Human Rights Watch released their annual report today and focussed their criticism on governments in the US and EU for claiming to promote democracy but turning an eye when democracy is ignored by allies and key partners. The report, which naturally also criticises states failing in their duties to protect human rights, referred to the 'democracy charade' enacted by EU/US power, especially considering their dealings with countries like Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Russia, Pakistan, Nigeria and Thailand. All of these countries have distinctly anti-democratic regimes in place and yet all are trusted allies or trade partners of the Western bloc which appears so violently pro-democracy in other countries.

The truth is that moral-relativism is the essence of both neo-conservative and traditional colonialist foreign policy. Women, gays and non-Muslims in Saudi Arabia have about as many rights as in Taleban-era Afghanistan. The right have done very well at tricking the less committed supporters of social justice and internationalism through movements like neo-conservatism (Hitchens, Amis et al) and the so called 'Euston Manifesto'. But when it comes to countries with very serious problems who are close allies, the moral-relativists stay silent.