Saturday, January 15, 2011

There is no religious factor in the Tunisian uprising

It is most noteworthy and most significant (given the Western media obsession with the Islam factor in all what Arabs and Muslims do politically), that the Islamic factor is thus far absent in what is going on in Tunisia.  In fact, secular trends and movements seem to be at the helm.  The revolutionary Tunisian Communist Workers Party is one of the leaders of this movement.  I am not saying that Islamic trends will not later emerge in the Tunisian political spectrum especially that Bin `Ali was repressive in what was allowed politically, but it is high time that Arab political culture not be reduced to the Islam factor.  Today, Islamist Tunisian thinker, Rashid Ghannushi, announced that he would return to Tunisia.  But he has no role in what is happening and no one is chanting his name--his withes to the contrary notwithstanding.