The Ripple Effect

From Algeria to Iran and the countries in between, a look at how revolution fever is spreading across the Middle East.

FEBRUARY 15, 2011

When Mohamed Bouazizi set himself on fire in Tunisia on Dec. 17 after a municipal worker confiscated his wares, it appeared to be simply another sad story in a region plagued by corruption, brutal state security services, and lack of accountability. But against all odds, his act of desperation has spurred a wave of reform that has engulfed the entire region, toppling the autocratic regimes in Tunisia and Egypt and threatening to engulf other countries across the Middle East.

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But the uprising has not followed the same course in every country. In Jordan, protests have forced the government to abandon liberal reforms in favor of an unsustainable economic status quo. In Algeria, they have highlighted the public's disaffection with the political process. In other countries, the reverberations from the popular upheaval are still unclear. In the West Bank, for example, opinions remain divided about whether the events represent an opportunity for the Palestinian Authority, or its death knell.

Read on for dispatches and observations from the countries most affected by the Middle East's revolutionary moment.

MOHAMMAD HUWAIS/AFP/Getty Images

 

MUNZZ

10:07 AM ET

February 16, 2011

The Iran picture here is from

The Iran picture here is from the Ahmadinjead supporters and not the Green Movement.. please change that.

 

SQUEEK

12:34 AM ET

February 17, 2011

It wasn't a Valentines Day Protest

My understanding is that it was a national holiday to celebrate the birth of Mohamed. Please don't dumb this stuff down. Give the exact context and facts.

 

ABURAIHI

1:11 AM ET

February 17, 2011

U.S. turns it Bloody.

Obama administrations shocked to see some of their allies falling one after another. They don't won't the revolution to spread all the Arab States. They decide to show a fail revolution. Obama administrations would like to start a Civil War in Yemen to prove that revolution sometimes is a dangerous thing.But, the Yemeni youth will prove the opposite.

 

PKOULIEV

12:03 PM ET

February 17, 2011

Domino’s Effect

Many governments in the Middle East and Central Asia have created authoritarian regimes under ‘national unity’ slogans by strengthening security forces and providing lucrative state businesses to clan members. These government jobs or privileges have led societies divided to corrupted ‘royalists’ making big profits and impoverished people.

While these governments received foreign aids from western governments, ‘misleading’ reforms have not actually benefited population. Some young people graduating from universities have to bribe government officials to get a job, and then these youth have to collect bribes for providing services to get return on their ‘investment’. Many unemployed college graduates get recruited by extremist groups for their brains and deliver their messages to ‘governments’.

Democracy promotion in corrupted regimes became like “double-edged sword”. On the one hand, democracy has become more affiliated to social liberalism, and dictators use this to appoint their own people to unions, foundations, cultural promotion and other ‘human social issues’ organizations to raise funds from private companies and individuals for building their own legacy and heritage. On the other hand, liberal conservatism was demoted for carrying values associated with traditionalism, religiousness, individualism and not appropriate where global issues exist.

Parliament as a representative government branch has lost its power among people living in authoritarian regimes due to falsified elections, and nations getting used to having one leader whose power is limitless. Parliamentary elections became like ‘fund raising events’ as extension of bribery activities, and election observers try monitor and find some improvements from previous ones. Only a parliament elected by people can pass laws to have ‘check and balances’ in a society.

As a result, many government supporting state and ‘private’ industries lack efficiency for not having free market environment and providing fraudulently set-up ‘social benefits’ as part of money laundering scheme. When the World Bank and IMF ask these governments for complicated monetary policy and economic reforms to provide more aid, they do not ask for accountability and transparency for governments’ backstage dealings.

These kinds of governments’ budgets get empty faster due to support value of their currency and government jobs for inefficient bureaucracy.
Illegal immigration to the western countries from the Middle East is due to harsh economic life of many people in that region. While the United States and other developed countries complain about burden of immigrants on their national budgets, their ‘allies’ brutal policies and abuse against their citizens create artificial migration for better life.

In addition to economic hardships, police brutality against common people lead to uprisings in despotic regimes. When police humiliates country’s working class people, they would stand behind youth revolts to get back their dignity and self-respect.

Economic frustrations, like higher price for fuel affecting cost of many other basic needs, worsens situation when cutting subsidies to strategic economic resources, raising rates to prevent inflation escalates people’s hate against corrupt regimes leading to physical struggle and survival.
Expanding gap between ‘loyalists’ who enrich themselves by paying big bribes to hierarchy and common people surviving on day-to-day basis may lead to similar revolutions like French revolution in 18th century and Bolshevik revolution in 1917, when many innocent people got tortured and executed as well.

When the King of Jordan can dismiss the Prime Minister, it means there is not a constitutional monarchy in this country. Only parliament members in open societies can change Prime Minister. If we compare Jordan’s Prime Minister’s fate to Stolypin’s fate under Russian tsar Nicholas II, his fate is well known too. Instead of empowering the parliament to represent people in carrying required reforms, sacking Mr. Rifai sets a bad example when importance of civil interactivity is replaced by emotions dictating the result for short-term solutions.

Palestinian government’s use of force to disperse supporters of people of Egypt against Mubarak regime has shown hypocrisy and ambiguity nature for government’s legitimacy. If Palestinian government suppresses its people’s will to be on good side of some dictators, this kind of ‘government’ does not deserve people’s patience.

As domino’s effect lasts in the world, above listed factors would not disappear by a magic wand. All human abusing ‘governments’ and their tyrants will be haunted, as ghosts of human tragedies will take back their ‘dreams’ stolen from them and tyrants’ nightmare will be their extermination .