There was never any doubt that Navalny would be convicted of the charges hurled at him because Russia’s courts are firmly under the control of the Kremlin. By contrast, Trump has a real chance of acquittal in the cases against him as his legal team tests the charges and evidence.
As for Orban, he has spent the past decade gradually squeezing the life out of Hungary’s democracy. There is little need to jail his opponents when the political system is already thoroughly stacked against the opposition.
REFUSING TO ENGAGE IS A LOSING STRATEGY
In the Global South, the most potent form of whataboutism remains the Iraq war. Most US politicians, including Biden and Trump, now accept that the war was a mistake.
It clearly had tragic consequences. But it is still not “the same” as Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
Saddam Hussein’s Iraq was a brutal dictatorship that was responsible for mass atrocities. Ukraine was a peaceful democracy. The US had no intention of annexing Iraq. Russia, by contrast, wants to erase Ukraine’s independence and has annexed large parts of its territory.
Do I expect that making these points will ensure the triumph of reason, justice and democracy? Obviously not.
Even among those who engage in these debates in good faith, there are people who will remain unconvinced. Many others will not be swayed, because their positions are dictated by emotion or self-interest, and underpinned by false information or propaganda.
It is unrealistic to expect that reasoned argument can defeat all forms of whataboutism. But the surest way to lose the debate is to refuse to engage in it in the first place.
Source: CNA
