For my non-Arab readers. You may be amused to know that Arab dictators often criticize each other for not being democratic. I was watching Al-Arabiya and it covered the municipal elections in Qatar. It basically went into details to report that the turnout was in fact less than what it was last time, and that the municipal councils in Qatar don't have the powers to issue binding laws. (I was quite pleased that AlJazeera's coverage of the municipal elections in Qatar included critics' comments to the effect that the councils don't have any binding powers.)