Did the Arab Spring achieve the goal that the people dreamt of?

Protestors demonstrate against Tunisian President Zine al-Abidine Ben Ali in Tunis on January 14, 2011      (REUTERS/Zohra Bensemra)

Background:

Arab Spring, which began in 2010-2011, was a pro-democratic protest which rose in the Middle East and North Africa, challenging some of the region's authoritarian regimes. It was started because the people were being oppressed by the regime and were given a low standard of living.

 

The protest first started in Tunisia, and slowly created a mass movement across all of the Arab nations, with small or large demonstrations taking place in every country. Some of the countries successfully toppled the regime, while many have not only been unsuccessful, but also have had to face the consequences for more than ten years since the war stated. 

The first demonstration took place in Central Tunisia in December 2010, where a 26-year-old street vendor, Mohamed Bouazizi, immolated himself after being ill-treated by the local officials. This started a revolution throughout the country with the wildfire and protests happening across the country. The Tunisian Government tried to end the protests by using violence against street demonstrations and trying to give political and economic concessions. The demonstrations were so large that in January 2011, the then president Zine al-Abidine Ben Ali had to step down and flee the country.

Similarly, a protest took place in Egypt towards the end of January 2011, after the Tunisian President fled the country. After several days of protests and clashes between the demonstrators and the security forces in Cairo and across the country, a turning point came wherein the Egyptian army refused to use their power against the protestors who wanted to dethrone Pres. Hosni Mubarak.

Egyptians celebrate the news of the resignation of President Hosni Mubarak, who handed control of the country to the military. In Tahrir Square, downtown Cairo, Egypt, on Feb. 11, 2011.

PHOTOGRAPH BY TARA TODRAS-WHITEHILL, AP

And just like that, within a couple of months, two of the most robust regimes of the world were toppled, and people in other countries of the region were also motivated to start protests for setting up a democratic government. Large demonstrations took place in Yemen, Bahrain, Libya, and Syria. 

In Bahrain, the protests were suppressed with the help of the army from United Arab Emirates and Kingdom of Saudi Arabia by the end of March and many people were arrested after the demonstrations came to an end. 

In all of these countries, there was colossal blood-shed and many lives were lost. Yemen, Libya, and Syria are seeing the aftermath of the Arab Spring to this day. Already, half a million people have lost their lives in Syria alone, and many others are still fighting for a better future. On the other side, there are two to three groups fighting for power in each of these regions and they are supported by many international countries and bodies (though for their own benefits). Countries like Yemen, Syria and Libya have become battlegrounds, where the local terrorist groups, backed by international bodies, fight for power over the local regime. 

So, the question that arises is: Do we need such powerful ruling regimes wherein the leaders don't care about their own people's essential requirements and needs, and are just interested in advancing their political career?

At United Nations, leaders from around the world claim that they are fighting against the humanitarian crisis in these countries, but many of them support the groups involved in the fight thereby worsening the situation. They tend to forget that they are fueling a crisis where many people are losing their lives and many children are malnourished due to the famine in these regions. These countries have a high mortality rate and also lack the basic medical facilities. So, this region, which was once a self-sufficient one, now relies on international aids for almost everything thanks to the crisis.

After ten years of Arab Spring, What the present looks like:

 In this photo, dated January 18, 2021, demonstrators face police officers during clashes in Ibn Khaldoun City near Tunis. A growing groundswell of youth unrest, tapping into a well of economic frustration, is sweeping Tunisia and worrying its leadership all the way to the top. It is, after all, the country that triggered 2011's Arab Spring revolutions. (AP Photo/Hassene Dridi, File)

Last week's Thursday (14/01/2021) marked the tenth year since the Arab Spring started. Even today, the countries which toppled the monarchial government are not happy with the democratically-set-up government. The war crisis is still going on in countries like Yemen, Syria, and Libya. 

How bad is the situation? Well the paragraph below will answer just that.
A few weeks ago, a deadly attack occurred on the new government, at Aden Airport in Yemen as soon as they arrived from Saudi Arabia. The initial report stated that the Houthi rebellion was behind the attack at the airport. In Yemen, already 110,000 people have lost their lives, and more than a million people are on the verge of entering a famine. In Syria, due to the fight still going on, the countries budget is regularly decreasing year after year, showing that it's not only the people that are suffering, the regime is suffering too. 

After all the suffering, is Tunisia (where it all started) happy with a democratic government?

No, not at all. During the past week, many people, in a dozen of the Tunisian cities, protested against corruption and lack of jobs. About a thousand people were arrested due to the clashes with the security forces. Moreover, their economy is suffering badly, with a third of the young population jobless. The situation is so helpless that in the last year, 13,000 people risked their lives to flee to Italy.

It seems that, apart from the freedom, they haven't achieved anything. The political system is mostly run by wealthy businessmen, due to which there isn't much economic reform. The voter turnout in free elections fell from 68 percent in 2014 to 42 percent in 2019, showing the people's disbelief in the political system of the country.

And things like these make many people question the achievements of the revolution and whether it had a positive impact. Among these people is Ines Jebali, a 23 year old sociology student in Tunisia. She says, "Why did we revolt? because everything actually changed for the worst".

Even the freedom, which people believe is a positive result of the revolution, is rather just a bubble since the demonstrators who try to use their freedom are beaten and arrested by the security forces.

So what do you think? Did the Arab Spring actually serve it's purpose? Is this what thousands of people fought and lost their lives for?

We would be pleased to read your views in the comments below.

Written by: Vatsalam Prashant

Edited by: Yash Jayesh Doshi