Obstacles to Democracy in the Middle East
Subject Areas :
1 - Islamic Azad University, Tehran Center Branch
Keywords: development, Middle East, democracy, Political Systems, Civil Societies,
Abstract :
One of the clear cut characteristics of the Middle East is that its components have similar politico-historical fate. This common fate, to a large extent, has been influenced by the role played by imperialism, religion and common customs and cultures that have left their impact on the political structure of the countries in the region. The un-matching structures of the authoritarian regimes concurrent with the expansion of communications between different political unites are prone to politico-social changes. In order to overcome the crisis some of the political systems of the Middle East have tried to bring about reforms under surface in their political structures. Reforms in the Middle East have a history as old as the region itself but unfortunately these reforms, despite their needs, had neither taken roots nor had followed a forward trend. Having said that, the absence of democracy is one of the important problems of the region which has caught the attention of many experts. Although a lot of efforts have been made to resolve this problem (slow movement towards democracy), unfortunately not much success has been achieved.
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