In other countries people tend to riot when they have persistent high employment. That’s what’s going on Algeria and Tunisia. In the case of Tunisia, cables about official corruption that were released by WikiLeaks have helped trigger an uprising against the government. There are already at least 23 dead protesters. They want more employment opportunities, the right to freely express themselves, and other basic civil liberties.
We don’t want the West to send us another Hamid Karzai as leader. We need the West to support the legitimate demands of the demonstrators.
If they were looking for help, they got some from Hillary Clinton today in Doha, Qatar.
U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton blasted Arab governments for corruption and stalled political reforms Thursday and warned that extremist groups were exploiting this lack of democratic development to promote radical agendas in the Middle East and North Africa.
Mrs. Clinton said the situation is exacerbated by the large population of young people in the region, who she said were finding few jobs or channels through which to express their aspirations. If left unaddressed, this issue could set the stage for more violence and conflict, she said.
“While some countries have made great strides in governance, in many others, people have grown tired of corrupt institutions and a stagnant political order,” Mrs. Clinton told the Forum for the Future, a regional conference established to promote democracy and good governance. “The region’s foundations are sinking into the sand.”
A rather blunt but true assessment. Lebanon is falling to pieces, too.
