The Arab World: Democratization And Islamization?

In: International journal on world peace, Band 29, Heft 1, S. 7-19

Abstract

The Arab world has found itself in the midst of uncertainty after the recent convulsion known as the "Arab Spring." The political structures of yesterday are collapsing. In countries like Tunisia, Egypt, Libya, and Yemen, popular waves of protest ended regimes that were determined to cling to power till eternity. In Syria and Bahrain the regimes have retained power, but with a brutality that is creating more rancor of the masses. At the same time unrepresentative regimes in Saudi Arabia, Kuwait and Algeria have readjusted their policies to pacify the people. The key question is: "What is going to replace the crumbling order in the Arab world?" Will it be a democratic rule that is the next order of the day, or will the region witness the revival of Islamic ideology? This question will be eventually answered, but at the moment both trends are emerging side by side, and there is a strong possibility for strife between these two sides, rather than coexistence. Adapted from the source document.