The Last Arab Spring Democracy is Dying
Thirteen years ago, a disgruntled vegetable vendor in central Tunisia lit himself on fire in an act of protest against a corrupt dictator.
From his ashes grew the Arab Spring, a political upheaval that inspired revolutions, toppled governments, and launched civil wars. The violence and bloodshed, many hoped, would fertilize democracy. Instead, a decade later, most Middle Eastern countries remained shackled by their old dictators. Some, such as Egypt, simply swapped one strongman ruler for another.
Only one country – Tunisia – had become a democracy.
Now, the sole surviving Arab Spring democracy is returning to dictatorship. Since his rise to power in late 2019, Tunisia’s authoritarian president, Kais Saied, has been consolidating power, muzzling the free press, and purging his enemies. He has suspended parliament, held sham elections, and rammed through a new constitution. Using the fig leaf of cracking down on corruption, Saied has instead been settling political scores, systematically eliminating his opposition.
In Ukraine, the West is patting itself on the back for defending democracy, as Western allies form closer ties and echo the same pro-democracy rhetoric. But in North Africa, Tunisia’s fragile democracy is being killed off by an aspiring dictator—and nobody seems to care…
