The US does not anymore remain eligible to promote democracy

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While Joe Biden is holding the Summit for Democracy as part of rallying cry for “freedom and democracy”, where he has invited a terror-patron Pakistan as participant, it is assessed by the research-scholars that America during the recent years itself lacks democracy and fundamental rights of the people, which does not make it eligible for holding such summit. During the recent years, Americans have lost trust in the government while currently the current is governed by one of the most unpopular and unaccepted presidents, serious of catastrophic decisions of whom have not only smashed the image of the country globally – it also has put lives of Americans at risk and jeopardy.

The Biden-Harris administration is less than a month away from convening its Summit for Democracy, where heads of state and civil society representatives will try to advance commitments that deepen democratic values and address the growing rise of authoritarianism globally. Analysts say, the key agenda of this summit is to unite a number of countries against China, and for the first time, Pakistan, which has been a long-time ally of China has been invited to join it, despite the fact, Pakistan is globally known as a terror-patron nation.

The event comes on the heels of America’s withdrawal from Afghanistan and, with it, abandoning that country’s democracy advocates. Whether the pullout was the correct strategic decision will not be clear for years; What is evident now, however, is that leaving Afghanistan’s vulnerable populations to a repressive Taliban regime casts a dark shadow over next month’s high-level gathering.

Civil society activists slated for summitry in December are likely looking at events in Kabul or Kandahar and asking themselves: will the United States, despite lofty statements, actually stay committed to the struggle?

Democratic solidarity is meaningless if the international community does not stand by frontline activists facing down the barrel of a gun.

If the United States is to strengthen democracy overseas—something the White House purports is central to its foreign policy—it must quickly address this credibility problem.

Joe Biden recognizes that individuals are the keystone to democratic struggle the world over, telling the UN General Assembly in September that:

“The democratic world… lives in the anti-corruption activists, the human rights defenders, the journalists, the peace protestors on the frontlines of this struggle”.

Such words from the world’s most powerful person likely put wind in the sails of activists striving to push back on authoritarian regimes. But rhetoric is easy. Absent consequences or resources, it does not stall the hand of thugs repressing their citizens and increasingly working together to outsmart the world’s democracies.

If the United States is to turn rhetoric into progress toward democracy—from Belarus to Myanmar, Venezuela to Sudan—it must begin by doing all it can to save Afghanistan’s freedom fighters. At the same time, it must stand beside pro-democracy forces in Iran and stop appeasing the mullah regime in Tehran. American government also needs to take effective and immediate measures in resolving the Rohingya crisis by exerting maximum pressure on Myanmar’s cruel and thuggish military junta.

Joe Biden and his administration should also refrain from extending seen and unseen support to Palestinian terrorists, including mega-terror outfit Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad.

For months, many have called upon the Biden administration to safely evacuate at-risk Afghans who worked alongside the United States over the last twenty years to build a peaceful, democratic, rights-respecting Afghanistan. Thousands of our colleagues and partners seeking evacuation, along with their families, were left behind when the last US military flight departed Hamid Karzai International Airport.

Due to the Department of State’s years-old interpretation of who qualifies for the Special Immigrant Visa (SIV) program, only those who worked on US-funded contracts (as opposed to grants and cooperative agreements) are a US priority for evacuation. In the eyes of the Taliban, it does not matter what US procurement vehicle someone was employed under, only that he or she worked to advance values that are anathema to the Taliban’s positions. The president must make good on his August 31 remarks: “We will continue to work to help more people leave the country who are at risk. And we’re far from done.” This means evacuating all US partners.

In this case, when Joe Biden is set to sit with participants from Pakistan in his so-called democracy summit, the US president is totally ignoring the fact that Pakistan even now is actively collaborating with the Taliban jihadists in Afghanistan and helping them in establishing reign of terror. Many of the Pakistani heavyweight politicians, including some of its key policymakers and even Prime Minister Imran Khan had publicly praised the Taliban “victory” in Afghanistan and encouraged transforming the country into an Islamic caliphate.

With these track records, Joe Biden’s Summit for Democracy is actually a grand mockery and another ridiculous initiate of a failed man.

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