Libyan leader Muammar Qaddafi, in a rare moment of self-criticism, lashed out at what he described as "backward" societies in the Middle East, arguing that government heavy-handedness in dealing with political opposition stemmed from the violent nature of that dissent.
"You ask us, `Why do you oppress opposition in the Middle East?'" Qaddafi told attendees at a Columbia University panel discussion on democracy on Thursday, speaking in Arabic during a live video appearance.
"Opposition in the Middle East is quite different from opposition in advanced countries. In our countries, the opposition takes the form of explosions, assassinations, killing," he said.
"Because opposition in our country is different from opposition in your country. Our opposition resorts to bombs, assassinations, explosions, subversive acts, trains in military camps -- in some cases before the Sept. 11 events," said Qaddafi, whose country for years was accused of being a state sponsor of terrorism.
Qaddafi's comments came in response to several questions by the Columbia panel asking him to comment on shortcomings in Libyan society. Qaddafi said he was proud of what he considered a complex society and what he says is the world's only true participatory democracy.
But he argued that the political and social mind-set of the region had failed to adapt to a changing world.
"How many countries have seen this form of opposition. This is a manifestation of social backwardness," said Qaddafi, who appeared on the screen wearing a plum-colored robe.
The two-day Columbia conference on "prospects for democracy" was billed as the first major meeting of American and Libyan academics and officials in 25 years.
The talk was Qaddafi's latest gambit to reintegrate his oil-rich nation into the international community after almost two decades of being viewed as a rogue state.
In remarks apparently intended to fend off criticism of the Libyan authorities' handling of riots last month that left 11 dead, Qaddafi said the protests stemming from the publication of cartoons ridiculing Islam's Prophet Mohammed elicited a coarse reaction from all sides.
"Our methods are very backward indeed. The methods of opposition in our country are also quite different. Even when it comes to demonstrations, they are against Mohammed cartoons, they use bullets. You use tear gas or hoses; the police in our countries react in a backward way because they are part of a backward society," he said.
Qaddafi also criticized Islamic fundamentalism and what he said was its blight on education, research and health care.
"In a good number of Islamic countries the school curriculum would prohibit many scientific researches," he said.
"In some Islamic countries, to see the fetus inside the pregnant woman is prohibited because only God, to some people, knows the gender of that fetus. How could that be prohibited? That is because of backwardness," he said.
Over a few hours under gray skies, dozens of combat planes and helicopters roar on and off the flight deck of the USS Nimitz aircraft carrier, in a demonstration of US military power in some of the world’s most hotly contested waters. MH-60 Seahawk helicopters and F/A-18 Hornet jets bearing pilot call signs such as “Fozzie Bear,” “Pig Sweat” and “Bongoo” emit deafening screams as they land in the drizzle on the Nimitz, which is leading a carrier strike group that entered the South China Sea two weeks ago. US Rear Admiral Christopher Sweeney, who is commanding the group, said the tour
Sitting in a lotus position, four men weave glittering beads through gold thread on an organza sheet, carefully constructing a wedding dress that would soon wow crowds at Paris Fashion Week. For once, the French couturier behind the design, Julien Fournie, is determined to put these craftsmen in the spotlight. His new collection, which showed in Paris on Tuesday, was entirely made with fabrics from Mumbai. He said that a sort of “design imperialism” means that French fashion houses often play down that their fabrics are made outside France. “The houses which don’t admit it are perhaps afraid of losing their clientele,” Fournie
A court in Thailand sentenced a 27-year-old political activist to 28 years in prison on Thursday for posting messages on Facebook that it said defamed the country’s monarchy, while two young women charged with the same offense continued a hunger strike after being hospitalized. The court in the northern province of Chiang Rai found that Mongkhon Thirakot contravened the lese majeste law in 14 of 27 posts for which he was arrested in August last year. The law covers the king, queen and heirs, and any regent. The lese majeste law carries a prison term of three to 15 years per incident for
INSTABILITY: The country has seen a 33 percent increase in land that cultivates poppies since the military took over the government in 2021, a UN report said The production of opium in Myanmar has flourished since the military’s seizure of power, with the cultivation of poppies up by one-third in the past year, as eradication efforts have dropped and the faltering economy has led more people toward the drug trade, a UN report released yesterday showed. Last year, the first full growing season since the military wrested control of the country from the democratically elected government of Aung San Suu Kyi in 2021, saw a 33 percent increase in Myanmar’s cultivation area to 40,100 hectares, the UN Office on Drugs and Crime report said. “Economic, security and governance disruptions