Despite the great diversity of cultures, languages and religions, democracy has never succeeded in the middle east. The question is why? The answer to this question is important because it tells us what to expect in the future.
Iran’s political system
Throughout the history of Iranian political system, many wounds have been inflicted on it. One of the most notable is the recurrent popular protests. While these protests may seem small, they tell us something important about Iran’s political system.
The specter of mass unrest hangs over each election. Iran’s regime isn’t too shabby at repression. Angry citizens are suppressed for a time. This could lead to violent demonstrations.
The Islamic Republic’s elite isn’t able to remake lives outside of Iran. It’s no secret that the regime is seen as a threat by neighboring countries. They could take advantage of the Islamic Republic’s weakness. The regime hasn’t made any headway in economic interests.
The regime’s response to the changing landscape is repression. The most recent wave of protests is mainly driven by women who want to have more rights in their own society. Many Iranian women openly defy the regime’s dress code, and the regime has a history of punishing women for their political activism.
The Iranian regime has shown itself willing to kill its opponents, and its leaders have a history of reciting a plethora of grievances. Sadly, most politicians are bought into the system.
The Islamic Republic has a modest touch of democracy, though it’s not exactly a free-market country. Its oil revenue is a little underwhelming, but the regime is determined to maintain its grip on power.
The regime has survived several major crises, but its ability to sustain the status quo has been challenged by the rise of a populace with a lot of discontent. This may be the first harbinger of the end of the Islamic Republic. Its leaders have been busy making sure the system will survive the passing of Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.
The Islamic Republic may have the fanciest government in the world, but its system is fragile. Unlike other nations, Iran hasn’t developed a export market. It has also suffered one of the world’s highest rates of brain drain.
The Iranian regime has been shaken by a tsunami of protests over the past half-decade. The regime’s response to changing times is harsh repression. This can lead to angry citizens being pushed toward subversive behavior.
Secularism in the Middle East
During the modern period, secularism has gained a bad name in the Muslim world. Secularism has been equated with autocracy and Western influence. It is also banned wbyith the Muslim Brotherhood, a conservative Islamic group.
While religion was a pillar of pre-modern political identity in the Middle East, it was not always the most important thing in the region. Many early modern Muslim rulers adhered to Islam, but were not necessarily religious.
Secularism in the Middle East has its roots in European colonial rule. This started the process of secularization in Muslim lands. The European colonial powers asked questions about the centrality of religion to their rule. The first secularist nationalists emerged in the late nineteenth and early twentieth century, and led anticolonial liberation movements in the region.
One of the earliest secularists was Mustafa Kemal Ataturk, founder of the Modern Turkish Republic. Ataturk wanted to distance Turkey’s secular state from its Islamic Ottoman past. He also insisted on using the Latin alphabet for writing in Turkish. He also rewrote the Bible in Turkish and moved the Adhan prayer to Turkish.
One of the most prominent of the secularists was Gamal Abdel Nasser, a great secular Arab nationalist. Nasser’s government focused on Arab values. He also survived an assassination attempt by the Muslim Brotherhood in 1954. His government also introduced a “free market” policy. His successors followed in his footsteps.
Secularists in the Middle East have also faced military coups. The Muslim Brotherhood has been a prominent force in the region. The Islamic Salvation Front won elections in Algeria in 1991. The Muslim Brotherhood’s influence has spread to Iraq and Saudi Arabia in the 1960s.
While it is true that religious institutions are less important to the Middle East than in the West, they have remained active in the region’s civil society. Secularists are wary that religious parties will win the next free election and dominate the political landscape. They argue that popular governance spells theocracy.
The Muslim Brotherhood has spread to other Arab countries such as Kuwait and Saudi Arabia. Secularists in the Middle East have faced similar challenges to those in Western Europe.
Economic situation
During the last decade, the economic situation of Middle East and North Africa has deteriorated. Oil prices and intra-regional conflicts have aggravated the economic situation, while the global financial crisis has slowed down growth. The region needs a productivity boost to restore growth, and the region needs to be more inclusive.
The Middle East and North Africa is a diverse region with diverse economies. The region has high unemployment rates, chronic structural problems, and high levels of inequality. Economic modernization is key to building a stronger foundation for prosperity. The region has the untapped potential to offer broader economic opportunities. The region needs to promote fair competition, and invest in digital technology.
The region has been the recipient of foreign intervention and support from the World Bank, IMF, and Arab Gulf States. These policies have led to marked deterioration in living standards. Increasing levels of inequality have undermined social support mechanisms. The region needs to take bold economic reforms to restore growth.
The political and economic situation of the Middle East and North Africa is dominated by ideological polarization. Many countries are dominated by Islamist forces, while others are dominated by secular forces. These factors are essential to understanding multiple forms of crisis in the region.
The economic situation of the Middle East and North Africa has been deteriorating due to a range of factors, including lower oil prices and the COVID-19 pandemic. The deterioration in the economy has led to a new round of domestic political instability. The region needs to be more inclusive and promote fair competition. The region needs to boost productivity to address its debt.
The deterioration in the economic situation of the Middle East and North Africa is rooted in the neoliberal policies that the Arab world adopted during the 1990s. These policies led to a rise in inequality and low labour force participation rates.
The decline in petroleum revenues led to the collapse of the old economic and political order. It also spurred negotiation of a new social contract. Despite this, the region needs to pursue economic modernization to address the problem of youth unemployment.
Need for more Arab students
Democratization in the Middle East is a crucial topic for policymakers. The Arab Spring upended longstanding authoritarian regimes and created new uncertainties in a troubled region. However, the process of democratization is notoriously difficult. This monograph analyzes the recent uprisings in the Arab world and explores conditions that influence the future of democratization in the region. It aims to help policymakers better understand the challenges that lie ahead.
Historically, the United States supported autocratic regimes in the Middle East. They created an appearance of reform, but hardly made any lasting changes to the underlying power structure. While many transitions have been tumultuous, there have been several successful cases of countries that have risen from authoritarianism.
Many governments in the Middle East have been corrupt and ineffective. Increasingly, nascent democratic movements in the region are stymied by the United States. It is time for the United States to change its Middle East policy. It must align itself with the Arab people and help new democratic movements emerge.
The United States and its allies have supported repressive regimes for decades. They have used unprecedented force against their own citizens. They have failed to meet the challenges of globalization. Their failure has contributed to a disenfranchised and disempowered population.
As Arab countries have become less free, few have thought creatively about how to bring democracy to the region. The problem is not that the Arabs don’t want democracy. The problem is that they don’t have a viable state to start with.
It is important to create a stable administrative system that can provide a free, prosperous society. In order to achieve this, the international community should provide assistance. However, more high-level involvement is needed to ensure the financial incentives are implemented and that commitments are kept.
A comprehensive democratization program requires substantial international support. The United States can provide technical assistance and election monitoring. It can also provide financial incentives to support democracy in the Middle East. But it should be a long-term commitment.
The most promising case in the region is Egypt. The military has positioned itself as a savior of liberals, while playing Salafis and the Brotherhood against each other.
