Change in North Africa and the Middle East

Change as everyone knows is the only permanent thing in life. Change in the social, economic and political conditions of societies.  Humans are in constant struggle to make changes to their lives. Even in the advance economies and democracies, its people periodically carry out changes in government.

 Essentially, Humans are constantly in search of good life. The whole idea is now known as democracy. Democracy promotes the ideas of equality, freedom and rule of law.  

Since the middle of the last century, there were coups and counter-coups often resulting in loss of lives in the name of change. These were popular revolutions. In some cases, such changes became meaningful to their societies, but in many cases it did not. However, the struggle for change continues.    

There were coups across Africa from Egypt to Ghana, from Algeria to Nigeria, from Benin Republic to Sudan from Niger to Libya etc. Elsewhere in the world, there were coups from Cuba to Indonesia, from Pakistan to Chile etc.

Some of the changes were engineered within, while some were engineered outside by the super powers. The world was divided into two ideological blocs. This conflict was known as the cold war. It was between the West led by the USA and the East led by Russia. This led to the super powers backing some leaders who were friendly to them to stay in power indefinitely. Some who could not play along were toppled. This was the fate of the third world in the hands of the superpowers.

Today the world is witnessing a new dawn. It came unexpectedly. Many felt it was long overdue but did not expect it will come the way it did.

It started in Tunisia on 17 December 2010 where a twenty-six year old Mohammed Bouazizi was selling fruits from a cart as he did every day to support his family. He didn't have a license just like many other vendors did.

A municipal official, a woman, came by and confiscated his cart and produce. When he demanded his cart be returned to him the female official rather slapped him. He then went to the provincial authorities who would not even listen to him.

Bouazizi got mad and  decided to set himself ablaze. His action spark anger in the people who believed that such a thing happened because there has been no change in their society for a long time. President Zine El Abidine Ben Ali had ruled Tunisia for 23 years. Things became stagnant. The government had run out of ideals. The anger led to demonstrations across Tunisia calling on the president to resign. Eventually the demonstrators won and the president fled into exile.  

Protesters wave the flag of Tunisia

The change in Tunisia inspired the people of Egypt who took to freedom square and demanded for the resignation of President Hosni Mubarak who was in power for 32 years. After the initial attempt by Mubarak to stay was not supported by the military, he had to go.

One significant difference between this process that brought change in both Tunisia and Egypt is the fact that it was a popular uprising. However where it did not differ from the military coups is the loss of lives. It is regrettable that people have to lose their lives before someone vacates a public office that he is supposed to be holding in trust for the public who now decides to withdraw the trust.

The people of Yemen, Libya, and Syria are currently demanding the resignation of their leaders who have spent more than 3 decades in power.  On daily bases, demonstrators are killed but that won’t deter others to speak out and ask for change. The wind of change particularly across the Arab would is too heavy for anyone to stand.

More Arab countries are expected to take their turn in the days to come.

 The whole world has come to embrace the idea of democracy. Contending with a situation you cannot change is like leaving in prison where life is short and nasty. The people of the Arab world are done with the days of the monarchs. They now want their right to be able to change their governments periodically. The institution of the monarch is no longer appreciated. They feel that the era of the monarchs is over.  They need constitutional reforms that will enshrine democracy in their body polity so that those in power could be questioned and voted out if they do not perform to the peoples’ expectations.