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141. The War in Sinai: A Battle against Terrorism or Cultivating Terrorism for Future?

Author:
Ismail Alexandrani
Publication Date:
09-2015
Content Type:
Research Paper
Institution:
Arab Reform Initiative (ARI)
Abstract:
It is not yet clear what narrative will be told by history, but a dominant media narrative, the official one, has already been found for the on-going turbulence in Egypt’s Sinai Peninsula. It appears that social media in the Nile Valley has preceded its counterpart in the Sinai Peninsula in developing this narrative due to geographical and demographic factors which are out of the control of the security and military authorities in Egypt. The main bridge connecting the northern Sinai with the Nile Valley has been closed since 30 June, 2013 (setting transport links back to the time when ferries made their way across the Suez Canal between great sea ships) and the military and security authorities have, to a great extent, succeeded in concealing whatever is happening on the ground that contradicts their narrative
Topic:
War and International Affairs
Political Geography:
Egypt

142. State Terrorism and Resistance in Kerdasa: Battle Zone Report

Author:
Sherif Mohy El Deen
Publication Date:
07-2014
Content Type:
Research Paper
Institution:
Arab Reform Initiative (ARI)
Abstract:
These two papers are the result of field investigations into the bloody events that have erupted in the region of Kerdasa on the outskirts of Cairo and in the Sinai peninsula in late 2013. The papers observe the mechanisms by which the Egyptian security forces are dealing with the protests of the citizens there, and shed light on their continuing activities and psychological repression more than two years after the outbreak of the revolution. This repression continues despite talk of the need to change the security institutions and the essential challenge of changing the relationship between the state and its citizens to allow for the construction of a democratic foundation.
Topic:
International Affairs
Political Geography:
Middle East

143. Judging the Judges - The present crisis facing the Egyptian judiciary

Author:
Ibrahim El-Houdaiby
Publication Date:
12-2014
Content Type:
Research Paper
Institution:
Arab Reform Initiative (ARI)
Abstract:
With the charges against former President Mubarak thrown out of court - the Egyptian judiciary is being both praised and condemned by its citizens. "The crisis in the Egyptian judiciary is not that it needs legal and administrative “independence” from the executive… It’s that it needs to reform as a top priority… and emphasise its role of enforcing the law… and not permit anyone to act outside the context of the law or to act in a political manner that does not conform to the law."
Topic:
International Law
Political Geography:
Egypt

144. From Apparatus State to War State

Author:
Dina El Khawaga
Publication Date:
09-2014
Content Type:
Research Paper
Institution:
Arab Reform Initiative (ARI)
Abstract:
On July 7, 2014, following the government’s announcement of its plan to reduce the fuel subsidy, President Abd al Fattah al Sisi stated that “Egypt is in a state of war, many are hostile to it within and outside the country who do not want this country to be saved.
Topic:
War and International Affairs
Political Geography:
Egypt

145. The Dynamics of Business Interest Group Advocacy on Economic Policymaking

Author:
Heba Abou Shnief
Publication Date:
08-2014
Content Type:
Research Paper
Institution:
Arab Reform Initiative (ARI)
Abstract:
While the Arab awakening has impacted the political economies of Arab states differently, the message that state-business relations can no longer afford to rely on pre-existing models of business advocacy has reverberated across the region. Rent-seeking, cronyism, patronage, and state capture have long been―to varying degrees—all features of state-business relations in the Arab world. In post-uprising countries, the rise and fall of regimes, the adoption of new constitutions, the holding of theoretically more open legislative elections, the emergence new interest groups and a more scrutinizing public are all dynamics that are likely to influence the mechanics of policymaking, and with it, legacy systems of private sector advocacy. While it is still too early to ascertain with certainty precisely how older business advocacy models might evolve to adapt to new realities, or how soon such adaptations might occur, the dynamics have already changed—particularly with regards to ‘state capture’—where challenges to pre-existing networks have paralleled challenges to incumbent regimes. Combining a desk study with extensive field interviews with key persons from the business sector, government and civil society in both Egypt and Tunisia, the research makes a preliminary examination of the initial attempts at policy advocacy by business interest groups during the transitions. In doing so, a deeper understanding of how those dynamics seem to have changed thus far, as well as an initial assessment of whether or not state capture has, perhaps, come to an end in any of the countries studied is made. Finally, a brief set of policy recommendations are presented on ways and means of improving advocacy processes so that national business interests might be better reflected in the economic policymaking calculus.
Topic:
International Political Economy
Political Geography:
Middle East

146. Reforming Syria’s Security Sector in the Post-Assad Era

Author:
Murhaf Jouejati
Publication Date:
07-2014
Content Type:
Research Paper
Institution:
Arab Reform Initiative (ARI)
Abstract:
Under the Assad regime, Syria acquired a well-deserved reputation as a repressive mukhabarat state dominated by vast, overlapping internal security agencies that operated with near impunity, reporting directly to the president. Having presided over so much destruction and division, however, it is likely that the Assad regime will eventually be replaced by a government with a better claim to legitimacy. Security sector reform will be a key challenge for establishing the legitimacy of any post-Assad political order, but what would such a system look like and how could it be constructed?
Topic:
International Affairs
Political Geography:
Syria