European Disintegration

Ensuring Socio-economic Justice

Editor

Jumada' al-Ula' 26, 1440 2019-02-01

Editorials

by Editor (Editorials, Crescent International Vol. 47, No. 12, Jumada' al-Ula', 1440)

Europe is falling apart. It would have been bad enough if Brexit — Britain’s exit from the European Union (EU) — were the only crisis facing the continent of 500 million people but there are other equally serious crises confronting it.

In addition to fascist movements raising their ugly head in several countries, France is gripped by what is referred to as the “Yellow Vest” campaign. Even while French President Emmanuel Macron denounced Yellow Vest campaigners as “agitators” and unleashed French CRS riot squad Robocops, the reality is different. The Robocops mercilessly beat up peaceful protesters and attacked them with teargas shells. Whatever happened to liberté, égalité, fraternité (liberty, equality, and fraternity), the much-vaunted slogan of the French Republic? Macron has clearly lost the support of ordinary people in France but one has yet to hear calls for his resignation from the Western corporate media that is quick to denounce leaders in other parts of the world faced with similar protests. Perhaps, Muslims should call for Macron’s resignation in support of the poor people in France and demand that he stop attacking peaceful protesters. Muslims would be justified in invoking the “right to protect” doctrine — a doctrine the West uses against governments, especially in the Muslim world, that it does not like.

The protests erupted in rural France in November over higher fuel taxes imposed by the Macron regime. Old-age pensioners and the poor said they could not afford these increases while the regime had announced tax cuts for the rich. This is the neo-liberal policy that gives tax breaks to the rich and powerful while impoverishing the already poor. After weeks of protests that refused to die down, Macron was forced to introduce a package of emergency concessions to help cool anti-government protests. These were seen as too little, too late.

Meanwhile in neighboring Germany, Angela Merkel is seen as a lame-duck leader because her Christian Democratic Union (CDU) party suffered heavy electoral losses last year. For 15 years, the CDU was undisputed master of the German political scene. Merkel was forced to resign as president of the party and announced that she would not seek re-election as German chancellor. The CDU is now split into two factions further weakening its grip on German politics.

Hitherto, the 28-member European Union (EU) was pulled by the three heavyweights Germany, France, and Britain. With all three in political and economic disarray, what chance is there for the rest of Europe to survive? On January 22, Merkel and Macron signed an agreement in the German city of Aachen to coordinate their political, diplomatic, economic, and military policies. This was seen as a desperate attempt to prevent the unraveling of Europe. No sooner had Merkel and Macron announced the deal than Italy and Poland — two European basketcases with fascists in key positions — challenged it. Hungary is also in the grip of fascists while Greece is in turmoil over the forthcoming North Macedonia separation vote.

Britain faces additional internal problems regardless of whether it is a hard or soft Brexit landing. PM Theresa May is toast but whoever succeeds her as prime minister will not have an easy time. There is the ticking bomb of Scotland’s separation and British society has fallen into extreme xenophobia and racism. The once proud self-proclaimed “Great” Britain is no more. It never was but the British maintained the fiction.

Across the pond in America, United States President Donald Trump continues his battle with the deep state that is determined to tie him down and force him to follow its prescribed script. The moron-in-chief is a loose canon and can put his foot in his mouth anytime.

Given all these developments, one could guardedly say it has not been a bad three months. The warmongers are at each other’s throats and tearing their countries apart. For once, Muslims can have a ringside seat to watch the spectacle of Western infighting and disintegration. Islam can offer a solution to their problems if only they would take their anti-Islamic blinkers off and study it with an open mind.

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