HARNESSING AI FOR ENHANCED MEDIA ANALYSIS A CASE STUDY ON CHATGPT AT DRONE EM...
arab spring.pptx
1.
2. INTRODUCTION
How did it start?
Events that took place:
Events in other countries
Legacy
Causes
Impacts
Current status
International reaction
Who are winners or losers?
Conclusion
References
3. At the end of 2010 and the beginning of the 2011, a series of
demonstrations and protests began to rise in the Arab world.
These protests have become known as the “Arab Spring”, or, as
someone else called it, the “Arab awakening”.
It was a wave of pro-democracy protests and uprisings that took
place in the Middle East and North Africa, challenging some of
the region’s entrenched authoritarian regimes. The wave began
when protests in Tunisia and Egypt toppled their regimes in
quick succession, inspiring similar attempts in other Arab
countries. Not every country saw success in the protest
movement.
The Tunisian revolution that took place in the self-immolation of
Mohamad Bouazizi on 18 December 2010 in protest of police
corruption and ill treatment, has shaken authoritarian leaders
across the Arab world in areas such as Egypt, Libya, Yemen,
Bahrain.
4.
5. Ten years ago, revolts spread like wildfire across the
Arab world, spurring events that changed the region.
From the fall of old, authoritarian leaders to the
repression of revolts, here are some key dates and events
that make up what is known as the Arab Spring.
6. On December 17, 2010, a young Tunisian who sold
vegetables from a barrow set himself afire to protest against
police harassment.
Mohamed Bouazizi died on January 4, 2011, but not before
his gesture went viral, sparking protests against the cost of
living and the country’s authoritarian President Zine El
Abidine Ben Ali.
7. Ben Ali’s 23-year-rule ended 10 days later when he fled to
Saudi Arabia, becoming the first leader of an Arab nation
to be pushed out by popular protests.
The protests inspired a wave of revolts across the Arab
world as people rose up to protest against
authoritarianism, corruption, and poverty.
In the next slides, there
are series of events that took
place in differentArab
countries.
8. The first demonstrations took place in central Tunisia in
December 2010, catalyzed by the self-immolation of Mohamed
Bouazizi, a 26-year-old street vendor protesting his treatment by
local officials. A protest movement, dubbed the “Jasmine
Revolution” in the media, quickly spread through the country.
The Tunisian government attempted to end the unrest by using
violence against street demonstrations and by offering political
and economic concessions. However, protests soon
overwhelmed the country’s security forces, compelling
Pres. Zine al-Abidine Ben Ali to step down and flee the country
on January 14, 2011.
9. In October 2011, Tunisians
participated in a free
election to choose
members of a council
tasked with drafting a new
constitution. A
democratically chosen
president and prime
minister took office in
December 2011, and a new
constitution
was promulgated in
January 2014.
10. Inspired by Ben Ali’s ouster in Tunisia, similar protests were quickly
organized among young Egyptians through social media, bringing out
massive crowds across Egypt on January 25. The Egyptian
government also tried and failed to control protests by offering
concessions while cracking down violently against protesters. After
several days of massive demonstrations and clashes between
protesters and security forces in Cairo and around the country, a
turning point came at the end of the month when the Egyptian army
announced that it would refuse to use force against protesters calling
for the removal of Pres. Hosni Mubarak.
Having lost the support of the military,
Mubarak left office on February 11 after nearly
30 years, ceding power to a council of senior
military officers.
The military enjoyed high public approval in
the interim before a new government,
but its apparent prioritization of stability
over democratic transition at times dampened
optimism.
11. Encouraged by protesters’ rapid successes in Tunisia and
Egypt, protest movements took hold in;
Yemen
Bahrain
Libya
Syria
Unlike in Tunisia and Egypt, however, the outpouring of
popular discontent in these countries led to bloody—and
often protracted—struggles between opposition groups
and ruling regimes.
12.
13. In Yemen, where the first protests appeared in late January 2011, Pres. Ali
Abdullah Saleh’s base of support was damaged when a number of the
country’s most powerful tribal and military leaders aligned themselves
with the pro-democracy protesters calling for him to step down. When
negotiations to remove Saleh from power failed, loyalist and
opposition fighters clashed in Sanaa. Saleh left Yemen in June to
receive medical treatment after he was injured in a bomb attack, raising
hopes among the opposition that a transition would begin. Saleh
returned to the country unexpectedly four months later, however,
adding to the uncertainty and confusion about Yemen’s political future.
In November 2011 Saleh signed an internationally mediated agreement
calling for a phased transfer of power to the vice president, Abd
Rabbuh Mansur Hadi. In accordance with the agreement, Hadi took
over governing responsibility immediately and formally assumed the
presidency after standing as the sole candidate in a presidential election
in February 2012. Unable to improve conditions or maintain stability,
however, Hadi’s government faced armed confrontation and rebellion
that in 2014 devolved into a civil war.
14. Mass protests demanding political and economic reforms erupted
in Bahrain in mid-February 2011, led by Bahraini human rights activists
and members of Bahrain’s marginalized Shiʿi majority. Protests were
violently suppressed by Bahraini security forces, aided by a Gulf
Cooperation Council security force (composed of about 1,000 soldiers
from Saudi Arabia and 500 police officers from the United Arab
Emirates) that entered the country in March. By the end of the month, the
mass protest movement had been stifled. In the aftermath of the protests,
dozens of accused protest leaders were convicted of antigovernment
activity and imprisoned, hundreds of Shiʿi workers suspected of
supporting the protests were fired, and dozens of Shiʿi mosques were
demolished by the government. In November 2011 an independent
investigation into the uprising, commissioned by the Bahraini
government, concluded that the government had used excessive force and
torture against protesters. The government carried out some of the
commission’s recommendations for reform but clamped down further on
opposition groups in the years that followed.
15. In Libya protests against the regime of Muammar al-
Qaddafi in mid-February 2011 quickly escalated into an
armed revolt. When the rebel forces appeared to be on the
verge of defeat in March, an international coalition led
by NATO launched a campaign of air strikes targeting
Qaddafi’s forces. Although NATO intervention ultimately
shifted the military balance in favour of the rebel
forces, Qaddafi was able to cling to power in the
capital, Tripoli, for several more months. He was forced
from power in August 2011 after rebel forces took control
of Tripoli. After evading capture for several weeks, Qaddafi
was killed in Sirte in October 2011 as rebel forces took
control of the city. A Transitional National Council, set up
by rebel forces and recognized internationally, took power,
but its struggle to exert authority over the country
precipitated the outbreak of civil war in 2014.
16. In Syria protests calling for the resignation of Pres. Bashar al-Assad broke out
in southern Syria in mid-March 2011 and spread through the country. The
Assad regime responded with a brutal crackdown against protesters, drawing
condemnation from international leaders and human rights groups. A
leadership council for the Syrian opposition formed in Istanbul in August, and
opposition militias began to launch attacks on government forces. In spite of
the upheaval, Assad’s hold on power appeared strong, as he was able to retain
the support of critical military units composed largely of members of
Syria’s ʿAlawite minority, to which Assad also belonged. Meanwhile,
divisions in the international community made it unlikely that international
military intervention, which had proved decisive in Libya, would be possible
in Syria. Russia and China vetoed UN Security Council resolutions meant to
pressure the Assad regime in October 2011 and February 2012 and vowed to
oppose any measure that would lead to foreign intervention in Syria or
Assad’s removal from power. The arrival of a delegation of peace monitors
from the Arab League in December 2011 did little to reduce violence. The
escalation of violence, fed by funding and arms from several rival countries
interested in the outcome of the situation, culminated in a devastating civil
war and a massive refugee crisis affecting millions.
17. The effects of the Arab Spring movement were felt
elsewhere throughout the Middle East and North
Africa as many of the countries in the region
experienced at least minor pro-democracy protests.
In Algeria, Jordan, Morocco, and Oman, rulers
offered a variety of concessions, ranging from the
dismissal of unpopular officials
to constitutional changes, in order to head off the
spread of protest movements in their countries.
18. Although the protest movements in 2011 were unique in their
interconnected struggle for democracy across the region, the push
to end corruption and improve citizens’ quality of life did not end
with the Arab Spring. Protests continued for years to come, and an
additional wave of protests took place in the Arab world in the late
2010s and early 2020s. In February 2019, protests in Algeria
toppled the government of Pres. Abdelaziz Bouteflika; in April,
Sudan’s military ended the 30-year rule of Pres. Omar al-
Bashir after months of protests. Iraq and
Lebanon, democracies whose polarized factions rendered the
governments incapable of addressing major crises, also faced
massive demonstrations of their own in 2019–20. Although these
individual protest movements were not inspired by one another,
the scale and similarity of their grievances led many observers to
refer to this wave of protests as a second Arab Spring.
19. 1. Corruption of Arab Leaders
There was much corruption of Arab leaders. The main reasons of the Arab
revolts are not limited to internal causes, so it is important to analyze the
international causes such as the failure of the war on terror, the Iraqi war
and the U.S.A – European strategy of the imported democracy. Another
possible reason could be the failure of the peace process in the Israeli-
Arabic conflict.
2. The Internal Causes
Throughout history, any revolution is a result of many events that completely
change the nature of the society and its political life. The French
revolution (1789-99), for example, was due to many factors such as
economic difficulties, political rights and rising food prices
(Sydenham1997). William Shaub, in his article, The Roots of the
Revolution in Egypt, has highlighted on the average per –capita and it’s
possible affect on the revolution. He wrote, “Egypt has had a massive
income gap throughout Mubarak’s control, which is clearly the root cause
of the original uprising. One half of Egyptians live on $2/day or less. The
average per-capita income in the country is just $6,200.
20. 3. Unemployment: Unemployment in the Arab region is also a major source of economic
insecurity and for destabilization of any political system. According to Don Tapscott,
“twenty-four percent of young people in the region cannot find jobs” (Guardian: 2011).
This percentage of young unemployment is very high and the Arab countries in the region
have not been able to change this situation and create new jobs, especially after the world
financial crises.
4. Bad Political Systems: Political and human rights are fundamental for any society and
Arab region lives a situation well described by Hisham Sharabi in his book Neo-
patriarchy. ” Even when most states arrived a very high level of democracy and political
rights, the Arab region still suffers from bad political systems based on corruption, state of
emergency laws, the lack of free elections and freedom of speech and religious
fundamentalism ” (Sharabi: 2006).
5. Role of the Technology and the Social Network: After all these internal causes of the
Arab revolt, it is important to not underestimate the role of the technology and the social
network (Facebook, Twiter) that facilitated the communication between the protesters. For
this reason, the governments in Egypt and Tunisia shut down the Internet during the last
protest against Mubarak and Ben Ali, in order to limit communication between protest
groups.
21. 6. The International Causes: The geographic position of many Arab states
protagonist of the “Arab Spring” lead us to analyze also the International
causes of these revolts. Egypt is the biggest Arab state and it is the first state
that signed a peace accord with Israel. At the same time Cairo during
Mubarak regime enjoyed a solid alliance with the United States in addition to
the high influence on Palestinian parties.
7. Economic, Social, and Political Grievances: Although there were some
differences in emphasis, all of the evidence we received agreed that protests
were spurred by a potent combination of economic, social, and political
grievances that created “fertile grounds for dissent” and united disparate
groups in opposition to their autocratic systems. Our witnesses described
chronic economic underperformance across the region, drawing particular
attention to unemployment—especially youth unemployment—which
averaged 20% across the region and reached 30% in Libya in 2011; poverty;
widening inequality; rising food prices; and increasingly visible evidence of
corruption and the enrichment of elites. The food riots that took place in the
region in 2008 also contributed, demonstrating existing discontent, as well as
the people’s ability to protest.
22.
23. UN : sanction to Libya
Arab league : accept a mediation by Hugo Chavez
NATO : attack in Libya are assimilated to a crime against
humanity
South Korea launched tracts on north Korea about the
Arab Spring
US : position of army near the Libyan coast
EU : sanction on Libya, embargo
24. Major Changes
Regime change: Egypt, Tunisia, Libya and Yemen
Regime Change On the way: Syria
Major political reforms: Morocco
Substantial reforms: Jordan, Bahrain and Algeria;
Minor reforms: Saudi Arabia, Oman and the Palestinian
Authority.
Effects of Revolt
Living standards
Literacy rates
Increased availability of higher education
Human development index
Better understanding between government and the people
25. Libya has been ruined by the continuing chaos which followed the revolution against
Gadaffi.
Egypt is back in a condition of stasis, its economy horribly damaged by the events of
the past few years.
In Syria, Bashir Assad has managed to survive against the revolutionaries.
The political system in Jordan has been under threat, but it is still surviving.
Lebanon has held together.
Algeria and Tunisia have settled down.
Turkey, watching from the sidelines, has often been worried, but has survived
unscarred.
And what about the outside world?
President Obama, who warned Bashir Assad not to use chemical weapons against the
insurgents then did nothing when he did, has never managed to shake off the
appearance of weakness and indecision.
Britain, whose Parliament voted not to bomb Syria in August 2013, is generally
regarded as having shrunk in status.
A vote a year later to bomb Islamic State has not really changed that perception.
"That whole Arab Spring business has been a mess, right from the start," said a senior
American diplomat recently.
It's hard to disagree with him.
26. Arab spring ended in 2012 but wit the passage of time; more and
more protests arose with time-to-time.
In 2019, multiple uprisings and protest movements in Algeria,
Sudan, Iraq, Lebanon, and Egypt have been seen as a continuation
of the Arab Spring. In 2020, multiple conflicts are still continuing
that might be seen as a result of the Arab Spring.
Ten years since the Arab spring protests commenced, the Middle
East is sheltering from a resurgent Covid pandemic. This threat has
quelled protests in many countries, along with most other activity.
But the underlying conditions that gave rise to the Arab spring –
disenfranchisement, broken social contracts and corruption – have
only grown worse in the decade since, and will be deepened by the
economic consequences of coronavirus.
The street movements that reshaped the Middle East in early 2011
may have been a phenomenon that has since exhausted itself.
More likely, they were the beginning of a new era for the Arab
world that is still playing out.
27. Looking back, the uprisings, commonly known as the
Arab Spring, produced modest political, social, and
economic gains for some of the region’s inhabitants. But
they also sparked horrific and lasting violence, mass
displacement, and worsening repression in parts of the
region. These graphics show how the lives of those in six
Arab Spring hot spots—Bahrain, Egypt, Libya, Syria,
Tunisia, and Yemen—have changed, for better or worse,
since the upheaval began a decade ago.
The Middle East before the Arab uprisings seemed like a
heterogeneous security system. These parameters were
inherited from the colonial powers and the Cold War. The
Arab revolutions untied the internal dynamics of protest
and political change in most of the states of the region,
affecting the whole political order.
