Democracy is spreading everywhere except in the Arab world. Arab elections are an immense masquerade. Corrupt dictatorships seek to stifle freedom of thought and to control the flow of information.
About the Authors
Mohamed Talbi
Mohamed Talbi is a Tunisian historian who has authored a number of books and articles on the history of the Maghreb. His more recent publications, which have focused on issues related to Islam, include Iyal Allah (God’s family), published in French translation in 1996 as Plaidoyer pour un Islam moderne.
The military-backed regime of President al-Sisi seems secure, but study of the Egyptian internet reveals that the regime has failed to win over the young.
Muslim-majority, non-Arab countries are “overachievers” at electoral competitiveness. Arab countries, by contrast, constitute a distinctive political community that at present is inhospitable to competitive elections.
The rise of Islamist parties poses new challenges to efforts to understand the relationship between Islam and democracy. A diverse group of authors investigates this new phenomenon and its implications…