Arab Awakening


In the months following the start of the Arab Revolutions, articles and analysis poured into openDemocracy from contributors across the Middle East and Europe: see the five key themes in our right hand column. Gradually, the impact of Tahrir Square began to extend well beyond the Middle East as democratic inspiration travelled from east to west. On this page, we wish to capture that inspiration and use it to help us read a rapidly changing world.

Looking to the future of the Arab Spring, we have chosen three new avenues for exploration: on the Tahrir Square 'meme'; on Social innovation in the region; and You tell us.

Tuesday 21st February

Palestinians learning lessons

Tareq Baconi, 21 February 2012
What has been happening to Hamas over the past few months, and what to Mahmoud Abbas? And what is the impact of all this on the reconciliation effort?

The US administration and the Egyptian revolution

Basil Magdy, 21 February 2012
Interestingly, the American Congress has repeatedly demanded the cessation of military funds to Egypt, especially after the Egyptian authorities raided and shut down their offices housing American civil society organisations.
Monday 20th February

The socio-economic foundations of Bahrain’s political crisis

Hasan Tariq Alhasan, 20 February 2012
A study of income inequality in Bahrain highlights the failure of the Government to extend its aid to those who need it most.

Syria: echoes of a paralyzed international community

Muath Al Wari, 20 February 2012
The double-veto by Russia and China has emboldened the Assad regime, which continues its campaign of wanton massacre against the besieged people of Homs. The immediate priority must be to end the bloodshed and hold Assad and his government accountable, but reform is needed for a paralyzed international community.
Sunday 19th February

Syria: my enemy’s enemy is not my friend

Rupert Read, 19 February 2012
The failure of some elements of ‘the Left’ to see a real revolution even when it stares them in the face.

Fighting to remain relevant? The PKK in 2012

Franco Galdini, 19 February 2012
The AKP has gained the support of 50 percent of the Kurdish population via cooption rather than coercion. That means that its recent crackdown on Kurdish civil society in general - and the PKK in particular - risks making the latter more popular than it actually is in the eyes of the Kurdish general public.
Friday 17th February

Gene out of the bottle: an interview with Dr Gene Sharp, author of 'From Dictatorship to Democracy'

Even Nord Rydningen, 17 February 2012
Last week openSecurity caught up with one of the chief proponents of political defiance, whose writings have been translated by activists the world over, to ask if non-violent tactics really yield concrete political victories in the face of violence.

Democracy and its definitions: a talk by Donatella Della Porta

Veronica Barassi, 17 February 2012
Presenting the data gathered through an extensive, cross-national research project carried out in different European countries, Della Porta argued that the idea of democracy proposed by contemporary social movements is radically different from the logic of representation and delegation proposed by liberal governments.
Thursday 16th February

America, Israel, Iran: mediation vs war

Paul Rogers, 16 February 2012
A military build-up, harsh rhetoric, third-country attacks - and the political calendar - make war against Iran a real possibility. It is the more vital that those attempting to avert it should succeed.

Lessons from the Maldives for the Middle East

Andrew Wigley, 16 February 2012
The coup d’état in the Maldives doesn’t augur well for democracy in the Middle East and North Africa. Andrew Wigley argues that the process of detoxifying a nation after dictatorship may take decades

Palestine's deal, and an emerging paradigm

Yossi Alpher, 16 February 2012
The leading Palestinian factions, Fatah and Hamas, signed a declaration in Doha on 5 February 2012 that committed them to work together. It promises to be a significant moment for Israel and the west too, says Yossi Alpher.
Wednesday 15th February

What we are reading - February 13, 2012

Arab Awakening, 15 February 2012
Our readers help us highlight what they are reading about the Arab Spring from around the web...

Women, democracy and dictatorship

Sami Zubaida, 15 February 2012
In the early and middle decades of the twentieth century it was always Middle Eastern dictators who embarked on policy and legislation which liberated and empowered women in both family and society. The dictators liberated women in the good days, but retreated under pressure, and it was the populists ushered in by ‘democracy’ who oppressed women.
Tuesday 14th February

Political Islam in Egypt: a bright future

Hasnet Lais, 14 February 2012
Contrary to the fears of some western observers, Islam has had a strong tradition of rule of law and religious and political freedom. There is no reason for concern about the electoral success of the Muslim Brotherhood in Egypt
Sunday 12th February

What to do about Syria's new war?

Mary Kaldor, 12 February 2012
The key to any intervention is to combine upholding human rights inside Syria with de-escalation of the broader regional conflict. Far from being contradictory, these two goals – human rights and peace – reinforce each other.
Thursday 9th February

Proxy wars: could the US end up supporting al-Qaeda-like groups in Syria?

Ahmed E. Souaiaia, 9 February 2012
Syrian state-controlled media blames most of the deaths on armed groups (which it calls terrorists). These allegations have awakened Russia’s dormant–but not forgotten–memory of the Saudi-American alliance that created the Mujahidin networks in Afghanistan, which in turn defeated the Soviet Union.

The Arab revolts in year two

Volker Perthes, 9 February 2012
The uprisings across the Arab world are becoming more complex and variable as they enter their second year. This makes it all the more important to identify their main dynamics, says Volker Perthes.

How the Arab League turned against Syria

Sean Mann, 9 February 2012
Why did the Arab League, once perceived as an ineffective dictators’ club, end up taking the side of anti-government protesters against the Syrian regime? Does its humanitarian rhetoric simply conceal its most powerful member states’ true motives: concern over the geopolitical distribution of power?
Tuesday 7th February

Israel-Palestine negotiations in an election year

Michele Monni, 7 February 2012
All the parties have an apparent interest in pursuing the talks further, although largely to gain political consensus at home.
Monday 6th February

Yemen after Saleh: between uncertainties and divisions

Maria Serra, 6 February 2012
After nearly nine months of protests, more than 900 deaths and approximately 25,000 wounded, the President of Yemen Ali Abdullah Saleh has transferred power to his deputy, Abdrabuh Mansur Hadi.
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