There are very few moments in our lives where we have the privilege to witness history taking place. This is one of those moments. This is one of those times…. the word Tahrir means liberation. It people is a word that speaks to that something in our souls that cries out for freedom. And forevermore it will remind us of the Egyptian— of what they did, of the things that they stood for, and how they changed their country, and in doing so changed the world (Barack Obama in his speech dated 11 February 2011)
Nothing succeeds like success. The Arab Spring has thus far managed to effect change of leadership in Tunisia, Egypt, Libya and Yemen. The struggle continues in Morocco, Algeria, Jordan, Bahrain and Syria.
The different reasons for the Arab spring are said to be
A) Economic like Inflation and shortages, unemployment
B) Governance characterized by political / religious oppression, absence of political dissent and genuine participatory democracy, kleptocracy (tyranny by practising transfer of money and power from the many to the few), autocracy and police state with restriction on communications and censorship.
The best part of the Arab spring was that is was a true people’s movement that was both spontaneous and by and large peaceful. The main weapon employed by the people was open defiance (civil disobedience) and protests against the government in the form of sit-ins (dharnas). Tahrir Square in Cairo, Egypt became an icon symbolising the new quest for change and the struggle for freedom and dignity.
The popular support that the movement gathered amazed one and all and also the speed with which some of the dictators vacated their seats of power is testimony to the intensity and strength of the revolution. When the armed forces switched sides the game was over for the dictatorial regimes.
Another specialty of the Arab spring was the special role played by women. Not only did they actively participate in it (bursting the myth of Muslim women being oppressed and subjugated by men in Arab societies) they sometimes led the revolution epitomised by Tawakol Karman, Nobel peace prize winner and the international public face of the 2011 uprising in Yemen.
A notable phenomenon of the Arab spring was the use of social media as a tool to galvanise and gather popular support. To counter the blacking out of news and extreme censorship by the government backed mainstream media, alternative channels of communication like Facebook and Twitter were used extensively giving social media an entirely unique and different spin. “Kullena Khaled Said” – We are all Khaled Said Facebook page created by Egyptian Google executive Wael Ghonim became the rallying point of the revolution and received unprecedented international media coverage.
The Arab spring did not come about without the sacrifice of human lives. In fact the greater the intransigence of the regimes, the greater was the resolve of people to give up everything to get rid of the oppression and injustice.
Western response to the Arab Spring was a classic example of being caught off-guard and caught in two minds about which policy to follow. Once the tide swayed in favor of the people and the protestors the West had no choice but to dump their long supported despots lest it be held guilty for not supporting democracy. Western media also never lost any opportunity to raise the bogey of the Islamic fundamentalists coming to power resulting in a threat to peace and stability.
The transition to a new phase and era of democracy and prosperity was never going to be easy. Many hurdles lie on the way. The challenges and the expectations of people are too big and only a dedicated selfless approach can pave the way to a bright future. Faith will play an important role in the scheme of things for a people who are deeply spiritual. History is waiting to be completed.