By Larbi Arboui
By Larbi Arboui
Morocco World News
Taroudant, Morocco, Nov 22, 2o12
Conventionally, women are said to be the most vulnerable human beings who respond to their emotions by a flood of tears. But men, usually, don’t cry over anything. When a man cries, be sure there are some feelings in his heart more powerful to express in words.
Although, I am sure, the tears wouldn’t bring back the deceased, but at least they have a magical power in keeping human beings breathing. When someone weeps, it is a sign that his heart is still humane, still compassionate and still alive. But when a higher official becomes emotional in public, it shouldn’t be understood as a sign of weakness, yet either as an alarm that something is going wrong, or of a hypocrite who is seeking to take advantage of his public display of tears.
In our everyday life, we are exposed to thousands of photos of people killed in road accidents. Recently, the most shocking photos of dead Palestinians were aired to our homes, yet we remain cold and unresponsive. The image of the dead, which used to scare us or at least leave us in an agitated psychological state, are received now in more cold blood with no frustration as if we see dummies not human beings – who could be one of your family members. Alas! The act of killing and the images of corps are installed in our subconscious mind as a normal scene, which I consider as alarming!
However, some politicians still have a heart! They can’t take in all the suffering and moments of grief experienced by their people or even other people with whom they share no bonds except that strong link called humanity. The least they can do is to lend the tyrannized victim a shoulder to cry on and shed a tear that can apparently seal the wounds.
The Turkish Foreign Minister, Ahmet Davutoglu, was unable to hold back his tears during his visit to wounded Palestinians in a Gaza hospital. People always think tears are a sign of weakness. Yet the tears which ran down the cheeks of the Turkish foreign minister were more than a noble act of identifying with the Palestinians or, more precisely, comforting a Palestinian father whose son had been killed by an Israeli airstrike. The minister’s words and actions are in harmony with his feelings. Last week, he said that “Israel is a terror state and its acts are terrorist acts,” adding that “every drop of Palestinian blood is pouring from the veins of all Muslims and every tear dropping from their eyes is our tear too.”
Similar to those tears of Davutoglu, but this time for her own people, Elsa Fornero, Italian Welfare Minister , during a news conference, broke down crying while announcing cuts to social programs as a reaction on the part of the government to curb spending and cope with the crisis that has swept over her country. Fornero couldn’t finish her speech while describing the austerity measures unveiled by the government because she was totally aware of the negative impacts such measures would bring to her people. Her tears reflect her high identification with the needs of her own people and her tremendous responsibilities towards them.
During the work of the Commission of Justice and Legislation in the House of Representatives, Mustapha Ramid, the Moroccan Minister of Justice and Liberties, addressed parliamentarians, two weeks ago, with tears filling up his eyes, worried that he might pass away before even completing his ministerial mandate. He recalled that “Mohamed Bouzoubaa died after two months of his mandate,.” “And it seems to me that I will not complete my mandate,” he said. Well, it seemed that the tears shed by Mustapha Ramid were not crocodile tears, and were even far from being induced by the chaos involving our Minister of Justice and Liberties and the miserable conditions of the workers under this ministry. Personally, I interpreted such an act as the expected mourning of losing one’s luxurious seat.
In all these kind of tears, there are tears of victory like that of President Obama who had an emotional ride through his final campaign, when he momentarily cried while addressing his Chicago campaign staffers. Another one is that of the Iron Man Vladmir Putin who claimed victory in Russia’s March 2012 presidential election, with tears rolling down his checks.
The most powerful and honest tears are those we, common people, shed in our isolation for even a simple act that steps upon the vulnerable rights of humans. Those bitter and tart ones we often weep for the miserable, poor, and helpless people in every corner of the world.
We should never be ashamed of our tears for they are the proof that a seed of humanism is still there in the bottom of our hearts. A sincere tear and smile are paradoxical virtues and characteristics unique to a vital and living heart.
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