If you were to ask people in Arab countries what’s wrong with their world, you’d hear a lot about how they see themselves as victims of external forces like colonialism, Zionism and imperialism. Small wonder they take that view. It’s what they read. It’s what they’re taught. A new report says the Arab world is stagnating under a self-imposed yoke of intellectual and political repression.
The findings come on the heels of last year’s United Nations study which stated that Arab countries lack freedom, empowerment for women and access to knowledge and that the blame rests largely with them. In this sequel, the U.N. charges that these deficits have become worse since 9/11 and the war in Iraq.
Guests:
Rima Khalaf Hunaidi, Director of the Regional Bureau for Arab States of the United Nations Development Program and former Deputy Prime Minister of Jordan
Omar al-Issawi, reporter and producer, Al Jazeera Satellite Channel.