More rulers in the Middle East come under public wrath

As several nations in the Middle East and north Africa are seething in violence and instability stemming from demands for democratic and other reforms, rulers of many other countries in the region are coming under public wrath for their autocratic style of functioning and economic misrule. Commotion and anger among the people are discernible in Oman, Syria and Iraq broadly in the pattern of what is being witnessed in Tunisia, Egypt and Libya. The current situation in the Middle East is sending tremors down the spines of many rulers whose countries are not so far affected by the mass upsurge but are now beginning to feel the heat of the restive conditions. Oman is a small pro-Western state ruled in the Sultanate-pattern like the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and Jordan. It remained unaffected by the current wave of people's agitation till the other day, but the situation has changed now. Signs of mass movements are quite noticeable in the manner same as in many other regional nations where people are calling for representative rule and better economic and social benefits for the citizenry. Needless to say, the rulers have swung into actions to quell the developing situation and several deaths have been reported along with a large number of arrests. Syria, which has an anti-American image and is perceived to be a close ally of Iran, plays a considerably important role in the west Asia scenario. President Bashar-al-Asad has inherited the rule from his father late Hafez-al-Asad in 2000 and is very much firm at the helm. He held a referendum in 2007 in which he was the only candidate and secured "overwhelming" majority of support for another seven-year term. The nature of governance clearly smacks of lack of democracy and there is no surprise at all that a clamour for representative rule reverberates across the country. However, there is no major sign of unrest inside Syria until now, but organizers through Facebook and other mechanisms are calling for protest against the authoritarian rule of Bashar. Evidently, the president and the government are quite worried although Bashar claims that things in his country are normal. Then, this is what is expected and no wonder that his regime cannot remain untouched by the escalating mass demand for democratic and other reforms. Iraq's case may be qualitatively different since there is an elected government even though the country is heavily under the influence of outside powers. Here, prime minister Nur-al-Maliki is facing frequent protests from the people demanding better facilities and fulfilment of his election pledges. They want corruption-free society and measures aimed at alleviation of economic woes. People are obviously not content only with a democratic character of the government; they also want good governance. Prime Minister Maliki, aware of the sentiment of the people, has asked his ministers to perform better and improve their personal image. Otherwise, he warned, they will lose their jobs after a close monitoring in 100 days. The prime minister himself earlier announced that he would take less money as salary and benefits as his perks. Unquestionably, he took the decision as the people in big numbers are getting disenchanted with the performance of his government. There is also an impression that those at the helm or the fortunate are enjoying the "cream" of massive foreign help and assistance while the people are slogging. The increasing demand for good governance is putting the government on a slippery ground and the prime minister is making every effort to perform commendably. Oman, Syria and Iraq are now showing the signs of restlessness as the demand for sweeping changes has already ousted the long serving rulers of Tunusia and Egypt and the leader in Libya, who has been at the helm for more than forty years, is making desperate moves to cling on to power despite severe adverse circumstances. So far, Muammar Gaddafi has taken harshest measures to contain the increasing volatility against his rule. Yemen and Bharain are already witnessing big demonstrations with the protesters asking their rulers to quit and pave the way for democratic rule and good economic conditions. President Ali Abdullah Salen of Yemen and the King of Bahrain Sheikh Fahad al-Khalifa are defying the calls and it remains to be seen how long they can remain in the saddle. Jordan and Algeria are also affected in varying degrees even though mass discontent there has not taken a serious turn. Demand for democratic and other reforms that originated from Tunisia is spreading fast to other countries in the Middle East and north Africa. The rulers of these nations are seeking to pacify their people by extending more economic and other facilities. It may be possible to keep the people satisfied through such tactics for the time being, but the universal demand for fundamental rights will resonate in all the nations today or tomorrow, regardless of the extent of benefits the rulers extend. It will be better if the people are involved in governance even in phases and slowly since the days of autocratic rule are getting numbered. zaglulbss@yahoo.com