Under tremendous pressure from the USA to allow Hamas, despite the Oslo Accord, to participate in the Palestinian general elections 0f 01/25/2006, the Hams won a majority of 73 seats out of 128 in the Palestinian Parliament. What was considered initially as a celebration of democracy eventually led to the division of the Palestinian Authority into two sub states: the Hamastan in Gaza Strip and the Fatahland in the West Bank (see - Two Palestines).
Both factions are now out of term and rule their land based on their grip on power without any legal legitimacy. Eventually the elections, meant to legitimize President Mahmoud Abbas only strengthened the grip of Iran in half of the Palestinian society and on the Israeli Palestinian peace process.
The Anti-Syrian block, known as the "14 March Coalition", won a land slide victory and increased its number in the Lebanese Parliament from 65 out of 128 to 70 in the Lebanese general elections held in two rounds in early 06/2009 (see -LEBANON 09 Elections). The Lebanese people stated loud and clear that they wanted to be a part of the democratic world, a free Lebanese democratic society and, above all, not a tool for the Iranian and Syrian regimes in their regional aspirations.
Today, 10 months later, the two pro American leaders of the "14 March Coalition" - PM Saad Hariri, the son of the former PM Rafik Hariri, who was killed by Syrian dispatches on 02/25/2005 and the Druz leader Walid Junblat, whose father Kamal Junblat, was killed by Syrian agents on 03/16/1977, both "went to Canossa (Damascus)" to ask for forgiveness from President Bashar Assad (see - EGYPTIAN DIALECT).
Both changed their rhetoric to a blunt anti-Israeli and anti-American terminology. Lebanon is now fully digested and integrated into the "axis of evil' of Syria and Iran and Hizbullah is the dominant power in Lebanon (see - Damascus Summit 2). Lebanon became a huge stockpile of rockets to be launched against Israel and most likely to suffer the most from the consequences. just the opposite to the Lebanese people's wishes expressed in the last elections.
On 06/12/2009, just week after Obama's Cairo Speech and the elections in Lebanon, the Iranians went to poll too to elect a new president. All indicated that the reformists, led by Former Prime Minister Mir Hossein Mousavi, won the elections which suggested, once again, that the people in Iran itself are looking for more openness, transparency and freedom (see - IRAN'S POLL). Nevertheless the Iranian Revolutionary Guard took over the ballot count, declared the fanatic hardliner Mahmoud Ahmadinejad is the winner and brutally oppressed the opposition. Today Iran is more oppressive than ever before, the grip of the Revolutionary Guard tightened on all domains of the Iranian economy and politics and Iran is rushing to a nuclear weapon (see - Khamenei's Speech).
On 08/20/2009 general elections were carried out in Afghanistan. The general aim was to legitimize Hamid Karzai's regime in Afghanistan so the USA and NATO-ISAF can proceed with pulling out most of their military forces (see -Afghan 09 Elections). Eventually the scale of vote frauds, directed by Hamid Karzai's regime itself was on such scale that it delegitimized his regime even more not only in the Afghan society but also in the international community (see -Without Legitimacy). A 152-page report released, on Wednesday 04/28/2010, by the Pentagon ahead of President Hamid Karzai's upcoming visit to Washington, said only 29 of the 121 Afghan districts (25%) considered most strategically important in the war effort - support Karzai's regime (see -Kandahar Struggle). Following the elections the situation in Afghanistan became far more complicated and the successful withdrawal of NATO-ISAF from Afghanistan without handing over the country to the Taliban is an extremely difficult task.
The recent elections in Iraq, on 03/07/2010, resulted with a standoff between the former PM Iyad Alawii and the current PM Nuri al-Maliki (see -IRAQ 2010 ELECTIONS). The Iraqi people clearly said they want to put Iraq above any sectarian division and, like in Lebanon, they do not want to ally themselves in any way to Iran. Despite the Iraqi clear voice the Iraqi National Alliance, a coalition of mostly Shiaa religious groups, with strong ties to Iran, led by Moqtada Sadr, came third with 70 seats and hold the key to any future government if Iyad Alawii and Nuri al-Maliki will not come to terms. Iraq is now on the Verge of Chaos with Iran playing a major role behind the scene.
The Muslim world is a good example that democracy is above all a cultural phenomenon, it is not a political system as such and IMPOSING DEMOCRACY is a very tricky game with all kinds of pranks and unexpected results.
