Protests continue in Algeria, for the seventh month. The country’s long-standing leader, President Abdelaziz Bouteflika, left office in early April, but the demonstrators continue turning out in the streets calling for more political elites to step down and demanding free and fair elections. The root of citizen anger is not about the president himself, but the failure of the country’s…
In 2011, Egyptians quickly tired of protest. Here’s why that matters for Sudan and Algeria.
….. Public disillusionment with democracy We examined how mobilization in Egypt affected political attitudes after the fall of Mubarak by using local newspaper reporting to map protests, and matching this with data from the Arab Barometer survey. Our findings suggest that within five months of Mubarak’s ouster, Egyptians living in high-protest areas were more likely to associate democracy with socioeconomic…
Unpacking Perceptions and Attitudes: Arabs on the Economy, Women’s Leadership and Youth
On September 19th, 2019, The Wilson Center will be hosting a panel discussion of the Arab Barometer’s 2019 Surveys of the Arab world focused on perceptions and attitudes towards the economy, women’s leadership and Arab youth.
Tunisian Politics Splinters as Presidential Election Approaches
A wide range of candidates reflects the country’s increasingly fluid political situation as it tries to consolidate the democratic gains of 2011. After close to 100 candidate applications, Tunisia’s presidential election on 15 September will feature 27 confirmed candidates, reflecting the country’s fluid political situation and an ongoing split between traditional parties and alliances and enduring anti-establishment populism. The election…
Do Arabs Want Democracy?
….. Some might interpret the survey results as demonstrating a lack of demand or a lack of belief in democracy on the part of Arabs. They would likely be wrong, or at least be selectively using data that supports their views. Results from the Arab Barometer’s 2018 survey demonstrate, for example, that Arabs increasingly consider democracy to be the best…
Arab World in Transition?
“The attitudes of the publics in the Middle East and North Africa are changing remarkably. Today, 13 percent of the population classify themselves as “not religious”; among young Arabs, the proportion is even higher with 18 percent. This is the result of a recent study by Arab Barometer, a research network for survey research in the Middle East and North…
Talking about sex no longer so taboo in the Arab world
Over the past year, I have criss-crossed the Arab world for the BBC, making a series of short films on some of the women and men who are rewriting the rules – in and out of the bedroom. It’s easy to look at the sexual landscape of the Middle East and North Africa and see only doom and gloom, from…
The EU, Morocco, and the Stability Myth
On Thursday, June 27, 2019, the EU and Morocco held their first Association Council meeting in over four years, which was presented as a “reinvigoration of relations” between Rabat and Brussels. This reinvigoration comes after several years of diplomatic tension between the two due to two European Court of Justice (ECJ) rulings stating that trade deals on agriculture and fisheries…
As the U.S. and Tunisian delegations meet, anti-Americanism is on the rise
Can the U.S. keep its close relationship with Tunisia amidst changing public opinion? Tomorrow, the United States and Tunisia will hold their third Strategic Dialogue, chaired by Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and Tunisian Foreign Minister Khemaies Jhinaoui, the latest in a series of high-level diplomatic moves meant to publicly express U.S. support for the world’s youngest democracy. The Strategic…
Arab Barometer for 2018-2019: A look at Morocco
The Arab Barometer for 2018-2019 has been published, “yielding fascinating insights into how Arabs feel about a wide range of issues” including corruption, economics, extremism, gender, governance, international relations, political institutions, religion, social justice, and youth. The Arab Barometer claims to be “the largest repository of publicly available data on the views of men and women in the MENA region,”…