Tunisian National Dialogue Quartet wins 2015 Nobel Peace Prize.

The Tunisian National Dialogue Quartet won the 2015 Nobel Peace Prize on Friday for "its decisive contribution to the building of a pluralistic democracy in Tunisia," the Norwegian Nobel Committee announced.

The Quartet, formed in 2013, "established an alternative, peaceful political process at a time when the country was on the brink of civil war," Kaci Kullmann Five, chairperson of the five-member committee, said in her announcement.

"It was thus instrumental in enabling Tunisia, in the space of a few years, to establish a constitutional system of government guaranteeing fundamental rights for the entire population, irrespective of gender, political conviction or religious belief," she said.

The National Dialogue Quartet comprises four key organizations in Tunisian civil society: the Tunisian General Labour Union, the Tunisian Confederation of Industry, Trade and Handicrafts, the Tunisian Human Rights League and the Tunisian Order of Lawyers.

The Quartet "exercised its role as a mediator and driving force to advance peaceful democratic development in Tunisia with great moral authority," Five said, adding that prize "is awarded to this Quartet, not to the four individual organizations as such."
   Xinhua - globaltimes.cn
  9/10/15
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• West-backed Color Revolution to blame for Mideast refugee crisis

The Western powers' continuous intervention in the Middle East, especially since the Arab uprising, or the so-called Color Revolution, has worsened the situation in the troubled region and led to the worst refugee crisis since World War II for Europe.

Struggling to cope with the refugee crisis, the West appears to be taking the moral high ground, except it has no reason to do so because it should shoulder at least some of the blame for the crisis itself.

The Arab uprising, which started in Tunisia in late 2010, spread throughout the Arab world and toppled rulers in Tunisia, Egypt, Libya and Yemen in what seems to be a domino effect.

Looking back, the revolution in the region was initiated by dissatisfied people in those countries, where social contradictions have accumulated due to various reasons. However, the Western powers, particularly the United States, took advantage of the turmoil and tried to promote agendas beneficial to themselves.

The West led by the United States has directly or indirectly intervened to overthrow some of the leaders and blatantly supported Syrian opposition to topple Syrian President Bashar al-Assad.

Waving the flags of democracy and freedom, advocating non-violent protests and demonstrations, the West, particularly the United States, pushed forward the Color Revolution by immensely pressuring ruling regimes and ultimately collapsing them, creating a power vacuum afterward and leading to further political unrest and social disorder.

The non-violent toppling attempt failed and an all-out civil war broke out in Syria, facilitating the rise of the radical militant group Islamic State.

Only seeking to secure their own safety and interests, Western powers have meddled in regional affairs, incited turmoil and waged wars, bringing chaos to the area and forcing tens of thousands of people to flee their homes.

As of September, the Syrian crisis alone has displaced over 12 million people, with millions of them fleeing to neighboring countries, mostly to Turkey, Lebanon and Jordan, according to data from the United Nations High Commissioner for refugees.

The Western powers probably have never really cared about the pains and sufferings of the people in the region until now, when they are no longer bystanders and are faced with the thorny problem of the refugee crisis.

Four years of turmoil following the uprising have mired countries including Syria, Iraq and Libya, from where tens of thousand of migrants have flocked to European countries since the beginning of this year, most of them from Syria.

The Western countries have no other choice but to accept the "side effect" of the Color Revolution they once supported, as they
  Xinhua - globaltimes.cn
  9/10/15