Special to The Daily Star
The term “illiberal democracy,” advanced by some as an acceptable model for future change in many parts of the Middle East, is, in truth, an oxymoron. Real functioning democracies can never be illiberal. Nor can they be at peace with the rest of the world, a fact that makes their appearance quite problematic for many of their neighbors and for the world at large. Continue reading “The oxymoron of “illiberal democracy””
A Tharwa Project Statement on Darfur
The unfolding humanitarian crisis in Darfur cannot be simply attributed to a conflict over scarce resources, although this is definitely an important factor in this regard.
Indeed, there is a history in the Sudan, and many other parts of Africa, of encroachment by nomadic tribes on lands owned by farmers whenever draught conditions prevailed. This seems to have been the initial catalyst for the current crisis in Darfur, but it is definitely not the reason why it has assumed such major humanitarian proportions. Continue reading “Darfur – Roots of Conflict and the Role of the Arab and the International Community”
Lecture at the Brookings Institution
Syria has developed a reputation as an esoteric state because of the actions of its late President, Hafez el Asad. Asad’s rural beginnings, military education, and limited exposure to the West contributed to his deep familiarity with Syrian social and political culture. But, it also limited his understanding of ever-changing global realities, especially in the aftermath of the collapse of the Soviet Union. In the West, Asad was, nonetheless, perceived as a political genius because Western knowledge of Syria was extremely limited. Continue reading “The Internal Dynamics of Syrian Politics”
Tharwa Editorial
One of the main criticisms that the Tharwa Project has received focuses on its emphasis on the rights of religious and ethnic minorities in the region, noting that this could easily conflict with other avowed goals of the Project, namely: the interest in democracy promotion in the region and raising the standards of civic awareness and citizenship therein. The emphasis on minorities, we are told, could eventually increase the feeling of non-belonging and separation among minority groups, further isolating them from the rest of society and further feeding the growing ethnic and sectarian suspicions that exist between minority and majority populations in the region. As such, wouldn’t it be better to simply focus on democratization and citizen rights? Continue reading “Why Minorities?”
The Ammar Abdulhamid Archive 