The Arab Spring - Essay Example

THE ARAB SPRING (Causes and Consequences) by: ID Number Presented of the School Location Due on: December 09, 2014 @ 1:11 a.m. Introduction and Summary The so-called “Arab Spring” is the romanticized version of political and social events in North Africa and elsewhere in the Middle East wherein people engaged in mass uprising to demand political and economic reforms. Most of the countries where the “Arab Spring” took place had autocratic governments and people took to the streets in protests against dictatorial or absolutist governments; some of the protests were relatively non-violent protests while in other countries the protesters or the security forces or both sides had used their arms so in these particular protests, the civil disturbances had turned to civil war like in Libya. The anti-government protests and demonstrations were made not only by Arabs but also Africans. The word “spring” is an allusion or reference to water being a welcome development in the mostly arid geography of the MENA (Middle East and North Africa) region. Other similar protests, uprisings, and rebellions were termed as “The Velvet Revolution” and the “People Power Revolution” (depending on the degree of peacefulness or violence) in other countries. Arab Spring started innocently enough in Tunisia when a street fruit vendor immolated (burned alive) himself to protest the lack of jobs for poor people like him. This vendor named Mohamed Bouazizi was reportedly a college graduate who could not find any decent job for himself to feed his family. Soon other protesters took up his cause and led to the downfall of long-time Tunisian president Zine El Abidine Ben Ali. The events in Tunisia were soon copied by people in other countries like in Egypt (ousted two presidents), in Libya (where Gaddafi was eventually killed in the civil war with foreign military intervention), in Yemen (where its president handed over power to a national unity coalition), and still on-going in some places like in Syria (a full-scale civil war), street protests in Saudi Arabia, Mauritania, and Sudan, in demonstrations against the governments in Bahrain and the UAE (United Arab Emirates), or constitutional reforms implemented in Jordan, Lebanon, Oman, Kuwait, etc. to stop protests. Discussion Historians, academicians, political scientists, and media practitioners are offering their own opinions and theories on why the Arab Spring had taken place in the MENA region at a particular time in this regions history. Although no one theory is correct, a combination of the several factors that are being discussed could be a more probable or proximate cause on why a street vendor who immolated himself back in December 2010 continues to exert an influence. This revolutionary wave of protests continues to spread like wildfire in part due to a presence of the social media, in particular the availability of the Internet, to spread new ideas. Many of the countries adversely affected by the civil disturbances usually have authoritarian forms of government in which their people are probably fed up and now demanding greater freedoms. Causes – although the initial self-immolation protest of Bouazizi was against the form of authoritarianism and harassment that he suffered while being a street vendor, many other causes had sparked similar revolutions in other countries. Some of the causes include human rights violations, political corruption, inflation, high unemployment, and higher food prices. A more credible explanation of why the single act of a street vendor sparked revolutions in so many countries in the MENA region is the growing level of educated people in the countries mentioned experiencing street protests that agitate for political, economic, and social reforms. Many Arab countries had invested heavily in education resulting in more literate citizens but this alone is not enough to cause street protests. What actually led to these protests and major cause in these civil disturbances is a higher level of educational attainment that is not matched with the appropriate job opportunities in those countries (Campante & Chor, 2012:179). Other factors mentioned earlier were there all along but did not cause any protest but it is only now where there is a combination of higher educational levels that result in more people politically aware of what is happening in their countries and willing to join these street protests. Consequences – one obvious result was that former dictators in the countries of Libya, Tunisia, Egypt, and Yemen were removed from power either peacefully or forcibly. Another result is that former authoritarian governments in Bahrain, Kuwait, Jordan, Lebanon, the UAE and other countries were forced to grant freedom and implemented constitutional reforms. In other countries, the Arab Spring resulted in many deaths and much destruction like in Syria or in Libya where civil wars took place and the removal of a dictator resulted in tribalism or the fragmentation of a country along tribal lines or ethnic groups (similar to that in Iraq now). Positive points – the Arab Spring brought about many changes in the Arab countries that experienced these street protests and massive demonstrations which otherwise would not have been possible because many dictatorial leaders or governments are not willing to give up their power. The protesters wanted freedoms, liberty, a more open society, and greater social equity, and more economic opportunities. In other words, the Arab Spring is different from a nationalist uprising or socialist revolt or Islamic movement but rather the Arab Spring is more of a pro-democratic upheaval demanding for human rights protection, free elections, and the demand for a regime change against long-staying autocrats (Tanoukhi & Mazrui, 2011:148). Negative points – what may start as a peaceful street protest can turn violent if police and security forces start using their arms to dispel the protesters and start making arrests. The peaceful protesters will then also arm themselves with the end result of more violence. In the extreme cases, these violent protests turned into a real civil war resulting in more deaths. The other negative point is some governments impose stricter controls instead of democratizing. Conclusion There is a real danger of civil uprisings turning into full-scale civil war with the result of the country becoming a failed state like that in Somalia where there is no central governing authority and the country becomes a lawless place. Another risk is the Arab Spring could also be hijacked by other extremist or Islamist groups that will integrate themselves in the uprising and then later on grab the leadership of the movements when they think it is already right to do so and move it away from the original objectives of trying to obtain liberal democracy. The Arab world is known for its historical democratic deficit because of so many long-standing institutional control structures that hinder the introduction of meaningful changes in a nation (Chaney et al., 2012:363). The influential social, political, and religious structures had been in place for many centuries already since the Arab armies conquered these countries and to also introduce Islam wherever they went at that time in history. Many of these historical events are still exerting influential and enduring effects so that introducing change is very difficult. References Campante, F. R. & Chor, D. (2012) “Why was the Arab world poised for revolution? Schooling, economic opportunities, and the Arab Spring.” The Journal of Economic Perspectives, 26(2), pp. 167-187. Chaney, E., Akerlof, G. A., & Blaydes, L. (2012) “Democratic change in the Arab world, past and present.” Brookings Papers on Economic Activity, pp. 363-414. Tanoukhi, N. & Mazrui, A. (2011) “Arab Spring and the future of leadership in North Africa.” Transition, 106(A), pp. 148-162. Read More