Contrary to “Arab World,” searching United Nations and US media reports for Latin America, and one finds barely a mention even as President Obama conducted his recent tour of South and Central America. There are more notable exceptions – Venezuela & Hugo Chavez – but the silence says much by comparison to a few decades earlier. Part of this may be neglect including priorities in official Washington. However, it generally is not a bad thing to have your politics on the back pages while economic advancement and culture dominate the public attention. For many in Latin America, US interventionism was not particularly welcome, and many perceived it as an extension of neo-colonialism. Today’s benign neglect is preferred by many over covert and overt interventionism. Economic Opportunity Translating to Democratic Evolution? Over last half century, Latin America has been transforming from dictatorships and closed societies to greater political inclusion and openness, including media and social norms. The trend is neither uniform nor even positive always. Economic inequity and environmental considerations still dominate discourse in many Latin American countries. It would also be superficial and clichéish to paint Latin America or the Arab World in monolithic brush strokes. Latin America still has social and economic inequities that place it behind the curve of the more developed democracies. Nonetheless, a comparison of the developments in the Arab World and Latin America clearly seem to favor the latter over the former. This is despite generally more favorable opportunities for economic development driven by natural resources available in many Arab states, (although Latin America has quickly evolved its own resource exploitation in last decade or so). Historical and Cultural Parallels? The similarities between the two societies go deeper beyond resources, especially when looking in historical context: • Latin America and Arab World had been subjected to colonialism and exploitation of indigenous populations (Most Arab states generally had achieved independence from colonialism more recently). • The role of a more conservative Church and mosque can be seen as broadly comparable, at least over longer term historical context (the role of “Liberation Theology Clergy” maybe a decisive distinction). • Large segments of Latin America’s immigrants had come from Arab lands, Christian but also Muslim. • Dictatorships and the primary role of the military were defining of both regions only a few decades earlier, (change is not uniform but note examples of Argentina, Chile and Brazil). Is our Hypothesis Accurate? – Your Insight: Before we ask the questions as to why, perhaps we should also be open to the counter argument if our hypothesis is accurate. As noted, a monolithic scan to form broadly applicable opinions or courses for future action can be counterproductive as well as unfair. Nonetheless, from my perspective in New York and at the United Nations, there has been a notable decrease in the presence of Latin America as subject in discussions of political/military crisis while the Arab World has come to the forefront. Perhaps this is a critical time in the transition, but what lessons, if any, can be applied from one to the other. We invite your views and insight as to whether the hypothesis is accurate and why? Also, what about the recent exceptions including Honduras, Bolivia, Nicaragua as well as Venezuela. Let’s not also neglect the potential abuse of the environment and indigenous, that can come to haunt the progress now being gradually achieved. We will lead a discussion in what can be learned. Ambassador Muhamed Sacirbey Face Book – “Diplomatically Incorrect” Twitter – “DiplomaticallyX” See more recent Reports at www.diplomaticallyincorrect.org -Film & Blogs- including: “Arab Revolutions-How Far?” - diplomaticallyincorrect.org/films/blog_post/arab-revolutions-how-far-by-ambassador-mo/25222 “Desertification/Brazil”- diplomaticallyincorrect.org/films/movie/desertification-brazil-mannature/25699 “Costa Rica v. Nicaragua/ICJ” - diplomaticallyincorrect.org/films/movie/costa-rica-v-nicaragua-international-court-of-justice/25522 “Danny Glover in Amazon” diplomaticallyincorrect.org/films/movie/danny-glover-to-amazon/22773