Middle East Policy

Here are two articles were included in The Arab Reform Bulletin, November 2005 on reform in Saudi Arabia and Libya: Saudi Arabia: Municipal Councils and Political Reform Jafar M. Al-Shayeb Saudis are still awaiting the inauguration of their partially-elected municipal councils, despite the fact that the last round of elections was held eight months ago. The delay has dampened popular enthusiasm for the councils and raised questions about the Saudi government's seriousness about political reform. It had been hoped that the municipal elections would open the door for wider popular participation and elections to other political bodies. Elections and other opportunities for popular participation existed early on in the history of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, although they were limited to a few regions and posts. Until the early 1960s, municipal councils were fully elected, as were some academic and business posts. In the early 1960s, however, ultraconservative religious leaders suppor...

This is the news section of The Arab Reform Bulletin, November 2005 , a product of the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace , which is almost adopting, as I think, an approach to the Middle East reform rests on political considerations to push an ideological and political line related to the American politics more than the Middle East reform. I hope not. The bulletin has also included some articles. I will post some of them with my review later. Related post Egypt: Parliamentary Elections Begin The first of three rounds of elections for the People's Assembly (the lower house of parliament) began November 9. In preliminary results from the first round of elections as reported by Al Jazeera, 35 out of 164 races have been decided, 66 will go to run-offs, and 63 remain unanounced. The ruling National Democratic Party (NDP) won 31 of the 53 races decided so far; Muslim Brothers won three seats and an independent candidate won one. As expected, senior NDP leaders and government min...

The United States of Peace has published an interesting report "Strategies for Promoting Democracy in Iraq." The report has a very good methodology combining the historical context and political theory to produce a very practical strategy of promoting democracy in Iraq. Taking into account what I have read of research work in this domain, I can say that this report is very interesting. I will quote from this report the sections: Summary, the approach of this report and strategies for promoting democracy. PDF version of the full report Summary Social justice and economic development are essential for democracy in Iraq to succeed. The idea of a democratic Iraq is not one imposed by foreign powers, but rather one that Iraqis themselves vigorously support. Iraq has a tradition and history of democracy that can help promote the successful establishment of a democratic form of government in post–Saddam Hussein Iraq. Many of the foundations of democratic governance began in Ira...

The Human Rights Watch has issued a report on the Online Censorship in the Middle East and North Africa. This report documents online censorship and cases in which Internet users have been detained for their online activities in countries across the region, including Tunisia, Iran, Syria and Egypt. Furthermore, Human Rights Watch said, "This report examines Internet trends and policies in the Middle East and North Africa region as they affect freedom of expression, focusing particularly on Egypt, Iran, Syria, and Tunisia. Human Rights Watch selected these four countries for closer scrutiny as much for their differences as for their similarities, and their inclusion should not suggest that their policies are worse than those of other countries in the region. For each of the featured countries, Human Rights Watch examines government policies affecting Internet access, the role the Internet has played in fostering freedom of expression and civil society, laws restricting free expres...

There is good news concerning some consequences of the World Summit on the Information Society (WSIS) hosted by Tunisia. The world is more introduced to the way in which the Arab societies are governed. The Arabic edition of the authoritarianism is becoming publicized after some decades of western apathy. The world has directly witnessed the Tunisian government conduct as regards the civil liberties and rights. This serves as a typical example of what is going in the Arab states, however, at different ranges. The U.S. issued a statement Urges Progress in Tunisian Reform and Human Rights, expressing the U.S. "disappointment" and concern about restrictions on freedoms of speech and political activity in Tunisia. It is indicative that the cooperation, friendship and the good relations with the Tunisian government did not preclude such candid statement. This serves as an indicator that the U.S. is serious about this course, beyond rhetoric. Furthermore, it gives the U.S. credibil...

President Bush signed into law the foreign spending bill for the fiscal year 2006 (FY06). The foreign spending bill is an extremely important tool in implementing the U.S. policy and serving its interests and objectives. Promoting democracy worldwide, especially in the Middle East, is our valuable aim, which must take advantage of this measure. The increasing room for the democratization policy within the foreign spending bill is something gradual and in need of time to get more applicable and harmonious with the many-objectives policy, considering the huge role and commitments of the U.S. in the world. But the start is possible and required currently. This fact, besides the importance of the deliberate pro-democracy policy to the U.S. interests and strategic position in the 21st century, must become clear to the U.S. congress. Considering all, I don not say that the democratic considerations must constitute basic conditions to the foreign aid at this time. that would not be a realisti...