Civil Resistance in the Arab Spring: Triumphs and Disasters

Abstract

This book provides a vivid account and analysis of the role of non-violent resistance in the ‘Arab Spring’—the chain of events in the Middle East and North Africa that erupted in December 2010, leading to the fall of governments from Tunisia to Yemen. It covers not only the early months and years, when civil resistance predominated and was the hallmark of the Arab Spring, but also the prolonged crises that ensued in many countries—for example, the military intervention in Bahrain, the wars in Libya and Syria, and the reversion to authoritarian rule in Egypt. It explores why it was Tunisia, the country where the Arab Spring began, that experienced the most political change for the lowest cost in bloodshed. Why did so much go wrong? Was the problem the methods, leadership and aims of the popular movements, or the conditions of their societies? The chapters set the events in the context of their historical, social and political environments. They emphasise the roles of ordinary men and women. They describe how governments and outside powers responded to events, how Arab monarchies in Jordan and Morocco undertook to introduce reforms to avert revolution, and why the Arab Spring failed to spark a Palestinian one. Above all, they show how civil resistance aiming at regime change is not enough: building the institutions necessary for democracy to take root is a more difficult but also crucial task.

Citation

Roberts, A., Willis, M. J., McCarthy, R., & Garton Ash, T. (Eds.). (2016). Civil Resistance in the Arab Spring: Triumphs and Disasters. Oxford University Press. https://doi.org/10.1093/acprof%3Aoso/9780198749028.001.0001

• Book Type: Edited Book
• Online Publication Date: Sep 2, 2019
• Publication Date: 2016
• Deposit Date: Sep 2, 2019
• Publisher: Oxford University Press
• ISBN: 9780198749028
• DOI: https://doi.org/10.1093/acprof%3Aoso/9780198749028.001.0001
• Public URL: https://durham-repository.worktribe.com/output/1129607