As IBA Succumbs To The Fear Of An Arab Spring

International Bar Association conference 2011 has come and gone without igniting another Arab Spring.  Such was the palpable fear that permeate the air as the host Dubai fought fortuitously to ensure that the conference content and the likelihood of it precipitating another uprising there was nip in the bud.

It would seem that the fear of the Arab Spring is the beginning of wisdom for this nation that prides herself as the destination of tourists delight and global commerce. It went ahead to negotiate the terms of the conference and so seven sessions were retitled to sustain calm.

Whatever this means to them, muzzling free speech could only dent their image as a nation without regards for her people’s right to free speech and expression. For IBA it makes them a less potent body, with tepid content and casts an ugly shadow on them regarding promotion of human rights and other enlightened values.

For the Nigerian entourage, there is need to reevaluate the IBA annual conference especially has it pertains to return on investment to participants. Having a homegrown alternative will be a smart move. As a state, the time is ripe to build an infrastructure that can cater for modern conference of such magnitude. We have to start building business conscious cities here. A working system is what we need now.