Some three weeks ago I received an invitation from the Middle East Partnership Initiative (MEPI) and the US State Department to participate in a conference on “Women and Political Reform in the Middle East and North Africa”. The purpose of the invitation was to bring to the United States 16 Arab women leaders, and provide them with the opportunity to influence policy-makers on Capitol Hill by sharing with them their perspectives on US foreign policy in the Middle East.
As I sat reflecting on the invitation, I could not help but think of the groundbreaking developments that have taken place in my country during the last six years. Developments that have enabled me, and women of my country, to participate in international outreach programs such as the one I just received. Developments that saw Saudi women accompany King Abdullah on his official state visits. Developments that have enabled Saudi citizens to speak out on issues that affect their lives. And more importantly, developments that have empowered the media to do what they do best — reveal hidden truths and hold people accountable.
Ever since 9/11, my country, in particular, and Muslim nations in general, have been on a mission to reform in order to stabilize. To some, the developments I mentioned earlier may not be of much relevance, but to most Saudis like myself, they are the necessary pre-requisites to the progressive reform and democratization strategies voiced by our late King Fahd and reiterated by King Abdullah, and finally documented in the “10-year Program of Action” signed by the member states of the Organization of the Islamic Conference during the Third Islamic Summit that took place in Makkah in 2005.
Coming back to the invitation in my hand, I could not help but think about the purpose of the visit. Certainly one could interpret it in many ways, but I chose to see it as the perfect opportunity to engage in dialogue and in “citizen diplomacy” with my hosts. So I kept on asking myself what one or two central messages did I wish to convey during this interesting visit?
My first decision was to position myself as a citizen who holds allegiance to two nationalities. The first, to the development and the stability of my country, Saudi Arabia; and the second, to the safety of our world and its inhabitants. And based on these two positions, I hoped to share with my hosts what I believed to be the most basic of all priorities that countries of the world need to address before engaging in any type of pressured reform on themselves — or on others.
These basic priorities were, are, and always will be universal in nature. They are the priorities of “regional peace and stability” — without them, genuine reform, or liberalization or democratization efforts will simply crumble. So if the need to “push” for democratic change seems to be strong, countries must never lose sight of this critical priority.
My next message would have to show them how. Simple: By investing in people.
Invest in people and secure their basic needs. At the end of the day, all that people want is to be able to live a good life. A life that offers a wide range of employment choices; a job that secures their future and those of their children; proper medical care; relevant school systems; security; and justice. Investing in people by securing these basic needs is to a nation what Maslow’s theory of human needs is to man. Without them, peace and stability will certainly cease to exist.
To my hosts I will say that the United States can play a very constructive role in all of the above by going back to their former policy of building partnerships through education and training as well as through cultural outreach and exchange programs. It did it in the past; there is no reason why it cannot do it again. Best-case examples are ARAMCO and The Royal Commission of Yanbu and Jubail.
In addition, my hosts could also invest more in carrying out the more specialized MEPI Programs and activate some of the programs sponsored by the State Department such as the Humphrey and The Fulbright Scholarships; the Youth Exchange Programs; the International Visitors Leadership Programs; and the Educational Partnership Programs that are instrumental in skill building and cultural exchange.
And finally, the United States can assist in transferring some “best practices” such as “Hands on Atlanta” and other community development assisted programs that work toward empowering locals to actively engage in developing their own communities.
Once these programs are in place, then by default, the needs of the citizens will be met and a gradual partnership between governments and their peoples will begin to emerge.
The biggest challenge I believe that most Arab countries face today is the challenge of navigating the fine line between pushing for reform without losing national stability and working toward liberalization without creating social conflict; and promoting democratization process when the people are not skilled enough to do so. It is only through training and education as well as through cultural outreach programs and international internships that this fine line can be mastered.
