The topic of presidential succession in Egypt, always a sensitive issue, has received a mini-flurry of attention in recent weeks, with articles in the Washington Post and the New York Times. For an Egyptian perspective, an article from the Al Ahram Center.
Institutional weakness is a common feature of the nations featured in Countries at the Crossroads as well as (to a greater or lesser degree) nearly all developing countries. An article in Lebanon’s Daily Star discusses the pressing need for institutional reforms in the Middle East.
Although women’s rights remain problematic in many countries in the developing world, in no region are women more legally discriminated against than the Middle East. A BBC article notes that the weakness of the law against honor killings in Syria is one factor behind the continued occurrence of this heinous crime.
Although the internal conflict in Algeria has been vastly reduced in scale since its peak in the 1990s, the country still suffers from more terrorist attacks than most in the region. The Economist describes the problem, while the government’s attempt to address root causes is addressed in this article, which notes that President Bouteflika blames “weakening of patriotism, a loss of identity and cultural spirit, the breakdown of fundamental social values and a lack of hope for improvement.” Lack of political freedom is not part of the problem, apparently.
A Brookings Institute report on the effects of democracy promotion notes that “After twenty years, Arab regimes have become proficient at containing and disarming democracy promotion—if not exploiting it for their own purposes.”
Finally, for ongoing monitoring of developments in Middle Eastern governance, the Carnegie Endowment’s Arab Reform Bulletin provides a useful tool.
