What is Arab Spring?
From Wikipedia: The Arab Spring is a revolutionary wave of demonstrations and protests that has been taking place in the Arab world since 18 December 2010. Prior to this period, Sudan was the only Arab country to have successfully toppled dictatorial regimes, in 1964 and again in 1985. To date, there have been revolutions in Tunisia and Egypt; a civil war in Libya; civil uprisings in Bahrain, Syria, and Yemen; major protests in Algeria, Iraq, Jordan, Morocco, and Oman; and minor protests in Djibouti, Kuwait, Lebanon, Mauritania, Saudi Arabia, and Sudan.[2][3][4][5][6][7][8][9][10][11][12] The protests have shared techniques of civil resistance in sustained campaigns involving strikes, demonstrations, marches and rallies, as well as the use of social media, such as Facebook, Twitter, and YouTube, to organize, communicate, and raise awareness in the face of state attempts at repression and internet censorship.[13] The slogan of the demonstrators in the Arab world has been “The people want to bring down the regime” (Arabic: الشعب يريد إسقاط النظام).[14]
G-8: World Banks to Give $20B for Arab Spring
Published May 27, 2011 | Associated Press
DEAUVILLE, France — Leaders of the Group of Eight rich nations said Friday that international development banks could give more than $20 billion to Egypt and Tunisia to support countries that overthrew dictators this year and are trying to establish free democracies.
President Barack Obama and other G-8 leaders meeting in France said in a final statement that their countries will also “mobilize substantial bilateral support to scale up this effort.” The statement did not provide breakdowns of what aid specific G-8 countries would provide.
The leaders encouraged other countries, including rich Arab world nations, to contribute as well to shoring up economies in Egypt and Tunisia, where uprisings this year overthrew dictators but also scared away tourists and investors.
“In the short term, our collective aim is to ensure that instability does not undermine the process of political reform, and that social cohesion and macroeconomic stability are both sustained,” the declaration said.
Read Previous Post