They were centred around demands for political reform, which included reform against police brutality, electoral fraud, political censorship. 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. Started in tunisia, a movement unfolded that fundamentally changed the arab world. Arab spring in morocco ugent open access journals universiteit. Since the tunisian street vendor mohammed bouazizi set himself and the arab world aflame in december 2010, young men all over the middle east have tried to imitate him. They were asking for freedom and democracy, which was long believed to be impossible in the arab world. Yet it would be difficult to find three more different countries than morocco, the conservative monarchy, revolutionary algeria, and moderate tunisiaparticularly in light of the arab spring of 2011. Chapter pdf available february 2019 with 286 reads. Between the islamic state and the nationstate the brookings project on u. The movement started with a rifbased focus, demanding an inquiry into fikris death and previous mysterious killings during the 2011 arab springinspired protests. While the socalled arab spring has so far toppled despotic regimes in. Six years after the arab spring, morocco is experiencing. The movement was the countrys largest since 2011, when moroccos version of the arab spring ushered in modest constitutional reforms.
In fact, women have never been complete strangers to political activism in morocco, their involvement in the. The endgame is a series of films exploring the fall of the gaddafi regime from the perspective of those who helped to bring it down al jazeera tv the long road to tripoli. The armed forces played a decisive role in many of the arab uprisings, particularly the early ones. Real gdp growth 2010, 2015 fffi fffi6% fffi4% fffi2% fffi 0% ff 2% ff 4% ff algeria libya morocco tunisia 2010 2015 source. 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.
Impressive though often overlooked, this rare success story from the arab spring is occasionally invoked as a possible source of emulation by other arab or predominantly muslim states. If youre able, and if you like our content and approach, please support the project. The common slogan of the protesters throughout arab spring was the people want to bring down the regime aissa, 2012. At the front of the nearly thousandstrong crowd in casablanca. Morocco and jordan are successful arab spring models al. The protests in morocco were inspired by the arab spring protests and revolutions in other north african countries. Unemployment rates 2010, 2015 0% 5% 10% 15% 20% algeria libya. Arab politics after the uprisings michael hudson 4. Reflections on contexts and contests of democratization 2. Moroccan women, arab spring, 20 february movement 20. History, culture and geography have set north africa apart from the rest of the arab and mediterranean worlds.
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. It is characterized by youth demonstrations and sitins with the objective of creating a coalition in support. Pdf the internet and democracy in arab spring morocco. Jordan and morocco are two models those who did not miss the train during the tumultuous arab spring cookie. But, however new, their strong presence has been very noticeable in. Violent protests and civil conflict in egypt and syria appear in headlines daily. Inspired by egypt, thousands protest on moroccan streets. The nation remains a hereditary monarchy ruled by king mohammed vi. 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.
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. 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. The arab spring was a series of prodemocracy uprisings that enveloped several largely muslim countries, including tunisia, morocco, syria, libya, egypt and bahrain. News arab unrest inspired by egypt, thousands protest on moroccan streets thousandsof people flooded on to the streets of cities across morocco yesterday, hoping to wrest some powers from the ruling monarchy in the first large protestsinspired by events in tunisia and egypt. The 201820 arab protests, also referred to as the new arab spring, arab summer or arab spring 2.
Women are newcomers to the political scene in morocco. Islamist electoral legitimacy four years after the arab. Moroccos exceptional arab spring was characterized by a collected response by its leader and a desire for further progress by its populace. Location of morroco click on image for larger version 27. Why moroccos protests wont usher in another arab spring. The reform of judiciaries in the wake of the arab spring. We al jazeera tv follow a group of libyan exiles as they sacrifice everything to return home for the final assault on tripoli.
The profile of arab spring protestors 117 arab spring protests and riots 120 7 the aftermath of the arab spring 127 introduction 127 state responses to the arab spring 128 foreign interventions, identitybased polarization, and highintensity civil wars 1 overlapping horizontal divisions 5 what explains the arab paradox of political. Whats ironic about the arab spring is that the same autocratic regimes that were, to varying degrees, protected by the u. The arab spring uprisings of 2011 triggered a wide set of social movements and regime change across the middle east and north africa. Article pdf available in the journal of north african studies march 2018 with 1,207. Six years later, little remains of the hopes that the west saw in the arab spring. Though many commentators have warned that the arab spring is turning into an. Yet morocco appears to have escaped the arab spring relatively unscathed. Moroccos king mohammed vi, center, after inaugurating a new phosphate fertilizer plant, jorf lasfar, december 22, 2011. Development of conflict in arab spring libya and syria.
Reconstructing peoplehood in the arab spring part 1. Fragile morocco weighs its economic priorities world. 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. Arab spring used their powers vehemently to crush the demonstrators and consequently the peaceful protesters also became violent. Reverberations from the arab spring of 2011 continue to rock the middle east. For more analysis on the recent movement in the rif, state repression, and the future of democracy in morocco. Unrest and uncertainty the big picture, the boston globes photoblog. Morocco, arab spring, new social movement, social media, meaning making. The arab spring s revolutionary spirit was translated into reforms as understood and guided by the monarchical state.
Women played their part as leaders and participants, and were not spared the backlash suffering arrests, sexual harassment and even death. The arab spring has passed morocco by, but that doesnt mean the kingdom hasnt had its share of trouble. In reality, however, moroccos situation is so unusual that it probably cannot serve as a model for any other country, even among the other remaining arab. 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. 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.
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. People from all kinds of backgrounds united in common goals. 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. 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. Morocco is strategically located at the strait of gibraltar, which is a significant sealane of control. As elsewhere in north africa and the middle east, the youthdriven revolts in tunisia and egypt produced a tsunami in moroccos political. The arab spring its impact on the region and on the middle east conference of the regime and within the regime, with the former comprising tunisia, egypt, and libya and the latter including jordan and saudi arabia. Arab spring in morocco, and the way activists in the 20 february movement, named after the.
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. Toward a historical sociology of the arab uprising raymond hinnebusch 5. Causes of the arab spring causes of the arab spring may be described as following. Pdf encouraged by the uprisings in tunisia and egypt, and the arab spring, young moroccans began to organise huge demonstrations across the country. 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. Morocco s exceptional arab spring was characterized by a collected response by its leader and a desire for further progress by its populace.
12 125 1400 1028 9 1517 592 494 407 1471 875 316 563 1000 926 38 615 672 895 1453 692 1252 579 1239 1449 399 510 1379 1415 561 1470 1191 1324 1251