The hypocrisy of the 'West'

The Western World seems to be ‘hell-bent’ on regime change.  It has attempted to ‘democratise’ the Middle East either through coercive means or by the use of ‘soft-power’ tactics.  And as can be seen daily on CNN (or any news-network for that matter) this (mis)-adventure has not exactly gone to according to plan.  Iraq, after the toppling of the Ba’athist party by the “coalition of the impotent” has made the country a haven for a variety of Islamic radicals, which not only pose a threat to British or American troops but also pose a significant threat to the country’s fragile existence. How long will be it for the sectarian violence to morph into a bloody war (which could ignite the whole region)?  Lebanon which had been a fiefdom of Syria (as well as being occupied by Israel in the south) recently had its first election; the first the country has held in over ten years.  This pressing for democratisation in Lebanon resulted in Hezbollah gaining a voice in the Lebanese legislature (it remains to be seen whether this fledging democracy will succeed, in light of the recent conflict).

In the Palestine Authority (the West Bank and the Gaza Strip) the pattern is repeated.  International pressure had forced the ruling Fatwa party to have a more accountable democracy.  This resulted in Hamas not only having a voice in the parliament but the actual powers of government.  

While the West seems to have a fetish in meddling in the affairs of Arab states in the vain hope that some form of democracy will develop (which based on the evidence so far, doesn’t go according to plan).  Yet, for all the West’s apparent sense of altruism in wanting to spread the discourse of liberalism across the globe it does seem to be based on shallow foundations. The West is quite selective in regards to its drive to spread ‘liberal democracy’.  To illustrate this, just look at how the West has dealt with China over the issue of human rights and Tibet, or the silence of the genocide in the Durfar region in the Sudan, or its lack of action over Zimbabwe.  In regards to China, Western criticism of human rights record (or should I say lack of human rights record) is muted so as not to harm potential economic investment in the country.  In regards to the genocide in Darfur and the political oppression in Zimbabwe the West remains silent, as there is no economic incentive to do so.