Started in tunisia, a movement unfolded that fundamentally changed the arab world. The common slogan of the protesters throughout arab spring was the people want to bring down the regime aissa, 2012. At the eve of the arab spring, one out of four egyptians and tunisians young was out of employment. Jan, 2012 the drivers of the arab spring events have first and foremost been the mobilized masses enabled by technology and youth, the role played by the military and regime security forces, and the intervention by outside forces. For decades, women in egypt as elsewhere in the region have been intimately involved with the reform movement from organizing labor union strikes and asserting their right to free speech. Arab spring in morocco ugent open access journals universiteit. Its causes and consequences 3 arab countries barany, 2011. New morocco constitution, election meant to avoid arab. Taking moroccos new decentralisation reform as a case in point, this article. Morocco has often been referred to as the exception to the arab spring and an arab spring success, and there are many reasons for this. As elsewhere in north africa and the middle east, the youthdriven revolts in tunisia and egypt produced a tsunami in moroccos political.
Fearful of the consequences of the arab spring in tunisia and egypt and seeking to calm the street, morocco s ruling elite weathered the storm by listening to protesters concerns and promising. The reform of judiciaries in the wake of the arab spring. On that day in 2011, tens of thousands of demonstrators took to the streets of rabat. The economics of the arab spring and its aftermath 5. The us found itself a bystander in the region during the arab spring, failing to. Security forces stand guard as hundreds of rif movement supporters attend an antigovernment protest demanding release of nasser alzefzafi, who was arrested for organizing demonstration, morocco. The movement was the countrys largest since 2011, when moroccos version of the arab spring ushered in modest constitutional reforms.
Moroccos stability in the wake of the arab spring combating. The arab spring is widely believed to have been instigated by dissatisfaction, particularly of youth and unions, with the rule of local governments, though some have speculated that wide gaps in income levels and pressures caused by the great recession may have had a hand as well. Jan 29, 2018 six years later, little remains of the hopes that the west saw in the arab spring. Eight years after the arab spring erupted, the quiescence that had accompanied the disillusionment. Within a few months, a wave of protest had swept away the despots of tunisia, egypt and libya. The term arab spring is an allusion to the revolutions of 1848, which are sometimes referred to as the springtime of nations, and the prague spring in 1968.
In 2011 a wave of prodemocracy protests known as the arab spring spread across the arab world. Egyptian revolution, also known as arab spring or arab uprising, was a shock for international community because egypt has been seen as one of the strongest military state in north africa region. There is, however, a shining star in the arab spring. In the aftermath of the arab spring, many hoped that the authoritarian regimes in the north african states of tunisia, egypt, libya, algeria. Six years after the arab spring, morocco is experiencing. For years, the arab spring states have thwarted the development of alternative leadership outside the governing regimes. In fact, women have never been complete strangers to political activism in morocco, their involvement in the. Arab spring simple english wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. Triggers, dynamics and prospects stephan rosiny on 17 december 2010, the selfimmolation of tunisian vegetable vendor mohammed bouazizi sparked the arab spring.
Morocco has long enjoyed a reputation as one of the most stable regimes in the region, but ongoing protests in the northern province of rif have raised questions about the socalled moroccan. The us found itself a bystander in the region during the arab spring, failing to anticipate it, but given its. The 2011 constitutional referendum was a success on the part of king mohammed vi in so far as the reforms calmed moroccans and satisfied their demand for an enumeration of human rights. Violent protests and civil conflict in egypt and syria appear in headlines daily. The arab spring is not returning to algeria and morocco. If george orwell had lived to see the arab spring, he would undoubtedly have felt that his novel animal farm had done its purpose to draw the oppressed, working peoples attention to the.
The arab spring and morocco 1105 words essay example. A year of revolution a year ago, a tunisian fruitseller set himself on fire after being humiliated by a police officer. Jordan, kuwait, lebanon, mauritania, morocco, oman, saudi arabia, sudan. Repression and activism among the arab springs first movers. The event set off uprisings across north africa and the. Morocco s exceptional arab spring was characterized by a collected response by its leader and a desire for further progress by its populace. Instead, that spring has given way to a winter of economic stagnation and political violence that has plunged syria, libya and yemen into bloody civil war, has led to widespread unrest in egypt, iraq and bahrain, and threatens to destabilize arab governments from morocco to saudi arabia. Islamist electoral legitimacy four years after the arab.
In 1962 morocco drafted its first postcolonial constitution. Analysis of the arab spring 3 blunders in state response, in particular using a heavyhanded approach and trying to crush opposition, had the reverse effect of galvanising more people to join the protests icg, 2011b and 2011d. One reason is that moroccan citizens had more advanced freedom of speech rights as opposed to other countries partaking in the arab spring movement. Morocco, arab spring, new social movement, social media, meaningmaking. Womens rights and the arab spring middle eastnorth. Yet morocco appears to have escaped the arab spring relatively unscathed. Causes of the arab spring causes of the arab spring may be described as following. In the aftermath of the iraq war, it was used by various commentators and bloggers who anticipated a major arab movement towards democratization. At that time, the february 20 movement was born in morocco, led by moroccan leftist parties and supported by al adl wal ihsane, a political islamic association that is not legally recognized by the moroccan state. The protests in morocco were inspired by the arab spring protests and revolutions in other north african countries.
A bumpy road ahead pdf by hassan hakimian, director of the london middle east institute and reader, economics department, soas underscores the underlying importance of the economic conditions facing the new republics, such as egypt and tunisia, which are emerging as a result of the arab spring. Moroccan women, arab spring, 20 february movement 20. They were asking for freedom and democracy, which was long believed to be impossible in the arab world. However, this work can also show why the arab spring did not undermine the monarchy in morocco. Adopted by referendum on 1 july 2011, the latest moroccan constitution was prepared through a yearlong participatory process led by a consultative commission. Indeed morocco, often neglected in the troubled aftermath of the arab spring, is actually among its most interesting countries precisely because it is now so quiet, after a few months of massive demonstrations more than two years ago. Why are some people willing to initiate protest against authoritarian regimes.
In terms of his initial response to the arab spring, known in its moroccan incarnation as the 20 february movement, mohammed vi set himself apart from other arab rulers with a measured approach to. Morocco, arab spring, new social movement, social media, meaning making. The economic consequences of the arab spring by mohsin khan atlantic council rafik hariri center for the middle east the popular uprisings that swept the middle east in early 2011 dramatically altered the political landscape of the region with the overthrow of autocratic regimes in egypt, libya, tunisia, and yemen. Their presence has not been substantially felt or taken into consideration in moroccan politics until the last two decades. Fmvt, democracy anyone familiar with moroccan womens achievements in the last two decades will not be surprised by their active role in the moroccan spring. Arab spring, wave of prodemocracy protests and uprisings that took place in the middle east and north africa beginning in 2010, challenging some of the regions entrenched authoritarian regimes. Casablanca, morocco it has been eight years since the outbreak of the socalled arab spring. They were centred around demands for political reform, which included reform against police brutality, electoral fraud, political censorship and high unemployment. Chapter pdf available february 2019 with 256 reads. As other arab nations erupted in unrest and violence, what unfolded on the streets of morocco was a peaceful but similar refrain, followed by a new constitution and an election. The response of the russian government to these events has, like. Pdf the internet and democracy in arab spring morocco.
In the aftermath of the arab spring, many hoped that the authoritarian regimes in the north african states of tunisia, egypt, libya, algeria and morocco would be swept from power and new democratic governments would replace them. Demonstrators expressing political and economic grievances faced violent crackdowns by their countries security forces. The arab spring s revolutionary spirit was translated into reforms as understood and guided by the monarchical state. Between the islamic state and the nationstate the brookings project on u. Pdf encouraged by the uprisings in tunisia and egypt, and the arab spring, young moroccans began to organise huge demonstrations. Arab spring in morocco, and the way activists in the 20 february movement, named after the. Information about the openaccess article arab spring in morocco. Along with the decrease in production, the demographic boom was also responsible for increasing unemployment. The desire to improve publicsector performance, and the aspiration to strengthen democratic governance, have been major drivers of decentralisa. Arab spring libya 360 libya after moammar gaddafi the washington post. Eight years on, how is morocco recovering from arab spring. Tunisia and morocco are different in that they are more diversified and depend on agriculture, tourism, manufacturing, and mining. Arab spring not over in morocco security forces stand guard as hundreds of rif movement supporters attend an antigovernment protest demanding release of nasser alzefzafi, who was arrested for organizing demonstration, morocco. With the political turmoil affecting the region since 2010, and the rising of the popular demand for political reform, new opportunities and prospects are emerging.
Drawing on data from the arab spring protests in morocco, this article argues first that activism is passed down from one generation to the next. The arab spring has broken out in morocco pushing king mohammed vi to put forth in lightning speed a new constitution requiring an elected rather than an appointed prime minister, the first such step in any of the eight monarchies or even most of the democratic republics of the arab world. People from all kinds of backgrounds united in common goals. Yemen became one of the first countries to experience the protests. Yet the transition from the old authoritarian rule to a new democratic order has not been smooth.
Jul 31, 2019 in the wake of the arab spring, morocco witnessed street protests demanding, among other things, for the king to reign but not to rule. Reverberations from the arab spring of 2011 continue to rock the middle east. However, the rulers in both countries remained in control and the transition was slow and managed. The initial events of the arab spring occurred in tunisia, where on december 14, 2010, a street vendor named mohammad bouazizi carried out an act of selfimmolation, after a tunisian police officer was alleged to have taken his fruit stand from him, restricting him from selling fruit at his location. The arab spring and moroccos reforms osgood center. The arab spring was a series of prodemocracy uprisings that enveloped several largely muslim countries, including tunisia, morocco, syria, libya, egypt and. The kingdom of morocco, always a leader in arab political processes, has again strode confidently forward. The armed forces played a decisive role in many of the arab uprisings, particularly the early ones.
Moroccos version of the arab spring morocco avoided much of the arab spring violence because the islamist justice and development party pjd had been a recognized opposition party in the years before its rise to power in the november 2011 elections. From october 2016 to summer 2017, the rif especially the mediterranean coastal city of alhoceima saw unprecedented protests centered around regional identity and economic justice. Arab spring has been regarded as an arab phenomenon from the outset, explanations that are given of the arab spring have been ad hoc and are not representative of the entire arab world. In this case, one should focus on the attempts of the government to reach some compromise with protesters and the absence of a single alternative to the authoritarian regime.
But, however new, their strong presence has been very noticeable in. Six years later, little remains of the hopes that the west saw in the arab spring. The uprising in algiers matters to its nation neighbors, but it does not mean the country is on a path toward a regional revolution. Yet morocco appears to have escaped the arab spring. Though many commentators have warned that the arab spring is turning into an. Pdf reflections from morocco on the arab spring jonathan. Arab spring used their powers vehemently to crush the demonstrators and consequently the peaceful protesters also became violent. How does repression affect their willingness to act. Women are newcomers to the political scene in morocco. The arab uprisings articulated deep grievances about economically and.
Article pdf available in the journal of north african studies march 2018 with 1,207. The gaddafi archives libya before the arab spring view gallery an exhibition of photographs, documents and artefacts from the human rights watch archive paints a portrait of libya in the four decades prior to the arab spring. Article pdf available in the journal of north african studies. Apr 03, 2012 the russian government, like its counterparts in the west, the middle east, and elsewhere, was caught off guard by the outburst of arab uprisings beginning in january 2011 that swept away longruling authoritarian regimes in tunisia, egypt, libya, and it appears yemen, and have threatened to topple those in bahrain and syria. Thi s researc h articl e attempts to scrutinize the nature and cause s of the ara b uprising s which too k people by surpris e globall y throughou t 2011 and int o 2012. Issue brief aftermath of the arab spring in north africa exports, and 98 percent of government revenues.
Ascendancy frustrated gulf research center regional politics is now more complicated, with crosscutting alliances and linkages and multiple issues, sectarian, territorial, and political. Causes, consequences, and implications if, one day, a people desire to live, then fate will answer their call. Algeria, tunisia and morocco from independence to the arab spring willis, michael on. The arab spring has so far resulted in the removal of the heads of the regimes in. Introduction during the winter of 2010 and the spring of 2011, the world watched as prodemocracy protesters across north africa and the middle east rose up against the dictatorial regimes that had ruled their home countries for years. Womens rights, and the arab spring fact sheet on egypt, tunisia, morocco and jordan egypt. Its uprising also became one of the most consequential. Mohamed rachad bouhlal enlightens his audience regarding the general commonalities and specific differences between morocco and other. Women played their part as leaders and participants, and were not spared the backlash suffering arrests, sexual harassment and even death. As for the monarchies that do not have oil, like morocco and jordan, to avoid popular ire, they initiated power devolution processes, through either.