Autocracies, Democratization, and Development in the Arab Region

Abstract The burning questions facing the Arab region today are: will the uprisings/revolutions of Tunisia (Dec. 2010) and Egypt (Jan. 2011) usher a sustained move from autocracies to substantive democracies in the Arab World (the Tunisian/Egyptian effect) accompanied by solid and equitable development? Will researchers in the future be talking about a pre and post 2010 Arab World? Indeed, will the march towards democracy in both Tunisia and Egypt be fully consolidated with all their developmental implications? The author offers remarks that he believes might shed led light on basic issues pertinent to any attempt to address them. The paper start with remarks on the politico/economic environment: the interaction of economics and politics with reference to the Arab Region; then focuses on the reasons for the hesitant Arab democratization process, i.e. the reasons for the persisting Arab democracy deficit in the post second world war period through 2010; and follow up with brief observations on the transition from autocracy to a democracy (open society) in the Arab World with the success of the recent Tunisian and Egyptian uprisings in removing the old regimes in mind though as of this writing their ultimate outcome in consolidating truly democratic orders remains uncertain. Arabic Abstract: