In retrospect, it now seems clear that the regime’s dithering in the face of unsustainable macroeconomic imbalances was a mistake. Judging from the most recent Arab Barometer survey(conducted in 2016), Algerians were not duped by the government’s Potemkin reforms. On the contrary, the regime’s costly efforts to enforce an artificial stability appear to have backfired. Between 2013 and 2016, while the…
Aseel Alayli
The road ahead for Arab women
On top of social and economic progress, Arab women are making important strides in changing societal attitudes on gender equality but more work is needed to ensure women are granted the same rights and opportunities as their male counterparts in the Arab region. In a report titled “Women in the Middle East and North Africa: A Divide between Rights and…
“We want justice”: what are the demands of Algeria’s protest movement?
… After decades of political oppression in Algeria, only 17% of citizens are now interested in politics, according to a poll published last week by the Arab Barometer, an independent research network that has been conducting opinion polls in the Middle East and North Africa since 2006. One of the problems faced by the Algerian movement is the lack of…
THE STATE OF SOCIAL JUSTICE IN THE ARAB WORLD-The Arab Uprisings of 2011 and Beyond
ABSTRACT. The Arab uprisings were sometimes seen as calls for democracy, but we argue that in fact they were more accurately calls for social justice. Citizens across the region took to the streets to demand better economic, political and social outcomes including reducing levels of inequality, eliminating corruption and increasing respect for human dignity. These protests yielded significant changes across…
Are Bouteflika’s Shake-Ups a Sign of Shifting Civil-Military Ties in Algeria?
… The army has now firmly entrenched itself as an integral feature of the political system—a system in which the legitimacy of the military’s political influence is hardly questioned by Algerians. It goes beyond popular acquiescence about the generals’ role in politics. In Algeria, the military constitutes the most trusted state institution, and by a wide margin. According to a 2017…
Maghreb Report
News article cites survey stating 83 percent of Algerians said they are either not interested or not at all interested in politics due to their expectation that the army will select the winner. Read full article at Morocco on the Move.
Spineless: The Real Meaning of Smoothing-Over Khashoggi’s Murder
…Mr. Khashoggi’s words were echoed by prominent journalist and political analyst Rami Khouri. “We are heading to the law of the jungle if big power and Mideast state autocracy is not held accountable,” Mr. Khouri said. In a similar vein, a survey by the Arab Barometer survey concluded that public institutions in the Arab world, including the judiciary enjoyed little,…
Transitional Justice in Tunisia: Any Role for Islam?
In a study on transitional justice in post-Arab Spring Tunisia, AB’s suvey data is cited to show that the majority of Tunisians consider the economic situation and corruption as the most important problems facing the country. Read the full article at E-International Relations.
Call for Applications for a Two-Year Program of Research and Training
“Contributing to solutions for marginalized communities in the Arab region: A Two-Year Program of Research and Training” January 2019 – September 2020 The University of Michigan and Princeton University are pleased to announce a Call for Applications for early-career Ph.D.s (advanced graduate students will also be considered) for a two-year program consisting of four workshops focused on developing or enhancing…