Tunisia is a relatively small country without major geographical boundaries, ... Tunisia is still the Arab Spring’s lone success story. Tunisians, through much difficulty, forged a new path. The 2011-12 phase of the Arab Spring appeared successful. Despite continuing popular protests and obvious signs of the rebirth of the Tunisian police state, international media continues to cover Tunisia as a relative success story. The 2011-12 phase of the Arab Spring appeared successful. Tunisia has avoided much of the violence and repression that occurred after the Arab Spring occurred in Egypt. But there is one bright spot in the report, which classifies countries as “free,” “partly free,” or “not free”: Tunisia, which became the first Arab country classified as free since the beginning of Lebanon’s civil war 40 years ago. Tunisia is a relatively small country without major geographical boundaries, meaning the entire country can be governed fairly easily from the capital. As a result, they have chosen to ignore the reality of a stolen revolution that they live in. “Tunisian exceptionalism”, this logic goes, must be maintained through peace and stability; any demands for radical change are seen as dangerous and disruptive. These policies, pushed onto the government by neoliberal institutions like the International Monetary Fund, fall in line with the ones Ben Ali’s regime implemented. For many Tunisians who have long been conditioned to believe in a Western (neo)liberal view of the world and of themselves, the exceptionalism narrative makes sense. The ongoing protests, for example, erupted after the Tunisian government implemented austerity measures that caused commodity prices to go up dramatically. (A group of Tunisians try to figure out how to make the move from revolution to a functioning democratic state). The remainder of this commentary is available on observer.com. Uplifting! It has not undergone a counter-revolution that returned it to the autocracy of its pre-revolution days, like Egypt has. Subscribe to the weekly Policy Currents newsletter to receive updates on the issues that matter most. You can cancel anytime. Some factors are structural. Last year saw one of the worst terrorist attacks in the country’s history when 14 troops were killed by suspected al-Qaida gunmen. But, under President Moncef Marzouki, Ennahda showed that an Islamist party can also be democratic by forming coalitions with secular parties, compromising on the constitution, and, most importantly, stepping down in 2013. But this framing of the democratic transition in Tunisia since 2011 dismisses a dismal reality. The country’s military was also less integral to Ben Ali’s power structure than in Egypt, and did little to either protect him or try to take power once he left. Slate is published by The Slate Group, a Graham Holdings Company. It signalled a failure of political reformism and a hostile democratic backslide. There are also concerns about a return to secular single-party rule. Tunisia has made remarkable progress since overthrowing its dictatorship six years ago. Measuring Wellbeing to Help Communities Thrive, Planning for the Rising Costs of Dementia, Assessing and Articulating the Wider Benefits of Research, RAND's Shelly Culbertson Publishes Book on Middle East After the Arab Spring, Tunisia's Paradoxical Political Union: Ennahda and Nidaa Tounes, Tunisia Could Be a Model for What Works in the Mideast.
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