Now the Big Question is.....

Let us go over what a true democracy is. It is where the right of the individual is placed over the rights of the society. Where every citizen has their rights and freedoms secured, where the people are the ones who control the country. Where the Leader is elected, and changed every few years, and the people have the right to impeach if they do not approve of the president. It is where the people have a say and an influence on what will happen to THEIR country.

Now the big question is, is the Middle East really capable of adapting to a true democracy? Is democracy really compatible with the Islamic law and their cultures? I believe the government should match the mindset of the people, otherwise it will just crash and burn. Americans for example, can live under a true democracy because their culture and views and mindset allows them to do so. You cannot tell me that the people in the Middle Eastern people have the same mentality, culture, moral codes and customs as the Americans do. A girl walking around in a Miniskirt in the U.S. is quite normal and the people do not make much a fuss about it, however a girl walking around in a Miniskirt in the more reserved countries in the Middle East would be frowned upon and slandered and would be considered a shame to the family. In America there is freedom of speech, and you are allowed to speak your mind and oppose and challenge your government and high authority figures. There is a lot more censorship in the Middle East, for example, an Egyptian blogger recently got sentenced to 3 years in prison for insulting the Egyptian army, as CBC News stated “An Egyptian military tribunal has convicted a blogger of insulting the army after he publicized reports of abuses by the military, and sentenced him to three years in prison, human rights groups said Monday.”. Many of the Middle Eastern countries even censor the internet, blocking access to sites that promote ideas that the government disapproves of, whether it is pornography, or a website that promotes opposition or something about human rights. Or another example that in the U.S. the homosexuals are at least tolerated and have some freedom and protection, I cannot say the same for the Middle East. The people in the Middle East culturally are a lot stricter and less “free”. It isn’t the Middle Easterners in general that worry me, it is the other group that worries me, the extremist minority, the small radical group that will cause trouble and provide a huge resistance to these changes. Middle East has a huge struggle in front of it before it can reach its goal of a democracy. They need to accept freedom in all its forms, Saudi Arabia would need to throw away the law forcing women to wear Burqa and not allowing them to drive; Iran would have to throw away its laws that all women must cover their hair, the countries must learn that it is not ok to harm homosexuals. And after the government drops these laws, the people must learn to accept it. The Middle East has a huge struggle in front of it before it can reach its goal of a democracy. I believe the people first need to modernize and get adapted to new customs and views before they can accept democracy. Because until their culture and mindset changes, there will always be quarrelling between the people on what is “morally acceptable” and what isn’t.

The Lesser of Two Evils?

The uprisings against the governments were mainly due to fears of corruption and dictatorship. Their cause is quite noble, revolting in the name of democracy, freedom, and human rights. The Middle East wants to now move closer to a democracy, but the question is will they be able to do it? For example, they successfully brought down Hosni Mubarak, but who will take his place? So far the likelihood of his replacement is Muslim Brotherhood. Do you think they will be able to establish a real democracy in Egypt, or will they just bring up another theocracy to the Middle East? So they had a leader who is a tyrant, this is exactly what most of the Arabs leaders are, tyrants. However, this tyrant was able to get his people out of war by signing a peace treaty with his neighbor. Muslim brotherhood will most likely just break this treaty, and head into another war with Israel, which will end up sinking the country in their own Egyptian blood. The Arabs need a government that will protect their people, one that will put their people’s self interest at the first priority. By all means, take down Mubarak, and if the allegations of his theft and abuse of power is true, arrest him for life. But however, please replace him with someone that will put the country in better shape. As they say, if you can’t find anyone good, stick with the one that’s the lesser of two evils. And this isn’t just for Egypt, it’s for all Arab and Islamic countries that are going through this phase of revolution. If they want to replace their leaders, then do so, but if they wish for a real democracy, they should avoid placing religious leaders or groups in position of power. We do not need any more radical Islamic countries in the Middle East. And besides, wasn’t this “Western Democracy” cursed upon, called corrupt and immoral, and looked at with disgust by those exact same people protesting right now? Let’s be honest, those people who America is spending billions on, sending its troops to fight and risk their lives for never really liked America, or to put it better, the Middle East in general had a negative view of America. If America, God forbid, ever did have a disaster, how many Middle Eastern countries do you think will rush to your aid? The Middle East wants democracy? Let them have it, but I just don’t have enough faith that they will establish a true democracy. The people in the Middle East are culturally, socially, and morally different than the west. They have a different set of ethics and moral codes, and are used to living in a stricter society, you cannot throw a full democracy at them and give them all their freedoms at once and expect them to cope well with it. What they need is a transition state, I wish them all well, and a true democracy, and I wish those cruel tyrants the punishments they deserve.

Middle Eastern Revolutionary Chain Reaction

Protests have been rampaging across the Middle East and in some countries in North Africa, and all this sudden wave of uprising became popular after a revolt in Tunisia that had successfully kicked out their ruler of 23 years President Zine El Abidine Ben Ali. The ouster of the Tunisian leader immediately created a domino effect which sparked revolts all across the Middle East. However, the Middle Eastern leaders have no wishes to hand down their power and be replaced so easily.

                                          

One such revolt that became popular was amongst the Egyptians, who have successfully removed Hosni Mubarak from his 30 year reign over Egypt. Mubarak cut off the internet and phone usage as well as arrest journalists. Their peaceful protests lasted for over a month, and they are still protesting and demanding the resignation of the head of their Military. Documented death toll from the Egyptian revolts starting from January 25,2011 is at least 685  protestors dead according to a count by the Front to Defend Egypt Protesters. The revolts have swept through Algeria, Bahrain, Yemen, Iraq, Iran, Saudi Arabia, Oman, Morocco, Syria and more. Unfortunately, the number of peaceful demonstrators killed is much too high, with many officers using violence to stop the protests. For example a rough estimate of the amount dead from the Syrian protests are 200 so far, and from Yemen whose leader has had a 35 year rule, security forces have killed 92 protestors  since the unrest started in February 12 2011.  

The violence used on the protestors has come from using rubber bullets, to live bullets, to using tear gas, beating with batons, and even to using aircraft missiles and tanks on protestors as Ghadaffi (who stated he will kill anyone that stands against him, and that he will fight until “the last bullet”), leader of Libya for 40 years has done, according to the Washington Post “Moammar Gadhafi’s forces fired rockets along the eastern front line and shelled the besieged city of Misrata”. But thankfully the NATO organization has stepped in, but this hasn’t stopped Ghadaffi from killing his own people. According to MSNBC “Libyan forces opened fire on mourners leaving a funeral for protesters Saturday in the flashpoint city of Benghazi. A witness said dozens were killed.” And was even mad enough to tie together and line up 130 soldiers that refused to open fire on and kill their peaceful demonstrators, and sprayed them down with bullets. However, the people are still standing strong and continuing to try to bring down this man.

And many countries in the Middle East are still struggling to bring down their corrupt governments that have been ruling for decades. We will see who will win the battle, the people or the Governments?