Pacted Democracy in the Middle East

ISBN-13: 9783030992422 / Angielski / Miękka / 2023

Hicham Alaoui

Opis

This book provides a new theory for how democracy can materialize in the Middle East, and the broader Muslim world. It shows that one pathway to democratization lays not in resolving important, but often irreconcilable, debates about the role of religion in politics. Rather, it requires that Islamists and their secular opponents focus on the concerns of pragmatic survival—that is, compromise through pacting, rather than battling through difficult philosophical issues about faith. This is the only book-length treatment of this topic, and one that aims to redefine the boundaries of an urgent problem that continues to haunt struggles for democracy in the aftermath of the Arab Spring.

Recenzje

"Alaoui's book stands out as a major contribution to MENA regional studies, comparative politics, democratisation studies, and the study of religion and politics more broadly. ... His book will be of broad interest to scholars, students, policymakers, and also hopefully those in the region who might someday contribute to shaping a future of greater freedom for MENA's large population of young people." (Mieczyslaw P. Boduszynski, The Journal of North African Studies, May 30, 2023)

Spis treści

Introduction

Chapter 1: History, Secularism, and Islam

Chapter 2: A Theory of Pacted Democracy

Chapter 3: Religion and Politics in Egypt and Tunisia before the Arab Spring

Chapter 4: Tunisian Pacting and Islamist-Secularist Compromise

Chapter 5: Egypt as a Case of Failed Pacting

Conclusion

O autorze

H​icham Alaoui is Research Associate at the Weatherhead Center for International Affairs, Harvard University, USA.

Blurb

“After a decade of counter-revolutionary backlash, Hicham Alaoui offers a much-welcomed alternative to the current impasse, with this solid study of how a pacted transition could drag Arab countries out of the dictatorial quagmire.”

—Jean-Pierre Filiu, Professor of Middle East Studies, Sciences Po, Paris School of International Affairs, France

“Hicham Alaoui presents a bold and rigorous endeavour to explain how a ‘democratic pact’ could work in the Middle East notwithstanding the religious factor that is too often perceived as preventing the democratisation of the region. A sound and timely critic of the ‘Muslim exceptionalism.’”

—Olivier Roy, Professor, European University Institute, Italy

“This unique study is a cry from the heart for democratization of Muslim majority countries coupled with theoretically sophisticated, empirically grounded analyses of how democratic transitions can be secured.”

—Bob Springborg, Visiting Professor, Department of War Studies, King’s College, London

“This book provides a fine-grained, paired comparison between Tunisia and Egypt in the immediate aftermath of the ‘arab spring’ political upheavals of 2011.”

—Laurence Whitehead, Senior Research Fellow, Nuffield College, Oxford University, UK

This book provides a new theory for how democracy can materialize in the Middle East, and the broader Muslim world. It shows that one pathway to democratization lays not in resolving important, but often irreconcilable, debates about the role of religion in politics.  Rather, it requires that Islamists and their secular opponents focus on the concerns of pragmatic survival—that is, compromise through pacting, rather than battling through difficult philosophical issues about faith.  This is the only book-length treatment of this topic, and one that aims to redefine the boundaries of an urgent problem that continues to haunt struggles for democracy in the aftermath of the Arab Spring.

H​icham Alaoui is Research Associate, Weatherhead Center for International Affairs, Harvard University, USA.