American scholar: Muslim World needs characters like Ahmadinejad

American scholar Kevin Barrett said on Sunday that the Muslim World needs popular personalities like President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad. In an interview with IRNA, he responded to questions: IRNA: What’s your opinion about causes of uprising in the region, especially in this moment? A. The so-called Arab spring is the product of a long winter of discontent. The Arab world has been ruled by kings and dictators for too long, and the increasingly educated and politically-aware populations of these countries are tired of their corrupt, brutal dictatorships. Most Arab dictatorships have been puppets of the neo-imperialist West and secret allies of the Zionists, and the people of the region no longer accept the humiliation of such policies. They are also tired of the rulers' corruption, which has led to the corruption of whole societies and economic stagnation. IRNA: While Hosni Mubarak has currently stood trial, how does it affect on Continuance of uprising? A. The uprising will continue, regardless of Mubarak's fate. The sight of this once-invulnerable dictator on trial will inspire the people of other nations to overthrow their dictators. IRNA: Embassy of Israel in Egypt, what message does it reflect? A. When Egyptians stormed the Iraeli Embassy, they were expressing the pent-up rage of the Egyptian people over more than 35 years of treasonous appeasement of the Zionists by the Egyptian dictatorship. It wasn't just about the killing of a few soldiers. This is the beginning of Egypt's new anti-Zionist era. As a democracy, Egypt will find itself in alliance with the other democracies in the region, notably Iran and Turkey, against Israel, because that is what its people will demand. IRNA: How much is the West approach about uprising honest? A. The Western approach to the Arab spring has been characterized by hypocrisy and disguised self-interest. The West acquiesced in the overthrow of Mubarak once it had become inevitable, but opposes the overthrow of the dictatorships in Bahrain and Yemen, while propping up dictator allies in the region such as the kings of Saudi Arabia and Morocco. While supporting the worst dictators in the region, who are Western puppets, the West pretends to be the good guy by helping with the overthrow of non-puppet dictators in Libya and Syria. This is rank hypocrisy. IRNA: Now the uprising of which Islamic country is more important than other countries for the Muslim World? A. Here is my surprising answer: The Arab uprising that will signify the real transformation of the region will be the overthrow of the Saudi monarchy. The Islamic world needs Islamic revolutions aimed at ending the huge divisions between rich and poor, and instituting social justice. Specifically, lending at interest (riba) must be abolished, a zakat wealth tax should be instituted, and those who insist upon accumulating obscene amounts of wealth by robbing and oppressing their fellow Muslims, and collaborating with the enemies of Islam, should have their wealth redistributed. The Qur'an excoriates the accumulation of wealth (as in Surat at-Takathur). Societies should not be governed by greedy kings and dictators who accumulate great wealth; leader should be modest, pious, and just. I understand that the President of Iran is not interested in wealth and even sleeps on the floor! This kind of leader - a pious man who is not afraid of speaking the truth about 9/11 at the United Nations - is exactly what the Islamic world, and the rest of the world, needs. IRNA: How much possibility of establishing non-Islamic regimes in countries that is in the revolution? A. The West would love to establish secular regimes in the region. But it won't happen, because the vast majority of the people want to live under Islam. IRNA: While establishment of Islamic governments in the region, which countries are challenged? A. The whole region will be challenged to develop a workable model of Islamic governance. So far, the best two examples are Turkey and Iran. Iran became an Islamic democracy very suddenly due to the revolution of 1979, while Turkey has been gradually becoming more democratic and more Islamic. Egypt and the rest of the Arab world will borrow from these models as they try to establish Islamic democracies. IRNA: How much is the Islamic awaking affected by Islam? A. The Arab spring is really an Islamic revolution. It is a rejection of corrupt, Westernized, secularist elites, and a demand for social justice and a more Islamic society. I believe that the Qur'an's insistence on social justice is the guiding factor behind these revolutions. Now the challenge is to create a just and workable Islamic model of governance. To succeed, I believe the Islamic world will have to move towards unity. If it remains divided, it will be exploited. United, it will become powerful enough to defend itself and its resources, religion and culture. The Islamic world must unite! A good start would be the establishment of a common market and common currency along the lines of the European Union. If the Muslim-majority world can implement Islam, adopt a currency fully backed by precious metals - a gold dinar and silver dirham - and accept only those metals in return for oil and gas exports, it will quickly re-empower itself, and restore Islam to its central place in human civilization, insha'allah. Kevin James Barrett (born February 1959) is a former university lecturer, Muslim convert. He is a member of the Scientific Panel for the Investigation of 9/11 (SPINE), and is a founding member of the Muslim-Jewish-Christian Alliance (MUJCA), established October 30, 2004 with the stated aim of improving 'interfaith dialogue, coexistence, and understanding' in light of the events of 9/11.