Ayoon Wa Azan - Davos 2012 (4)

On the eve of the annual session of the World Economic Forum in Davos, the Global Issues Group of the Forum held what it called “A Call to Action”, to address issues of concern in 2012. The workshop proposed an open trading system, resilient cross-border finance, sustainable government finances, structural economic reforms and addressing inequalities in all countries. The Forum took great interest in the Arab spring and the Arab economy. There were many sessions dedicated to these issues every day, in addition to books and pamphlets, including Scenarios for the Mediterranean Region, the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) Countries and the World, and Economic Growth and Job Creation in the Arab World. These are all commendable efforts that saw the contributions of some of the most prominent Arab and international experts. But I wonder: Will decision-makers listen to the voice of reason coming from Davos? Or will it be like the popular saying, “Who is listening to your psalms, David?” This reminds me of another saying which I was repeating as I heard some of the Islamist speakers in Davos, which was “I hear your words and I like them. I see your actions and I wonder” (I was impressed by the leader of Ennahda Rachid Ghannouchi but not by the Prime Minister of Morocco Abdul Ilah Bin Kiran). Perhaps the session entitled “The Global Agenda 2012”, held by CNBC, explains what I am concerned about better: The participants spoke about economic conditions, clean energy, and the freedom of internet away from government pressure, as well as issues of food and health. With the conference’s focus on the economy, an idea came to me: It was officials and bankers who caused the global financial crisis, and now they are proposing how to resolve it. Why should I believe those people? Although I do not claim any knowledge of the secrets of the world economy, I do know who caused the ongoing crisis, and I don’t think they are qualified to propose solutions for this year, or indeed any year. On the other hand, although I have lived in London more than I have lived in Beirut, I remain from the Third World, and as I hear Westerners talking about clean energy, I feel like they are talking about luxuries. Indeed, people from the Third World don’t think about clean or dirty energy, but only about the availability of fuel for heating and cooking. Then I hear about the attempt by governments to ‘suppress’ the internet. As a journalist, I must defend the freedom of the press, as I always have done. However, I hesitate to include websites that spread lies and destroyed people’s reputations without any legal accountability, as is the case with the print media. Is there a way to guarantee responsible freedom from both the governments and the internet? Perhaps some of the readers have the correct answer to this. The CNBC session enlightened me about something I did not know. One expert said that 40 percent of the ingredients of food worldwide, such as grains, meats, vegetables and fruits, perish or spoil while being transported. I don’t think that we have this problem in our countries, since the majority of production takes place locally, while the distance from the fields to the shops is short enough to ensure than food is sold fresh. However, imported foodstuffs, such as grain or meats, may indeed be affected by the high rate of spoilage during shipping from one country or continent to another. Once again, I found that the debate was about luxuries for a citizen from the Third World like me. I want a bare minimum of food and health to be available first, before I would discuss quality. The famous anchor Geoff Cutmore asked the audience to say what they want to be achieved in 2012, and they asked for good things for all people and solutions to the many problems. I am concerned for my people, and if I were asked to do this I would have said: Good things and happiness for my family and all my friends. I might have also added that I wish, in addition, for Benjamin Netanyahu to get a toothache, and my excuse would be that at least I did not wish for him what he wishes for all Arabs and Muslims.