Democratization

As everyone probably knows by now, people's movements have deposed the former governments in Tunisia and Egypt, all by the power of the people, as it were. It seems that a domino effect has been set into motion, as there are now movements in Algeria, Bahrain, Yemen, Libya, and Iran (again). In these movements, however, the presiding government has not been reluctant to display its force.

In Bahrain, for example, 20,000 peaceful protesters were beaten by police indiscriminately on the order of the government. Women and children, doctors, and innocent people in general were chased down and beaten by government forces.

In Iran, peaceful marches were dispersed immediately by the Revolutionary Guard in an apparent act of hypocrisy by the Ayatollah who praised the Egyptian people for their work in Egypt (just for clarification: the Ayatollah claimed that the movement was largely Shiite, which Iran predominantly is).

So, is a people's democratic movement possible in these countries where there is no reluctance to use force on their people? It seems that the movements in these countries may take to two extremes (if they continue): 1. The people become indefatigable and relentless in their pursuit of revolution, but the government continues to beat them mercilessly; eventually, either the people end their movement or the police decide to cease their atrocities and side with the people; 2. The police forces become increasingly more violent, leading to a violent rebuke by the people in an effort to secure a revolution by guerrilla warfare. The success of this depends largely on the dedication of the people.

What is occurring now is truly an astonishing show of embracing the concept of a government without a monarch. That being said, I do concede that there have been benevolent dictators, but the overwhelming majority have been thieves, scoundrels, selfish, greedy, etc. For example, the Mubarak family took advantage of the Egyptian economy to make millions of dollars off of the private sector (Gamal Mubarak, mostly).

I think that this movement has more strength than the Iranian Green Movement did after the contested elections. I think that the youth in these countries can actually achieve their goals. They're motivated, they're connected, and they have concrete plans. Here's hoping that the youth can change the world.

That's all for now,
Das Flüg

P.S. You should check this out. It's quite intense.

Well, I've Been Afraid of Changes...

Sorry it's been a while, but I've been busy with Model UN stuff and other stuff, on top of some other car stuff and sleeping.

It's been a tumultuous few months in the Middle East and Northern Africa. First, it started in Tunisia when a man upset over the lack of economic stability set himself on fire. That set off several other self-immolations, and led to Tunisian President Ben Ali fleeing the country with the Prime Minister taking over as interim president. Now, in Egypt, massive protests are taking place to oust President Hosni Mubarak, Egyptian president for over 30 years, from power. Mubarak has stated that he will step down in September, but that is not soon enough for the massive protesters.
Will this trend continue? Lebanon, Libya, Saudi Arabia, Yemen, Jordan, and Iran, amongst other countries, are beginning to see what looks like talks of the same type of revolution that occurred in Egypt and Tunisia. Both populations are largely composed of people under 30, which means that they are more likely to organize via social networking sites and through other new age communications mediums. The same is true for other strictly Muslim countries, where much of the population was born after the current rulers took power. Could this be the beginning of a trend of democratization of the Middle East?
Possibly. What could also happen is a turn towards stricter following of Islam, such as with the Muslim Brotherhood in Egypt (though they are non-violent and have expressed that they will not field a political candidate for president). It all depends on who takes power during the current vacuum.

And now, to catch up on school work.

That's all for now,
DF

P.S. Visit here for free stuff!

National Security from College Students

This past Halloween weekend, the Rutgers Association of International Relations traveled to Bethesda, Maryland in order to participate in the National Collegiate Security Conference, and let me tell you, it was awesome.
Firstly, I was in the Eighth Iranian Majlis (Parliament), a very fractured and uncertain governing body. We had to discuss the burgeoning youth movement in Iran, whose goals were to become a more democratic countries. There were two polarized sides, the Reformists and the Principlists; their names essentially state their position. Before we even got around to passing resolutions on the issue, the Supreme Leader Khamenei was assassinated. A report first issued by the Revolutionary Guard implicated noted reformist Ayatollah Rafsanjani of being complicit in the Supreme Leader's assassination. After calling for several investigations, I received intelligence from a rogue Revolutionary Guard soldier stating that President Ahmedinejad and the leaders of the IRGC (Revolutionary Guard) met to plan the death of the Supreme Leader. From then on, we moved to impeach President Ahmedinejad, who promptly decided, along with the IRGC, to dissolve the Majlis and attempt to kill all of us.
In the end, we went to war with China and stole their flag.

Aside from the serious stuff, it was one hell of a time. If you're not doing Model UN, then you're not experiencing absolute euphoria. Get there.

That's all for now,
Das Flüg