Manal Ash-Sharif, arrested for transgressing the Saudi law banning women from driving, has been released in response to mounted public pressure on June 6, al hamdu li'llah. But it is a drop of water on a hot stone. There has been a consolidation of the Bahraini regime, as the Arab revolution has failed to shake the forces of reaction due to a lack of structure and organisation. May this generation understand that an ideological foundation is crucial to the success of any revolutionary movement; a foundation which neither Twitter nor Facebook can sufficiently compensate for. The forces of reaction are gaining in consistence, as far as strategy is concerned. They have overcome the first moment of surprise and are increasingly apt at dealing with the situation. What we need is no random actions and no avoidable blood shed but a consistent strategy of resistance with a long term-focus. Revolution until victory!
We would like to reproduce the following article by Hannah Allam providing a critical analysis of the recent developments. The article raises crucial questions that merit our consideration:
'Arab Spring' push for democracy stalls as regimes dig in
BY HANNAH ALLAM
MCCLATCHY NEWSPAPERS
CAIRO, Egypt -- As the Arab Spring melts into a bloody summer, the popular rebellions that erupted across the Middle East are still forcing modest concessions from autocratic regimes, but they aren't likely to result in broad democratization anytime soon, activists and political analysts say.
Arab rulers of countries in revolt are digging in for long, lopsided fights, betting that they can wear down the protesters and survive the turmoil. The outlook for the next phase of the uprising looks grim: a protracted civil war with Western involvement in Libya, a ruthless state killing spree in Syria, a resurgence of violence and militia authority in Iraq, and a dangerous presidential limbo in Yemen.
Saudi Arabia silenced murmurs of unrest early on, allowing it to focus on the decisive crackdown against protesters in neighboring Bahrain. Other kingdoms, such as Jordan and Morocco, appear stable despite bursts of anti-government activity.
Tunisia and Egypt, where protesters toppled their governments quickly and fueled the wider revolts, aren't exactly success stories, either. Both North African nations are struggling with security vacuums and political disarray just months before scheduled elections.
Political observers who once spoke excitedly about the wave of peaceful protests transforming the region are now invited on panels to debate a gloomier topic: Is the Arab Spring over?
"The phrase 'Arab Spring' is supposed to suggest a certain kind of movement, change, democratization, people enjoying greater freedoms, but none of that's happening anymore," said Shadi Hamid of the Brookings Institution's Doha Center in Qatar. "I don't think we should delude ourselves that the Arab revolts are going well because they're not. The opposition is being destroyed across the Middle East."
After the presidents of Tunisia and Egypt fell in quick succession, many observers predicted that other Arab leaders would learn from the deposed leaders' mistakes and respond to protest movements by opening dialogue with opposition groups and introducing real preemptive reforms. As the months ground on, however, the opposite happened.
Nervous autocrats closed ranks with their militaries and set about crushing the popular revolts, garnering only muted U.S. and international criticism even when they used lethal force.
Bahrain's ruling Khalifa family called in Saudi-led Gulf troops to help put down a revolt in the tiny, Shiite-majority island kingdom. The Sunni royal family's vicious sectarian backlash - widely censured by human rights activists - already has inflamed nearby Iran, as well as Shiites in Iraq and Lebanon.
The peaceful protests in Libya and Yemen quickly became armed conflicts, eclipsing the demand for democratic reforms. The same scenario could unfold in Syria, where President Bashar Assad's forces on Friday laid siege to a rebellious town near the Turkish border.
On Friday, Syrian forces shelled the northern town of Jisr al-Shughour and fired on protesters in other cities, killing more than 30 people, according to news reports.
Syrian state media and protesters acknowledged an attack on a police station and other government buildings in another northern town, Maaret al Numan; the government said "gunmen" staged the assault, according to news reports. Huge crowds of protesters also overwhelmed security forces in Egypt and other countries that experienced large-scale rebellions, but typically using only light makeshift weapons - not live ammunition.
Read more: http://www.miamiherald.com/2011/06/11/2262268/arab-spring-push-for-democracy.html#ixzz1P3S3kJrG
