Revolution in the Arab World - Observation of a lost soul Blog

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foreign policy • revolution in the arab world • Tunisia in Tunisia … and, alarmingly, in the kinds of outburst of social violence that we can see in Jordan and Egypt. Whether that energy is channeled into productive political engagement or into anomic violence would seem to be one of the crucial variables shaping the coming period in Arab politics. Right now, the trends aren’t in the right direction. 44
foreign policy • revolution in the arab world • TUnisia A Month Made for Drama By CHRISTOPHER ALEXANDER January traditionally has been Tunisia’s month for political drama—a general strike in January 1978, a Libyan-supported insurrection in January 1980, bread riots in January 1984. This year, however, January started out looking as though it would be hard-pressed to top the previous December. The last two weeks of 2010 witnessed the most dramatic wave of social unrest in Tunisia since the 1980s. What began with one young man’s desperate protest against unemployment in Sidi Bouzid, in Tunisia’s center-west, spread quickly to other regions and other issues. Within days of Mohamed Bouazizi’s attempted suicide in front of the local government office, students, teachers, lawyers, journalists, human rights activists, trade unionists, and opposition politicians took to the streets in several cities, including Tunis, to condemn the government’s economic policies, its repression of all critics, and a mafia-style corruption that enriches members of President Zine el-Abidine Ben Ali’s family. In a country known for authoritarian stability, it was easy to see this unrest as a harbinger of dramatic change. In fact, the protests had been building for at least two years, fueled by frustration rooted in a deep history of unbalanced economic growth. Several organizations helped to convert this frustration into collective protest; the first wave in December quickly produced a cabinet reshuffle, a governor’s sacking, and a renewed commitment to job creation in disadvantaged regions. Ben Ali’s rule had long relied on a skillful combination of co-optation and repression. By pledging his fidelity to democracy and human rights early in his tenure, he deftly hijacked the core of the liberal opposition’s message. At the same time, he used electoral manipulation, intimidation, and 45
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