"Jasmine Revolution in Tunisia was trigger for Arab Spring. However the post revolution path of Tunisia was very different compared to other nations affected by Arab Spring."Explain.
The Tunisian Revolution, also known as the Jasmine Revolution. It was a civil resistance campaign of 28-days that included a series of street demonstrations in Tunisia. The incident led to the expelling of longtime president Zine El Abidine Ben Ali in 2011. It eventually caused the democratization of the country and democratic elections.
Post-revolution period
Tunisia was the origin of the Arab Spring. In 2011, after the Jasmine Revolution and the fall of the dictatorship of Zine El-Abidine Ben Ali, the Islamist party Ennahda and its allies won the election. They started covering the state machinery with their unqualified loyalists. They also tried to force a constitution that made Islam the state religion and imposed new limits on the freedom of the citizens. This led the opposition groups to demand to step down of the government. After the assassinations of two of its leaders and emboldened by Egypt’s army-backed abdication of an Islamist president, Tunisia’s opposition parties i.e. Tunisian General Labour Union, National Salvation Front, Popular Front, Union for Tunisia, etc started protesting against the ruling party. The government had agreed to step down but wanted more guarantees of a fair handover.
Transition
The Tunisian National Dialogue Quartet of civil society institutions in Tunisia came together to play an important in role the transition of Tunisia from a crisis-like situation to a robust democracy. The quartet managed the tortuous political negotiations for a consensus-based Constitution, which was essential for the transition to a robust democracy.
Comparison
Jasmine Revolution in Tunisia was a trigger for the same type of protests across the Arab world. However, the events in the post-revolution era are different in Tunisia compared to other nations of the Arab Spring. It can be said that the transition in Tunisia influenced countries like Egypt, Libya to witness similar changes.
Topics: GS-IV: Ethics and Human Interface