Conference Report. a Critical Look at the 2011 North African Revolutions

Conference Report A critical look at the 2011 North African revolutions and their implications Edited by Issaka K. Souaré and Berouk Mesfi n ISS Conference Report Hilton Hotel, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, May 31 2011 As a leading African human security research institution, the Institute for Security Studies (ISS) works towards a stable and peaceful Africa characterised by sustainable development, human rights, the rule of law, democracy, collaborative security and gender mainstreaming. The ISS realises this vision by: I Undertaking applied research, training and capacity building I Working collaboratively with others I Facilitating and supporting policy formulation I Monitoring trends and policy implementation I Collecting, interpreting and disseminating information I Networking on national, regional and international levels © 2011, Institute for Security Studies Copyright in the volume as a whole is vested in the Institute for Security Studies, and no part may be reproduced in whole or in part without the express permission, in writing, of both the authors and the publishers. The opinions expressed do not necessarily refl ect those of the Institute, its trustees, members of the Council or donors. Authors contribute to ISS publications in their personal capacity. ISBN 978-1-920422-63-9 First published by the Institute for Security Studies, P O Box 1787, Brooklyn Square 0075 Pretoria, South Africa www.issafrica.org Cover photograph PictureNet Cover design COMPRESS.dsl +27 21 886 9387 Content design, layout Marketing Support Services +27 12 346-2168 Conference Report A critical look at the 2011 North African revolutions and their implications Edited by Issaka K. Souaré and Berouk Mesfin ISS Conference Report Hilton Hotel, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, May 31 2011 Contents Preface . .iii Ambassador Olusegun Akinsanya Introduction and general overview . iv Issaka K. Souaré and Berouk Mesfin SECTION ONE: ROOT CAUSES AND DYNAMICS OF THE CRISES . .2 Mehari Taddele Maru Chapter One ‘You can revolt but you can’t rule’ . .3 Views about democracy and political participation from predominantly young Tunisian activists after the revolution Raoudha Ben Othman Introduction . .3 Behind the façade . .3 Major problems . .4 The study . .4 Dichotomies . .5 Conclusion . .6 Further reading . .6 Chapter Two A general overview of the popular revolutions in North Africa . .7 Their roots and dynamics with special reference to Egypt Mohamed Helmi Sharawy Introduction . .7 Post-Arab exceptionalism and Afro-pessimism . .7 The challenge and response, or the dialectics of social conflict . .8 The dynamics of North African popular protests . .9 The revolutions and their surrounding spheres of influence . .10 Conclusion . 11 Chapter Three The Libyan revolution . .12 Causes, dynamics and future scenarios Mohamed Ashour Introduction . .12 Economic and social factors . .12 Tribal factors . .13 Historical and political causes . 14 Explaining the stalemate in Libya . .16 Conclusion and future scenarios . 17 Conference Report i A critical look at the 2011 North African revolutions and their implications SECTION TWO: CHALLENGES FACING GOVERNMENTS AND TRANSITIONAL AUTHORITIES . .19 Francis N. Ikome Chapter Four The political reforms recently announced in Algeria . .21 An overview Mohamed Hennad Introduction . .21 The phenomenon of Algerian protests and the reaction of the authorities . .21 The proposed reforms . .22 The particularity of the Algerian case within the transition context . .22 Conclusion . .23 Chapter Five The protest against the Arab political regimes and the exception of Morocco . .24 El Houari Setta Introduction . .24 The importance of individual contexts . ..

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