Think Again: Middle East Democracy

[Lithos]

People in the Middle East want political freedom, and their governments acknowledge the need for reform. Yet the region appears to repel democracy. Arab regimes only concede women’s rights and elections to appease their critics at home and abroad. If democracy arrives in the Middle East, it won’t be due to the efforts of liberal activists or their Western supporters but to the very same Islamist parties that many now see as the chief obstacle to change.

“The Middle East Is the Last Holdout Against the Global Democratic Trend”
No. The Middle East is on the wrong side of the global democratic divide, but unfortunately it does not lack company. As Russia slides into authoritarianism, the former Soviet Union is becoming a democratic wasteland with only a few shaky pockets of pluralism, such as Georgia, Ukraine, and Moldova. Central Asia is no better off than the Arab world in terms of democracy. A depressingly large swath of East and Southeast Asia—from North Korea and China down through Vietnam, Laos, and Burma to Malaysia and Singapore—is a democracy-free zone that shows few signs of change.

Nor was the Middle East immune to the “Third Wave,” the decisive expansion of democracy that started in southern Europe and Latin America 30 years ago and subsequently spread to other parts of the world. During the 1980s, several Arab countries, including Egypt, Tunisia, and Jordan, initiated political reforms to permit multiparty competition. These reforms lost momentum or were undone in the 1990s, however, as Arab leaders proved unwilling to risk their own power through genuine processes of democratization. Tunisia, for example, moved back to rigid authoritarian rule.

Today, political reform is percolating again in the region, amid growing public frustration over chronic corruption, poor socioeconomic performance, and a pervasive sense of stagnation. The Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks also created pressure for reform—from both the United States and some Arabs who began to question why their societies were so widely viewed as dangerous political cesspools. Talk about political reform and democracy is rife even in the Gulf monarchies where such issues had been taboo. The steps taken thus far in most countries, however, are modest. Although the Arab world is not impervious to political change, it has yet to truly begin the process of democratization.

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[sam sarrha]

1. Organized Islam will never allow it.. the Emoms will not let go of power

[newyorican]

2. And the Imams also...

n/t

[Tuco Ramirez]

3. Democracy isn't for everyone

To discount other forms of government isn't a great idea. Some of them had democracy, and chose another path.

[QueerJustice]

5. Democracy,equality....

is the only form of government that should ever be tolerated...its only fair.....

[Darranar]

8. Some had democracy, and elected leaders that chose another path...

I am not aware of any referendum anywhere that asked the question "do you want democracy?" and the answer the majority gave was "no".

There are people who, wisely, do not want US-sponsored "democracy", looking at the examples of that in El Salvador and Guatemala, but that is a seperate matter.

[Tuco Ramirez]

9. Weimar

and many countries that voted with bullets instead of ballots.

[newyorican]

4. At least one of them had democracy...

and the CIA killed their President and installed a Shah. Now some mind-numbingly, unenlightened individuals want to declare the same nation, "THE most despicable gov't on the face of the earth....".

Go figure, or better yet, go read a book.

[pelsar]

6. your defending iran?

this one i gotta hear...

please explain as I have never met anyone who can defend irans theorcracy. Even those student iranians who were in the embassy arent too happy with the results. Though one did claim that the shah, his downfall, the embassy take over, were all CIA plots (atlantic monthy- 2004, i forget which month)

so how does iran rate in terms of governing bodies, if its not one of the most despicable govt....perhaps you can rate it for us?

please include such values as civil rights, homosexual rights, court systems, etc

[Lithos]

7. He is defending 1950's Iran

Which could have been a rather shining light in ME politics had the CIA not interfered by launching a coup, installing a repressive dictator which in turn set off a chain of events which did lead to today's repressive government.

L-

[Tuco Ramirez]

10. The Almighty righted that wrong

by sending one of His greatest contemporary prophets, the Ayatollah Khomeini, to return the Persians to their traditional roots, and remove the scourge of Western civilization.

[The Magistrate]

11. Like The Fellow, Do You, Sir?

[Forkboy]

12. I loved his beard

You could hide a badger in that thing!

And we all know how handy that is :)

[Elise]

13. Cool

So, is that type of post the way you got William Pitt to run a thread in your honor here?

:silly:

[Forkboy]

14. Yep...maybe someday you'll get one too

[Elise]

16. uh

no, thanks

I don't care about such things.

[Forkboy]

19. nor do I

I didn't start it :shrug:

[drdon326]

15. How did I miss this??

The Almighty righted that wrong by sending one of His greatest contemporary prophets, the Ayatollah Khomeini, to return the Persians to their traditional roots, and remove the scourge of Western civilization.

Are you serious?? Lovely, we are now a Electronic Intafada forum.

This should make you a star.

[Elise]

17. No fair

You made me LMAO with a mouthful of tea.

Get over here and clean my computer screen, please .............. it's only fair.

[Englander]

18. "Here Lies A Disruptor; He Disrupted Poorly"...

He's been Tombstoned.

On the subject of Electronic Intafada,the same people who produce EI also produce a
web-site called Electronic Iraq; have a look and see if you think that is propaganda.
Or do eIraq apply different criteria & use a different MO
on the whole subject of Iraq,as opposed to ei on Palestine/Israel?
Or are they documenting the US occupation in exactly the same way that
EI documents the Israeli occupation?
What say you?

http://electroniciraq.net/

[Englander]

20. **crickets**