Dr. Al-Rabeeah: 170 countries benefited from $133 billion aid from Saudi Arabia "Humanitarian efforts strained by increasing crises, funding shortages, and access challenges"    Questions raised over Portugal's capacity to host Europe's largest annual tech event    Delhi shuts all primary schools as hazardous smog worsens    Sri Lankan leader seeks big majority in snap election    'Major supplier' of people-smuggling boats arrested    Sudan death toll far higher than previously reported — study    Riyadh lights up as Celine Dion and Jennifer Lopez dazzle at Elie Saab's 45th-anniversary celebration    Public Security chief launches digital vehicle plate wallet service    Pop hit APT too distracting for South Korea's exam-stressed students    'Action is in our nature': 4th Saudi Green Initiative Forum to be held at COP16    Saudi Arabia's inflation rate hits 1.9% in October, the highest in 14 months    Mohammed Al-Habib Real Estate Co. sets Guinness World Record with largest continuous concrete pour    Australia and Saudi Arabia settle for goalless draw in AFC Asian Qualifiers    PIF completes largest-ever accelerated bookbuild offering in MENA region    Order vs. Morality: Lessons from New York's 1977 Blackout    South Korean actor Song Jae Lim found dead at 39    Don't sit on the toilet for more than 10 minutes, doctors warn    'Marvels of Saudi Orchestra' to dazzle audience in Tokyo on Nov. 22    Saudi Champion Saeed Al-Mouri scores notable feat in Radical World Championship in Abu Dhabi with support from Bin-Shihon Group    France to deploy 4,000 police officers for UEFA Nations League match against Israel    Al Nassr edges past Al Riyadh with Mane's goal to move up to third    India puts blockbuster Pakistani film on hold    The Vikings and the Islamic world    Filipino pilgrim's incredible evolution from an enemy of Islam to its staunch advocate    Exotic Taif Roses Simulation Performed at Taif Rose Festival    Asian shares mixed Tuesday    Weather Forecast for Tuesday    Saudi Tourism Authority Participates in Arabian Travel Market Exhibition in Dubai    Minister of Industry Announces 50 Investment Opportunities Worth over SAR 96 Billion in Machinery, Equipment Sector    HRH Crown Prince Offers Condolences to Crown Prince of Kuwait on Death of Sheikh Fawaz Salman Abdullah Al-Ali Al-Malek Al-Sabah    HRH Crown Prince Congratulates Santiago Peña on Winning Presidential Election in Paraguay    SDAIA Launches 1st Phase of 'Elevate Program' to Train 1,000 Women on Data, AI    41 Saudi Citizens and 171 Others from Brotherly and Friendly Countries Arrive in Saudi Arabia from Sudan    Saudi Arabia Hosts 1st Meeting of Arab Authorities Controlling Medicines    General Directorate of Narcotics Control Foils Attempt to Smuggle over 5 Million Amphetamine Pills    NAVI Javelins Crowned as Champions of Women's Counter-Strike: Global Offensive (CS:GO) Competitions    Saudi Karate Team Wins Four Medals in World Youth League Championship    Third Edition of FIFA Forward Program Kicks off in Riyadh    Evacuated from Sudan, 187 Nationals from Several Countries Arrive in Jeddah    SPA Documents Thajjud Prayer at Prophet's Mosque in Madinah    SFDA Recommends to Test Blood Sugar at Home Two or Three Hours after Meals    SFDA Offers Various Recommendations for Safe Food Frying    SFDA Provides Five Tips for Using Home Blood Pressure Monitor    SFDA: Instant Soup Contains Large Amounts of Salt    Mawani: New shipping service to connect Jubail Commercial Port to 11 global ports    Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques Delivers Speech to Pilgrims, Citizens, Residents and Muslims around the World    Sheikh Al-Issa in Arafah's Sermon: Allaah Blessed You by Making It Easy for You to Carry out This Obligation. Thus, Ensure Following the Guidance of Your Prophet    Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques addresses citizens and all Muslims on the occasion of the Holy month of Ramadan    







Thank you for reporting!
This image will be automatically disabled when it gets reported by several people.



Democracy no panacea
Published in The Saudi Gazette on 04 - 06 - 2012

Unlike communism, which some have condemned as the opium of the masses, democracy provides an arsenal to the masses.
Remember the famous radio broadcast delivered by US President Franklin D. Roosevelt in 1940, giving the slogan “the great arsenal of democracy.”
As is the case with an armory, the democratic arsenal also contains a lot of potentially dangerous weapons. The weapons of freedom of speech, the right to vote, and freedom to protest and demonstrate can wreak havoc if they fall into inexperienced and irresponsible hands.
Unfortunately this is exactly what is happening in Arab Spring countries which have had their first taste of real democracy. Immaturity and inexperience in handling democratic responsibilities are visible.
Voting patterns show more of a knee-jerk reaction to the fallen regimes' policies than any political acumen.
Unbridled freedom has led to civil strife, corruption and crime.
Post-uprising expectations were high, yet reality has taken a different course.
In Egypt, for example, people thought that the economy of their country would improve in the post-Mubarak era yet the figures tell a dismal tale. Inflation is running at almost 12 percent. Food prices have gone up by 16-24 percent.
In Tunisia, unemployment was the factor that led to the uprising. Yet more than one year after the ouster of Ben Ali, the unemployment situation has gone from bad to worse. Only a few days ago, jobless graduates clashed with the police in Tunis.
The election results were also not along the lines that the West had expected.
In Tunisia, Islamists Ennahda won 40 percent of the vote, and 89 of the 217 assembly seats. According to a survey, 47 percent of the respondents voted for Islamists, 19 percent for Arab nationalists and 19 percent for liberals. Only 6 percent supported communists or socialists.
Ennahda's grand victory in Tunisia was the voters' knee-jerk reaction to Ben Ali's secularist policies. Political scientist Riadh Sidaoui said after the moderate Islamist party's victory: “The leadership was forced into exile in London for a long time [because of harassment by Tunisian police] ... No one wants a repeat of the 1991 Algerian scenario.”
The pattern seems to have been repeated in Egypt where Muslim Brotherhood's Mohammed Mursi is a leading contender for the post of the first freely-elected president.
So, democracy cannot be the panacea for all the ills of governance.
No doubt, democracy is one of the viable forms of government but it needs mature hands to implement its principles for the best results. __


Clic here to read the story from its source.