The Mediterranean Development Initiative is pleased to invite you to the first round table organised by the Belgian Chapter on Tuesday 11 April. From 5 to 7.30 pm, we will discuss the transitions in the Arab world following their respective springs. The conference will be conducted entirely in French.
“To make an overall assessment of the Arab Spring, since its genesis in 2011, does not really make sense, as the situations are so contrasted in the Mashreq as in the Maghreb. Until a few months ago, the relative success of the transition in Tunisia and the endless tragedy in Syria demonstrated this. But we must be careful not to make a simplistic judgement on the failure of the Arab Spring,
The forces behind the Arab revolutions have not disappeared, despite the disillusionment, because they are so deeply rooted in society. Even if they have not led to stable political solutions, these movements, driven by the younger generations, will eventually mark the gradual end of the monolithic authoritarian model in its various religious, civil or military versions. The movement towards more democracy, the rule of law, pluralism, the fight against corruption and the cash economy is inevitable, but will take time to materialise.
Both the Tunisian lurch and the Syrian crisis, the subject of this round table, are equations with several unknowns. This will be an opportunity to discuss and better understand the situation, its evolution in the short and medium term and possibly to consider ways out of the crisis, in particular by mentioning the potential role of the European Union.”
The speakers will be Salam Kawakibi (Director of the Centre Arabe de Recherche et d’Etudes Politiques de Paris CAREP and specialist on the Syrian issue), Adrianus Koetsenruijter (Moderator & former Head of the EU Delegation to Tunisia) and Ghazi ben Ahmed (President and Founder of the MDI and specialist on the Tunisian issue).
Admission is free and can be done either through eventbrite by clicking here or by email (meddevini@gmail.com).