Role of the Arab Political System in Impeding

Role of the Arab Political System in Impeding PDF

Maha Sami Fuad Masri

Supervisor(s)

Professor Nayef Abu Khalaf -

Discussion Commity

356 صفحة

Abstract :

At a time when advanced societies seek to take hold of knowledge and its secrets and control its movement through a healthy ground, thanks to legitimate political systems’ help in fixing it, underdeveloped societies, including the Arab societies, are plagued with informational crises which have cost them a lot at the internal and external levels. This is attributed to the fact that their political regimes lack legitimacy. These regimes, by various means and methods, have imposed themselves. Their top priority is to remain in power and continue to rule. These regimes have totally neglected informational building of their subjects. The vision of the Arab political system has been based on rule: restriction of freedom and usurpation of rights. These regimes have long believed that freedom, if given to people, will pose a threat to them and to their survival. This restriction of freedom and denial of rights have been practiced under the pretext of maintaining order and law. In so doing, these regimes have censored all tools of information production and dissemination. The Arab regimes are truly living in serious crises. Of these are the crises of legitimacy and democracy and absence of political pluralism. These have allowed denial of rights and civil liberties of the Arab citizen, thus hindering his endeavor for knowledge. The informational building has been hard hit. One of the basics of this building is the exercise of political freedom and civil liberties by the citizen including freedom of thinking, expression of opinion in a way that allows the acceptance of the other’s opinion, and the possibility of opening a dialog with him to come up with an independent, objective, enlightened opinion, on the basis of which a constructive dialog can be initiated. This status quo of the Arab political regimes and their societies is now in a serious crisis: informational crisis. This has opened the room for foreigners to impose their agenda, and suggest reform initiatives, counting on language of threats. They are frankly pressing for their implementation. This study has proved that behind these schemes are bad intentions, propaganda and political interests. This study has endeavored to point out that the building or creation of informational Arab societies will not materialize through foreign reform calls and schemes. Rather, what is needed is national reform schemes that take into consideration political reform, first, through creation of legitimate political regimes based on public support, institutional democracy, freedom of opinion and expression and the right to access knowledge wherever it is without any restrictions or conditions.

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