Civil society played a pivotal role in the Arab uprisings. By reconfiguring the social contract in a region distinguished by gender inequality, these revolts brought the status of women to the fore, and equal citizenship became a central goal. Social actors were therefore particularly active in contesting the constitution-making processes that were launched. More
The concepts of democracy and democratization have been trampled for several decades and denounced as swindles, but these questions should nevertheless remain important issues to struggle for and not be overlooked in the building of an alternative economy. Firstly, the notion of democracy should not be understood as a fixed concept, but as constantly in flux. Democracy is not a universally accepted concept and its forms differ from one country to another. Some people limit the concept of democracy to political rights and elections, while others go further to include socio-economic, education, national and cultural rights. “Democratic Liberal” systems for…
Abstract Voter turnout in the parliamentary elections in Egypt in 2015 did not even reach 25% and was thus as low as under Husni Mubarak, in spite of the fact that President Abdel Fatah al-Sisi could then count on substantial support among the Egyptian population. This lack of interest among voters, argues the Arab Forum for Alternatives in „Egyptian parliamentary elections and the political path“, can be explained by the predictable outcome of the elections in favor of the ruling elite. The policy brief of the AFA series “Papers Alternatives” discusses the Egyptian elections against the background of the exclusion…
Introduction: The issue of reforming religious institutions has been given priority in Arab Spring countries since the eruption of the revolutions in 2011. This was mainly the result of the growing influence of religious figures in these countries during the transitional stage and the impact they started having on the political scene. Religion has also been a major part of the political and societal debates that abounded during that time. The religious scene in Egypt, Tunisia, and Yemen was affected by the developments the region witnessed and was, consequently, involved in projects that focused on the reformation of official religious…
Parliamentary committees contribute to strong and effective government and improve the democratic process. Committees undertake important work on behalf of the Parliament and especially the function of securing accountability of the executive. While attention is often focussed on plenary, it is in committees that the most productive – and for many MPs, most enjoyable – parliamentary work is done.
New parliamentary elections for 2015, the third entitlement on the road map after the presidential election and the constitution, are about to be held. There seems to be a number of issues that await the next parliament, starting with the nature of issues and topics of consideration, the policies and legislations related to them, and also those from the point of view of the public and political context, which in turn poses challenges for parliamentary work and parliamentarians. At the forefront of these challenges is the question of the relationship between MPs and their constituencies, an issue that is gaining…
Many are confused by the senseless wars now spreading like wildfire throughout the Arab region. Some think that these conflicts have deep-rooted internal causes, such as the tension between Islamists and liberals. Others look at these conflicts from a sectarian and ethnic perspective and consider them rooted in fundamental disputes between religious or sectarian ideologies or between tribes and provincial regions. There is yet a third group that sees this as a crisis of old regimes that want to forestall the political changes initiated by the Arab revolutions and the foreign interventions that caused chaos in the region. There is…
