Law Commons^™

North African Regular And Irregular Migration: The Case Of Libya, Mustafa O. Attir

New England Journal of Public Policy

Because of its geographical size and location, Libya has for centuries been a transit county for human movement across the region. Thus, its experience with immigrants has a long history. In the early 1970s, Libya became a destination for foreigners seeking jobs. Some entered the country legally, others illegally. All came to work, live, and send remittances back to their families. During the 1990s, when many migrants used Libya as a transit country for crossing the sea to Europe, the European Union started negotiating with the Libyan government to curb the flow of irregular migrants. In 2011, the country joined …

A Fragile Alliance: How The Crisis In Egypt Caused A Rift Within The Anti-Syrian Regime Block, Ahmed Souaiaia

Ahmed E SOUAIAIA

Qatar, Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirate (UAE), Turkey, and the West condemned in unison the Syrian regime for its harsh treatment of Syrians from the first day of the uprising in that country. Many observers were skeptical of the stated reasons for this sudden interest in human rights issues given that the Gulf States are in fact models of repressive governance. As the reaction to the Egyptian crisis revealed, the opposition to the Syrian regime was not motivated by its stated goals (support for democracy and condemnation for authoritarianism). It was dictated by narrow political, ideological, and sectarian interests.

Narratives Of War In Islamic Societies, Whose Side Is God On?, Ahmed Souaiaia

Ahmed E SOUAIAIA

The so-called Arab Spring ushered in a new era of conflict that is transforming Islamic societies in unprecedented ways. In the past two years, peaceful protests ousted some of the most ruthless dictators of the Arab world. Then, violent rebellions destroyed communities in Libya and Syria, stifled the non-violent movement, and amplified sectarian tensions by interjecting God into some of the most gruesome conflicts. By looking at the Syrian crisis as a case study, in this article I explore the function of narratives in managing war and the nature and evolution of Islamism in Islamic societies.

Can Non-Violent Resistance And Armed Rebellion Co-Exist?, Ahmed Souaiaia

Ahmed E SOUAIAIA

Social Change in Arab Societies

محاسن دستور مكتوب من وراء ستار الجهل, Ahmed Souaiaia

Ahmed E SOUAIAIA

No abstract provided.

You Say You Want A (Nonviolent) Revolution, Well Then What? Translating Western Thought, Strategic Ideological Cooptation, And Institution Building For Freedom For Governments Emerging Out Of Peaceful Chaos, Donald J. Kochan

Donald J. Kochan

With nonviolent revolution in particular, displaced governments leave a power and governance vacuum waiting to be filled. Such vacuums are particularly susceptible to what this Article will call “strategic ideological cooptation.” Following the regime disruption, peaceful chaos transitions into a period in which it is necessary to structure and order the emergent governance scheme. That period in which the new government scheme emerges is particularly fraught with danger when growing from peaceful chaos because nonviolent revolutions tend to be decentralized, unorganized, unsophisticated, and particularly vulnerable to cooptation. Any external power wishing to influence events in societies emerging out of peaceful …

Islamists Bring Religion Down To Earth: The End Of Religious Idealism, Ahmed Souaiaia

Ahmed E SOUAIAIA

No abstract provided.

The Gulf Cooperative Council And The Arab Spring, Ahmed Souaiaia

Ahmed E SOUAIAIA

No abstract provided.

Apathy In The Face Of Cruelty, Ahmed Souaiaia

Ahmed E SOUAIAIA

No abstract provided.

Qatar, Al Jazeera, And The Arab Spring, Ahmed E. Souaiaia

Ahmed E SOUAIAIA

No abstract provided.

September Roundtable: "The Syrian Spring" And Human Rights, Introduction, Raslan Ibrahim

Human Rights & Human Welfare

An annotation of:

“The UN Security Council's Pro-Syrian 'Defiance Coalition' Crumbles”. By Raghida Dergham. Huffington Post, August 2011.

The Arab Spring: Endgames As Framing Battle, Colm Campbell

Human Rights & Human Welfare

The narrative of the Arab Spring (including the Syrian uprising) in the mainstream media appears clear and linear: a cruel dictator is challenged in a series of street demonstrations that rapidly coalesce to become a popular uprising. The dictator resorts to increasingly brutal repression, but this fails to end the challenge. Within a relatively short time the dictator is overthrown. Elections within a reasonable period are announced, promising the creation of a democracy that is representative not only of the protest movement, but of society as a whole. Raghida Dergham's Huffington Post article largely reflects this perspective, drawing attention to …

White Noise, White Heat, Therese O'Donnell

Human Rights & Human Welfare

If, as former British Prime Minister Harold Wilson famously uttered, "A week is a long time in politics," then the Six weeks since Raghida Dergham's article could be a lifetime and the last six months of the "Arab Spring" an aeon.