The Greedy Corrupt

Corruption has been an epidemic in the Arab world for years now.  In Western countries, we have the belief that voting can make a difference for change. Whether that belief is true or not, it still gives a sense of democracy. Citizens of the Arab world know voting will not get them the change they want. Election rigging is always an issue and has really gotten under the skins of the public. Rulers at the top of most Arab countries remain in power for decades, and that power along with abundant monetary gains stays inside a circle of Arabs that have government connections. Government corruption heavily influenced events shaping Arab Spring movements in Egypt, Syria, and Yemen beginning in 2011.  “Our country's condition was getting worse and worse. There was corruption, torture, injustice, inequality and no freedom. Someone had to stand up and say enough is enough (BBC News).”     

                                        Ahmed Raafat Admin (Egyptian Protester/Quote Above)

         
        No one can deny the evil corruption that surrounded former Egyptian leader Hosni Mubarak and his government.  “Privatization of government owned assets fed the corruption; those who had connections with the ruling party, or more important the president’s family, were most successful in acquiring public enterprises, usually at bargain-basement rates (Gelvin 40).”  The saying, “It’s not what you know it’s who you know” really pertains to the ongoing corruption issues in the Arab world.  Good luck to anyone in Egypt that has no connections with the ruling elite to be successful starting their own enterprise.  The billionaire, Ahmed Ezz, who owned sixty percent of Egypt’s steel and iron production had close relations with Mubarak’s son which allowed for him to get unsecure bank loans and pay back old loans by taking out new ones (Lesch).  “Ezz Steel’s headquarters was torched on January 28, 2011, the only corporate office attacked during the revolution (Lesch).” 

                                                                                                   

                                               Protester burning picture of Ahmed Ezz       

      By the end of 2010, Egyptians were completely fed up with Mubarak’s rule.  The sharp rise in basic food prices, escalating unemployment, crackdowns on the media and universities, outrageous rigging of the parliamentary elections and the fact that Mubarak would most likely run for election again in 2011 forced protesters to the streets.  The icing on the cake of Mubarak’s corruption was when Mubarak’s party won ninety seven percent of the seats in the People’s Assembly (Lesch).  This is an astounding number and election rigging was blatantly obvious.  “The net result was that in late 2010, on the eve of the uprisings, the spectrum of Egypt’s opposition movement had been thrown out of political institutions and onto the street (Noueihed, Warren 107).” 

        

                          

        Syria is currently in the worse shape out of the three countries up for analysis.  Whereas Egypt and Yemen have calmed down with the violence, Syria is in an all-out civil war.  Since the start of the revolution (civil war) there have been over one hundred thousand deaths.  Millions have fled the country but there are still millions displace throughout Syria (CBC News).  Bashar al-Assad is the man behind the madness.  “He caused the poverty, enriched his family at the nation’s expense, and refused any reforms that might have lightened the burden of the Syrian people (Efrat).”  “Baksheesh”, also known as political corruption and bribery is a common term embraced by officials of the Syrian government who will provide “favors” for supporters of ruling party to make a quick buck (Efrat).  

         Like most Arab countries, corruption is prevalent because the power stays in the same family.  Bashar al-Assad has been in power since 2000 when his father died, who was in control for 30 years prior to his death.  With a system like this the only improvement is usually for the ruling family and citizens with close ties to government.  “Corruption and vested interests prevented sectors with genuine potential, like food processing or textiles, from becoming competitive (Noueihed, Warren 223).”  Before the uprisings tourism was thriving, but all taxis from Damascus International Airport were monopolized by a single company (Noueihed, Warren 223).  Monopolization demotes competition and keeps all the money in a few individuals’ pockets.  This is bad for the economy and does not give everyone an equal chance at starting or continuing a company. 

      

       Like Egypt, the citizens of Yemen were able to make their president back down as a result from the uprisings.  Ali Abdullah Saleh is a very corrupt man which the Yemeni public eventually became fed up with after years of presidency.  “In 2010, Yemen’s parliament, which Saleh’s party controlled, announced a plan to amend Yemen’s constitution and eliminate presidential term limits, in effect making Saleh president-for-life (Gelvin 68).”  To make matters worse Saleh was preparing his son to take over presidency once Saleh could no longer perform his duties.  If Yemenis did not take to the streets the Saleh family could have been in control for as long as Yemen is in existence.  The only option for the Yemenis was to fight the corrupt government and bring Saleh down. 

      Graft and bribery have been widespread in Yemen.  “Auditors estimate that thirty percent of revenues do not make it into the government’s holdings.  Corruption held the regime together and connected it to the broader society (Gelvin 68).”  Yemen is one of the poorest countries in the Arab world, but is home to some of the richest families in the world.  The money stays at the top with the ruling elite as well as Yemenis who have close relations with the government.  Over the span of Saleh’s time as president it is estimated that he has amassed thirty billion dollars.  Another individual, Shaher Abdulhak Saleh, has an estimated net worth of nine billion dollars (Yemen Post).  He has high profile friendships with the former president and the current president, so there is no coincidence that he has been highly profitable.

There is no question that government corruption influenced the events leading to the Arab Spring movements in Egypt, Syria, and Yemen beginning in 2011.  Similarities can be seen between these three countries.  Egypt and Yemen have been more successful than Syria because they were able to rid their country from their corrupt leaders.  The greedy government elites need to have a piece in everyone’s pie to add on to their already ridiculous fortunes.  “Economic hardships can be tolerated if the public believes there is a better future ahead, or feel that the pain is at least somewhat equally distributed (Manfreda).”  Neither was the case for these three countries, where the state-led development gave place to crony capitalism that benefited only a small minority (Manfreda).  It is safe to say that corruption was and is a leading cause in the Arab Spring movements and hopefully over time improvements will be seen towards fair and just governments.            

Works Cited

Efrat, Yacov. "The Roots of the Syrian Uprising." Challenge-Magazine. Challenge-Magazine, 20 June 2011. Web. 13 Apr. 2014.

Gelvin, James L. The Arab Uprisings: What Everyone Needs To Know. New York: Oxford UP, 2012. Print.

Lesch, Ann M. "EGYPT'S SPRING: CAUSES OF THE REVOLUTION." Middle East Policy 18.3 (2011): 35-48. ProQuest. Web. 13 Apr. 2014.

Manfreda, Primoz. "The Reasons for the Arab Spring." About.com. About.com, n.d. Web. 12 Apr. 2014.

Noueihed, Lin, and Alex Warren. The Battle For The Arab Spring: Revolution, Counter-Revolution and the Making of a New Era. N.p.: Yale UP, 2012. Print.

"Arab Uprising: Country by Country - Egypt." BBC News. BBC, 2014. Web. 13 Apr. 2014.

"Syria's Civil War: Key Facts, Important Players." CBCnews. CBC, 03 Apr. 2014. Web. 10 Apr. 2014.

"Yemen's Rich Club: Social Responsibility." Yemen Post. Yemen Post, 18 Feb. 2014. Web. 13 Apr. 2014.