Dr. Rola Jameel Hoteit – President of the Arab Observatory for Human Rights and Citizenship
My greetings
On behalf of the Arab Observatory for Human Rights and Citizenship in Lebanon, we extend our thanks and appreciation to the Foundation of Dialogue and Solidarity of United Nations for inviting us to participate in the Fourth International Conference on the Future of Peace and Human Rights in West Asia.
Humanity lives today in a world governed by psychological impulses, in which the strong dominate the weak, a world in which the language of materialism and domination has become a justification and evidence of progress.
The world tweets about freedom, peace, and safety, calls for human rights, and considers democracy a solid reference for it.
What causes a person to be confused because of today’s behaviors in societies, and the extent to which they are related to his nature, his character, and his good or bad originality, so he translates it into a debate and a dialogue with oneself and with others about the lived reality.
What is happening on the earth in terms of killing, destruction, crimes, corruption, injustice, and greed, which are dealt with by satellite channels and other means of communication, makes the person in a whirlpool of thought and anxiety about what he hears and sees, so we find him in harmony with all good, depressed from all evil, and pessimistic about everything.
Moreover, we find that good and evil are the cause of everything that takes place in terms of actions in this world. Because any human action has a motive, either good or evil, and there are many daily actions in which good and evil struggle, and sometimes harm and even death are the results of this struggle.
In our present time, there are states and regimes that represent the head of falsehood and evil in this world. They have not stopped committing atrocities since their establishment until now. If we take what the American administration and the Zionist occupation are doing and lackeys in our region.
We can record a huge amount of crimes and violations that have been committed in the last tens of years against the people of the West Asian region and are still being committed. Especially since the Zionists occupied Palestine, and the establishment of an entity for them with Western, British and American support, and the accompanying changes in various countries, and interference in Its policies and bringing people, regimes and families to power alone, in a way that serves Western projects.
On the other hand, we see that large segments of the peoples of the region faced all these Western plans as a result of injustice and oppression, and worked to develop their resistance against global arrogance.
The resistance to the Zionist occupation and the Palestinian cause were central to this movement that crossed countries, religions, sects, and races. Palestine, Jerusalem, and the rights of the Palestinian people united the free Arab and Islamic nations and the world in confronting all the American and Western arrogant plans, and those in the region who cooperated with them.
Based on that, we raise today a very important issue on the table, related to distorting the image of some resistance parties that stood in the face of the Zionist occupation and America’s plans in the region, and offered martyrs and endured sanctions and pressures for that, until some media platforms and political mouthpieces are working to compare the criminal The victim is a preparation for accusing the victim and acquitting the criminal. Today, we see parties and hear platforms in our countries defending what America and those with it are doing, and accusing the resistance movements that liberated the land and disrupted the plans that were drawn for the West Asia region and its peoples!
The question arises: Can a sane person equate the murderer with the martyr?!
Despite all the violations and crimes against humanity committed in the countries of the region, starting with Palestine, Iraq, Yemen, Syria, Iran and Lebanon, we see that there are some political and media groups that practice misleading public opinion with systematic external support and funding the environment that fosters it.
While it does not lift a finger about the criminal behavior practiced by the usurping entity on a daily basis against the Palestinian people, but sometimes it tries to remove the Zionist entity from the scene while it is the main problem in this region as it occupied Palestine, displaced its people, and continues to commit its crimes against the Arab peoples under Western cover that integrates with Some Arab regimes have normalized with this entity in an overt and covert manner.
There are attempts to entrench some misconceptions in people’s consciousness, to distort reality and obscure logic, and if we monitored the violations committed against the peoples of West Asia, would we have reached an answer to these controversies.
Is the justification for the global silence on the daily crimes committed by the Zionist entity against the Palestinian people, the killing of women and children, and the torture of prisoners in prisons?
Does America have the right to blockade Lebanon and Syria under the pretext of putting pressure on the resistance?
Is there any sane person who does not hold the criminal accountable, but rather attacks the victim, and holds the resistance responsible for the siege and pressure?
Is what is happening scandalously in Yemen a humanitarian act? Where the Yemeni people are killed while some of them defend those who attack and refuse to give justice to the Yemeni martyrs of children, women and men?
What is happening is a battle to raise awareness of not realizing the reality of what is happening, and to be alert that there is a scheme to distort the image of the resistance, and to push people to rise up against it and against the countries that support it.
That is why there is a great responsibility on the media, parties, human rights bodies, and national personalities to clarify the picture for public opinion and people, and to show the truth of what is going on, and not to retreat in this political media battle aimed at losing the compass, and diverting attention from the real criminal and the achievements and resistance of peoples.
Do not deviate from the truth and do not cover up what is not logical with flimsy and inhumane pretexts. This is what helps contain human evil, care for people’s pain and treat them fairly, move away from injustice and spread justice.
The good human soul is not satisfied with things except for the best and highest of them, and each person has a responsibility towards his actions.
A person whose conscience has died does not live loving people, does not respect their humanity, and does not feel his responsibility, as he lives an empty, materialistic humanity…. This world is made by humanity.
Let us seek to awaken our consciences so that we may shine, glow, and be open to the other, and we stand with the truth.