Paving the path to Middle East democracy

The revolutions that succeeded in toppling aging dictators Zine El Abidine Ben Ali in Tunisia and Hosni Mubarak in Egypt created great expectations that will be difficult to fulfill. In both countries, the principal grievances were corruption, oppression and unemployment. The same complaints fuel ongoing protests in Bahrain, Syria and Yemen. A sense of injustice was strong enough to prompt Libyans to take on the vastly superior military force of Moammar Gadhafi in what has become a bloody civil war.

Arab rulers have fallen and others may meet the same fate in the coming days or weeks. It is timely to ask, what next? When the oppressors are gone, how can the popular demands for good governance, personal freedom and jobs be met? How can the popular will avoid derailment by opposing interests or remnants of the ancient regime?

{mosads}If the remarkable achievements of the brave protesters are not to have been in vain, the immediate needs are fair process, the rule of law and job creation.

Fair process. In the rush to achieve tangible objectives, process is too often neglected. Yet only a fair process can ensure the legitimacy and sustainability of what gets decided. In the context of post-revolution Egypt and Tunisia, the critical elements of fair process are transparency and all-inclusive participation. The populations that turned out in overwhelming numbers to bring down old regimes deserve to know what is being decided and to have their interests represented. Fair process rules out closed-door meetings and top-down communiqués; it encourages full media coverage. It is remarkable that the protestors throughout the Middle East have sought secular goals, not religious ones — nevertheless, religious parties, such as the Muslim Brotherhood in Egypt, should be allowed to participate along with other stakeholders in the drafting of a new constitution. To facilitate consensus-building, the parties should consider appointing an impartial mediator acceptable to all.

Rule of law. The rule of law is essential, both to protect human rights and to ensure a level playing field for politics. It begins with the constitution as fundamental law, but also includes legislative process and a fair judiciary. The rule of law should have three immediate priorities: anti-corruption, the dismantling of harsh security systems and accountability for criminal acts. Both Egypt and Tunisia are blessed with highly educated populations to make genuine rule of law a reality. However, the upgrading of legal education and public administration should be high on the agenda in both countries.

Employment. Jobs for youth have been a key demand in each of the protest movements. No surprise, because out-of-work young people number between 15 percent and 40 percent in the countries of the Middle East and North Africa. Unless youth joblessness is tackled head-on, much of youth’s victory will be lost. Job creation has several dimensions, all of which need to be addressed at once: domestic and foreign investment, entrepreneurship and tailor-made training for guaranteed jobs. With a demographic youth bulge still swelling the ranks of the unemployed throughout the Arab world, there is no quick fix. However, the prompt mounting of a credible campaign will in itself demonstrate a commitment to serve the youth who risked their lives to create hope for a better life.

The U.S. and other western countries have signaled their readiness to help Egypt, Tunisia (and other Arab states that may shake off their dictators) achieve their goals. What can they or should they do? First, they should not intervene without being asked. Egyptians and Tunisians are responsible for their own destinies. Foreigners cannot make their dreams a reality. 

However, the West can and should respond positively to such official requests from the new governments as the following: assign an expert on mediation to assist a local mediator during the constitution-building process; promote faculty exchanges with local law faculties; provide technical assistance to local ministries of justice; and support job creation through the encouragement foreign investment and entrepreneurship and by funding programs that train youth for specific jobs. 

If Egypt and Tunisia can succeed in building institutions that support a vibrant democracy, human rights and jobs, they will become important models for the other Arab countries that seek to achieve those goals.

Hager is former president of the Education For Employment Foundation, a nonprofit organization based in Washington, D.C.