EVENTS

Date:	Wednesday, April 6, 2005
Time:	12:00 PM -- 2:00 PM
Location:	Wohlstetter Conference Center, Twelfth Floor, AEI 1150 Seventeenth Street, N.W., Washington, D.C. 20036

April 2005

Progress and Prospects of Democratization in Egypt and throughout the Arab World

In its official statement, the March 2004 Alexandria Library conference issued one of the most comprehensive and eloquent pan-Arab calls for democratization. Although the conference was held under the patronage of President Hosni Mubarak, it consisted entirely of prominent non-governmental figures--some 165 of them from eighteen Arab countries. The host and initiator of this remarkable event was Ismail Serageldin, director of the Library of Alexandria. On April 6, AEI hosted Mr. Serageldin to discuss the growing Egyptian appetite for a participatory democracy and the far-reaching reforms that he believes are in sight.

Ismail Serageldin
Library of Alexandria

The Alexandria Declaration of March 2004 clearly illustrates the positive movement towards democratic reform seen in Egypt today. Despite recent resistance to proposals initiated by the United States or the EU, discussion of democratic change in Egypt has been in existence since the early 1960s. However, past experiences have taught that change cannot be imposed from without, but rather must flourish from within. Thus, Egyptian advocates of reform convened a conference in Alexandria with the intention of strengthening local champions of reform and developing a civil society initiative. They produced a declaration that condemned terrorism in all forms and examined the need for internal reform of the Arab world. The declaration suggested four areas upon which to focus, including political reform (upholding the rule of law, basic civil rights and liberties), economic reform (establishing trade zones, reducing tariffs, transparency), social reform (issues relating to family, education and women’s rights), and cultural reform (religious discourse and the media).

This document has subsequently served as a blueprint for the new reform initiatives and further conferences. Three conferences have since been held in Egypt, focusing on education, economics, and youth employment respectively. Additionally, a regional conference was convened with the intention of creating networking opportunities for reformers throughout the Arab world. It showcased success stories of Arab civil society in order for its participants to see what their counterparts had accomplished and draw strength from each other.

The road ahead remains complex as an iron triangle of competing forces continues to dominate the dynamics of reform in the Muslim and Arab world. Such competing forces include: (a) a control approach to governance lingering from previous centralized totalitarian regimes, (b) an Islamist current that places moral values at the highest order of national agenda (much like the Christian movement in America), and (c) the drive for democracy, the rule of law, and pluralism within civil society. Accordingly, as no two forces can make an alliance against the third, the end result is actions that go in different directions.

Yet hope remains. As public access to media and the Internet has increased exponentially and today’s Arab youth continue to pursue newer, broader horizons, we will strive to build a vision of the future that is rational, tolerant, and open to others. The United States can help by promoting science and the free flow of information. But it must not overstep its boundaries; forcing hegemony will only lead to outrage. Yet by funding and contributing to the underlying bedrock upon which our own democracy can be built, America can successfully assist in our progress towards reform.

AEI intern Yonina Alexander prepared this summary.