Full Text of Dr. Naseer Homoud Letter to President Obama

Sept. 21, 2009 - PRLog -- Dear President Obama,
Humbly allowing myself to congratulate you on your sustained, balanced and multi-dimensional approach and methodology towards the accomplishment of ‘change we can believe in’, I, an Arab Muslim concerned with the Arabs, am writing this open letter – as I previously wrote to you on occasion of your historic victory and on your taking over as 44th President of the United States of America about our hopes, wishes and aspirations towards you in pursuit of the change which we have been shown and committed – in reply as well as with some kind submissions in the specific contexts of your landmark speech in Cairo in which you addressed the Muslim world and, in the context of your recent message to us in this holy month of Ramadan. Since your efforts at building the much awaited bridge between Islam and the West – particularly between USA and the Muslim world – are apparently honest and sincere, I am bound to have a firm belief in your success.

Engaging youths in the efforts to bring peace and stability in the region can be the most welcome step as without their participation no efforts will yield fruitful results. Youths are believed to be the future pillars of a nation and society who can turn events to their own and finally to humanity’s upliftment. Empowering them by giving them platforms to organize and act in the interests of present concerns will undoubtedly give a brilliant and bright insight into the future. We should firmly hold them on the right path to their eventual destiny of progress and prosperity and then we can easily claim to the victories we are now aspiring for. Your youthful guidance to this commitment to the youths is the most needed prerequisite for our future development course. To whatever extent your predecessors have made the retrogressive imprints on us, we are, as always, hopeful that your words will be matched by some practical actions.


Commending your efforts towards the democracy promotion in the Arab world to the best of my knowledge, wisdom and sanity, I think that without unshakeable endeavours and negotiating performance, we cannot erect this palace of democracy which Abraham Lincoln advocated for in his Gettysburg speech. Mr. President, without ensuring the basic and pertinent needs of individualism, education, economic independence, human rights and the natural liberty, our advocacy for democracy will be utterly meaningless and futile. I fully concur with the fact that we would not be able to fully accept the principles of democracy unless we give up our contradictory position on it. For this, formulation of such policies and programmes which can benefit the masses is very crucial as only this can create the trust and confidence in the very variables which a modern society wishes to assemble into it. For example, implementation of UN charter in its essence in our region can be an enthusiastic sign. The targets of ‘development’ and ‘human security’ can rightly be attained as much by inward introspection as by respecting the sovereignty of nation states. Therefore, the most important step needed is to help the region grow its own seeds of development after the numerous trails and errors in designing the contours of its future. Your support and encouragement would prove unparalleled.

d.

Mr. President, I would like to focus on the contribution made by the civil society, particularly NGOs, in bringing about change and development. The role of governments in the world is an essential role, but governments must seriously consider the role of non-governmental organizations, and provide them with resources and support needed to enhance their work. The non-governmental organizations are active in all areas of society ranging from the area of health, environmental protection, education and the delivery of humanitarian assistance, to securing and protecting the civil and political rights. And these organizations have played a key role in the political and social changes in the recent decades, and continue to exert immense influence. However, the organizations that defend human rights and democratic principles and their practices compose a small fraction of the NGO community, yet, the contribution of these organizations has become crucial in addressing domestic and international challenges, since those organizations strongly defend freedom, human dignity and rights and democracy development in many countries. As change cannot happen without involving the common masses which the NGOs do, we should formulate a plan to engage as many NGOs as possible to serve the basic goals of our development agenda compatible with the UN Millennium Goals. I fully admire your encouragement and support to NGOs and other civil society organisations which make me very idealist and optimist in my hope for your prolonging interest in furthering the cause of peace, stability, democracy and development. Given the crucial roles the NGOs have played since decades to help masses in different living spectrums, and given their potential to interact with masses without any vested interest we request you to extend your help and support for these organizations from which very extensive progress would be achieved. These visions and achievements make us ask you for more powers and support, as well as from governments and intergovernmental organizations for the non-governmental organizations and for the establishment of more of such organizations in order to carry out the desired functions in this regard.

Establishment of Peace requires efforts for peacekeeping and peace building, comprehensive and sustainable development, strengthen and deepen democracy and human rights, the fight against poverty, hungry and unemployment and women and youth participation, and here comes the role of  a non-governmental organization. In this humane endeavour to serve the society with the noblest of causes, we propose for an NGO to be termed on your name “Obama Foundation on Co Existence, Development & Culture”.

I would like to affirm with your due permission, Mr. President, that the elemental categories of growth, development, peace, and stability – whether just as concepts or as happenings – cannot be pursued without their holistically universal appliance which requires the pursuer to ensure that these phenomena are distributed and approached on all the levels and fronts on which we, humans perform our daily activities. Mr. President, it is high time when your unimpeachable conviction of ‘Yes We Can’ and your indomitable declaration that ‘Everything is Possible in America’ should be applied meticulously to the whole world which really, under your able guidance and wonderful leadership, can, in the words of Martin Luther King, ‘have a dream’ of growing on matchless pride of realizing human rights, equalizing the humanity, and freeing the economic will.  If anything America can, and if anything is possible in America, it should be made clear to the world that it also can, and everything is possible in the world. And this task requires unity, Mr. President. We united can certainly be able to ride the tides of depression and repression our world has recently gone through. In the last but not the least, I wish you every success and I renew my thanks to you for congratulating us on the occasion of holy month of Ramadan.





Dr. Naseer Shahir Homoud
Goodwill Ambassador & Director IIMSAM Middle East Regional Office
September 21, 2009