Saturday, February 12, 2011

Egypt, Tunisia and the Future of the Middle East

After the successful Tunisian Revolution, the people of Egypt are now, after weeks of demonstrations and protests, celebrating the resignation of  Hosni Mobarak after 3 decades of autocratic and despotic rule. Many observers compare these events with those in Iran , 32 years ago . They try to draw an analogy between the Islamic Revolution in Iran and what happened in Egypt. While there are parallels to consider, there are also evident differences, as well. The military refrained from taking sides from the begining in Egypt, contrary to Iran in 1979. The movement in Egypt was national, not ideological, although  Islamic forces ( the Muslim Brotherhood)  played a major role,while Islam was in the mainstream of the revolution in Iran.

Some observers have drawn an analogy with the events of last year in Iran. They compare Egypt and Tunisia to the protests in Iran and believe that the people of Egypt were inspired by what happened in Iran last year, not what happened  32 years ago. However, we see and interpret the events as they are an important sign of change in the region. The life of the dictators is over and people do not look up to the US as their savior any longer. The US has once again, lost its face in supporting  despotic regimes in Egypt and Tunisis. Democratic and Islamic values will determine the fate of the Middle East. The people will learn from the lessons and mistakes of other nations including Iran and will build their future upon those valuable experiences .

3 comments:

Nancy Reyes said...

here in the Philippines, we see this as similar to our people power revolution that overthrew Marcos.

Anonymous said...

I have been following events in your country very closely for quite some time. I empathize with your struggle and hope for better days ahead. Days filled with more compassion, cooperation, harmony and healing for your people. Fi aman Allah.

sincerely,
a convert muslim from the u.s.

OnThePath said...

After seeing the Frontline (USA public broadcasting) program on the uprising in Eqypt, it was brought out that the Facebook/Twitter organizers did not limit themselves to the Muslim world for inspiration. They studied and brought in for training organizers of successful peaceful protests in other countries.

What didn't inspire them, apparently, was the way Iraq And Afghanistan was handled by our country. Their freedom won at the point of OUR guns is not so nearly cherished as that organized and grown from one's own people. Even though they are democratic countries, perhaps they also need a homegrown revolution to really own what is going on in their lands.

The Bush/Neo-con daydream of freedom spreading through the Middle East once these two countries were free...did not materialize from their enforced vision.

With the coverage now being instantaneous, there is less possibility of "revisionist history." Inspiration and models can be drawn from any historical figure and any part of the world. As Martin Luther King drew inspiration from Ghandi..