk Hosny been advocating and promoting in Egypt to serve as an example of his abilities to be a Culture Minister?...He supports only one ...Islam...
Under his reign as Culture Minister, there has been a great effort to remove Christianity from Egypt. The Christian Copts cannot build or renovate Churches, they do not have equal legal rights as Muslims and they are slowly being forced to give up their land to Muslims..Other Non Muslim minorities are slowly being forced out as well..
All non Muslim entities are being harrassed, arrested, provoked, intimidated, falsely accused of things such as blasemy, illegally displaying Christian symbols, illegally ringing Church bells, operating businesses that compete with Muslim businesses, and all sorts of nonsense allegations.
Isn't it odd that Muslims willingly leave to become Christians and the only Egyptian Christians that convert to Islam do so at the point of a gun and/or under the threat of death if you don't...
Clearly Farouk Hosny and the Egyptian government support the grand Islamic plan of conquest of the world by replacing all non Muslim religions with Islam...
And when things don't go their way...they play the victim card yet again blaming the Jews....when in fact, it is their own agenda of hate and violence than betrays them...
Islam is the religion of approved deceit..those that follow it ...do so religiously...
Israel need not cut ties with Egypt but use this country by just letting enough rope to hang themselves, they cannot help it, they are Muslim the perpetual victim. Ms. Mustafa understands that her fellow Egyptians need to look in the mirror to find who is to blame, in fact all Muslims need to look in the mirror for their blame for being failed Islamic states. next bring that mirror into the mosque and you will find their biggest problem, islam.
Rania al-Malky - "How can a 22-year minister of a country where culture, education, health and science have regressed to the Dark Ages become the head of Unesco?"
Can a Muslim be an "Islamophobe"?
Egypt shouldn't educate anyone on anything.
Cairo the 'capitol of the Arab world' is suffocating in garbage because they killed all the pigs. In the hi-tech 21st century, pigs are a vital component of the sanitation of the premier Arab city (they eat the most noxious rganic refuse) which is comical enough in itself but then they go and kill the pigs to 'punish the Copts for not being Muslim' and the end result - an environmental disaster.
http://www.nytimes.com/2009/09/20/world/africa/20cairo.html
Who will protect Rania al-Malky for telling the truth?
Poetcomic1 - Thanks for the link to the Gray Lady. The article is hilarious. I'm still laughing.
Egyptian newspapers and government officials presented the defeat as a sign of Western prejudice against Islam...
Oh, if this charge were only true.
*** 5:51 ***
...the product of an international Jewish conspiracy.
And oh, if this cabal only existed. Where's the IJC and the Jew controlled media when ya need it?
I hate to be a stick in the mud, but maybe, just maybe, the Bulgarian was picked because the Egyptian was a loudmouth jerk. It did not matter what he was a jerk about, whether he is an anti-semite, or just playing the role for local consumption.
UNESCO is about children, yes? I do not think being a loudmouth jerk fits that institution.
Maybe he should reinvent his career as an Egyptian talk radio jockey.
UNICEF is, at least it is supposed to be, about children.
UNESCO is supposed to be about Science and Culture.
Given Islam's 1400 year record of assiduously smashing, vandalising and annihilating the cultural products of all civilisations eastern and western, and its blind dismissal of EVERYTHING non-Islamic as jahiliyya 'ignorance', and its openly expressed intention of stifling all independent human intelligence and of ending questioning forever, and its hatred of bida 'innovation', and the sharia ban on all music sacred and profane vocal or instrumental, and on artistic representation of living beings, and on statuary, the very idea of a *Muslim* being appointed head of UNESCO was the stuff of screaming farce.
How could the man who refused to allow the wonderful movie "The Band's Last Visit" to be seen in Egypt possibly think he could lead UNESCO???
Muslims largely being the morons they are duly given credit for, it never occurred to Hosny or his imbecilic co-religionists that his bigotry and anti-Semitism ought to DISQUALIFY him (in a metaphysical sense) for head of UNESCO which is supposed to promote cultural awareness; naturally, Muslims think, on the contrary, that being anti-Semitic QUALIFIES them to lead UN organizations and, in an ironic sense, it does-because UN organizations are actually anti-Semitic because they are led by anti-Semitic nations in the Middle-East, SE Asia (e.g., Malaysia) and Africa. Thus, anti-Semitism at UNESCO is a self-fulfilling prophecy. Thus, naturally Hosny expected it was his duty to be part of that clique-and, in a malevolent way, it was. The problem is not that Hosny is atypical of who runs UNESCO, it is that UNESCO's mission is in reality 180 degrees opposite of its stated goals (meaning it is essentially useless
and is merely a propaganda arm of the OIC, OAS and other
similarly useless UN-led organizations).