Comparison of social political developments in Egypt and Tunisia from 1990-1991 and the causes of developments in these countries

Dissertation for M.A. degree

Social research field

Abstract

Middle Eastern countries, due to their similarity in political systems, common religion, neighborhood and relatively high communication, are strongly affected by each other's developments and provide researchers with the possibility to compare the types of their developments. Therefore, this research is theoretically placed in the framework of comparative politics and the sociology of revolutions, and with the aim of a comparative study The socio-political developments of the two countries of Tunisia and Egypt have been carried out. The research method in this research is comparative-historical and the tool used to collect information is a questionnaire. The analysis of the information has also been done in a comparative (comparative) way. The most important movements are in the Middle East region. Also, the results show that young people, especially educated young people who have not achieved their class expectations, have played the biggest role in the beginning and process of movements.

Introduction

The Middle East, which has been called the most important region of the Arab world in the 21st century, witnessed changes in the first decades of this century that dazzled the eyes of the world. The year 2011 was the turning point of these developments, which unpredictably spread popular movements all over the Arab world and overthrew the dictatorial governments of the countries of this region, which will certainly not be forgotten in the Arab history of the Middle East.

The social movements that suddenly engulfed the Arab countries of the Middle East were, in fact, a response to the accumulation of demands and long-term crises in these countries. The economic and livelihood crises in these countries, which were caused by the weakness and mismanagement of the ruling elites, led to the emergence of a poor, destitute and marginalized class in the long term, along with other elements of the crisis, such as the crisis of identity and the crisis of legitimacy. It became the basis for the formation of regional movements.

The countries of the Arab region, especially Tunisia and Egypt, have always had the capacity and capability of political and social revolutions, and various political, social, economic and historical factors have contributed to the development of the revolutionary capacities of these countries. What happened in these areas is definitely different from the revolutions that Marx and Dutoqueville[1] have talked about and has a different nature.

The self-immolation of Mohamed Bouazizi (Tunisian peddler) in December 2010, which took place in protest against the confiscation of his goods and led to the resignation of Zain al-Abidine Ben Ali, was the starting point of the revolutions, and the flame of this fire engulfed Egypt and other Arab countries. The developments in Egypt, inspired by the Tunisia event, started on January 25, 2011 and with the call for a protest gathering of the pro-democracy youth group called the April 6 Movement, which led to Hosni Mubarak's resignation within 18 days. Islamism, changing the way of governments, reforming the inefficiency of governments, fighting corruption and developing poverty were among the protests and demands of the revolutionary people. In fact, these developments had their roots in the hidden anger of the people and the continuous oppression of the authoritarian regimes in the region, which together with severe economic problems led to extensive changes at the level of these societies. Despite the existence of well-known parties and groups in Tunisia and Egypt, and despite the presence of opponents and critics in these countries on the front of the opposition to the dictator rulers, the anti-government movement was ignited by teenagers and young people who were not taken very seriously by the ruling elite.

More than fifty percent of the population These countries are made up of young people who are mostly supporters of opposing political groups. Most of them are educated and their number is increasing day by day. The failure of the labor market to meet the expectations of this group, the unfavorable economic situation, the increase in immigration and the rapid growth of urbanization have caused the emergence of a phenomenon called the "poor middle class" [2] in these countries, which are the main agents of social movements in the Middle East. The people of this class who have not achieved their expectations and rights from the government feel moral anger that a spark like Bouazizi's self-immolation erupts the flames of this fire.

The present research is organized in five chapters, the first chapter includes the basics of the research in which the statement of the problem, the necessity of conducting the research, research objectives, research questions, hypotheses, as well as the temporal and spatial realm and the stages of the research are introduced.

In the second chapter, the background and basics are introduced.

In the second chapter, the background and theoretical foundations of the research are discussed. In this chapter, the study history of the subject in Iran and the world, related theories, as well as the theoretical framework of the research are given.

The third chapter includes the research methodology and definition of concepts. In this chapter, research methods, information gathering tools, statistical population, data collection methods, data analysis methods, as well as the definition of social movements and their division are introduced.

The fourth chapter is the research findings. In this chapter, the findings of the research are presented in two parts, descriptive findings and inferential findings, along with tables, graphs and information obtained from them. The fifth chapter also includes conclusions as well as suggestions, limitations and sources.

Finally, I consider it my duty to humbly thank the respected professors who guided and encouraged me in completing this dissertation. In this regard, I would like to sincerely thank Mr. Dr. Feroz Rad, Mr. Mohammad Ali Ghasemi and Mr. Sarmast, whose unreserved kindness is included in this article.

Also, I would like to thank and appreciate the help and guidance of honorable professors Mr. Dr. Samad Abedini, Mr. Dr. Samad Rasulzadeh, Mr. Jafar Ebrahimi and Mrs. Dr. Azizkhani. Finally, I am sincerely grateful to the staff of the Middle East Scientific and Strategic Research Center and the Institute of Strategic Studies who cooperated with me in collecting the resources of this research.

1-2 statement of the problem

The Middle East is one of the most important strategic regions in the world, and in 2011 we witnessed fundamental developments in the countries of this region. Developments that changed the political-social structure of the countries and threw their rulers from the seat of power and throne to the ground. These countries have always had the capacity and capability of political revolutions, and various political, social, economic and historical factors have contributed to the existence and development of revolutionary capacities in this region.

It seems that what is happening in the Arab regions is different from the revolutions that Marx talked about and has a different nature. The evolution and transformations of this region are such that many writers and theoreticians in the political and social field did not consider it only an optimistic dream for the nations of the Middle East, and even the people of this region did not consider such an awakening and uprising a mirage in the shadow of several years of autocratic and dictatorial regimes. But in December 2011, with the self-immolation of a young Tunisian salesman named "Mohammed Bou Azizi" in protest of the confiscation of his goods and the humiliation that a female municipal officer had meted out to him, he ignited the sparks of fire in the hearts of the people of that region due to the dictatorial rule of their countries. The beginning of all movements in the Middle East was from Tunisia, but the flame of the Tunisian revolution has spread to other parts of the world due to recent communication technologies, and on the other hand, the common Arabic language plays an important role in the communication between those countries. The preliminary studies of the developments in the Arab region have shown that these revolutions are mainly moving without leadership and without a centralized structure, and the focus of the changes is mostly on the shoulders of the youth of the region, so that these young people and the educated people of different Arab countries have a wide relationship with each other.

Islamism, changing the way of governments, reforming the inefficiency of governments and fighting corruption and the development of poverty are among the protests and demands of the revolutionary people.

However, it was predictable that the events of Tunisia would be repeated in other places, although it was not clear where. It is repeating. (Bayat, 2010)

The main leaders of these movements were the people, especially the youth of the Middle East countries, who had run out of patience and demanded radical changes in the political and social structures of their countries. In their protests, people shouted slogans of intellectual and political independence.

In the last two decades, important structural changes have taken place in the countries of the Middle East. These societies are becoming more urbanized, more people live in cities than in villages. Urbanization creates a number of needs and creates citizenship rights.