It takes time to learn new habits

Things seem dark in Arab Spring countries, an Arabic editorial notes, but true democracy takes time to build. Other topics: Iraq's death toll, and malicious rumours in Egypt

It was unrealistic to expect a quick transition to smooth-running democracy after Arab revolts

It is highly regrettable that the media must follow up these days on news of complicated crises in countries that we celebrated, only two years ago, for the ability of their youth to depose corrupt dictators and begin radical change, the London-based daily Al Quds Al Arabi said in its editorial on Thursday.

"Nearly 30 months ago, the world stood in bewilderment as it watched Arab peoples suddenly come to life and bring down dictatorships in Tunisia, Egypt, Libya and Yemen, with the promise of a similar outcome in Syria," the paper observed.

The scene today in those same revolutionary Arab states could hardly be more different. Tunisia, the birthplace of the Arab Spring, is witnessing one protest after the other, amid demands for a national relief government following the assassination of two leading opposition figures in the span of six months.

Egypt's situation is worse. More than 300 people have been killed in violent clashes between supporters and opponents of the deposed president, Mohammed Morsi. Muslim Brotherhood supporters continue to stage sit-ins and protests clamouring for the return of "legitimacy" while army chiefs, the new rulers of Egypt, press ahead with their road map for the future, which was drawn up following the overthrow of the Islamist president.

In Libya, not a day goes by without an explosion or an assassination. Security is so loose that last week, a prison break saw some 1,200 dangerous prisoners escape.

Violence seems to be the only language of dialogue nowadays in Libya. Police officers demanding pay rises break into police stations, and oilfield workers stop exports, at their own initiative, to impose their demands. Recently, radical revolutionary forces had armed militiamen besiege and attack ministries to force the parliament to exclude old-regime figures from office. Post-Qaddafi Libya is not a weak state but a failed state.

"Crises, conflicts, altercations, killings and destruction in these countries don't necessarily suggest that the revolution or claims for democracy were a mistake. The mistake was thinking that change would be immediate," the paper opined.

Democracy, pluralism, freedoms, human rights, tolerance and respect of others are essentials that require time to be learnt and integrated into society and habit.

It is unreasonable to expect that countries that lived under corrupt autocratic regimes for decades could transition smoothly to democracy within a few months.

However, getting rid of tribalism, learning to coexist with all the elements of a society and building a prosperous civil state cannot be done through Facebook and Twitter. Reaching these goals requires good administration and wise leaders, the paper concluded.

The situation in Iraq requires a united front

"For the first time in five years, fatalities soared to 1,000 last month in Iraq," noted an editorial in the Dubai-based daily Al Bayan. "The holy month of Ramadan didn't prevent terrorist organisations from committing brutal crimes and stepping up their plans to throw Iraq once again into a civil war."

No doubt sectarian practices, political isolation and liquidations, along with other regional factors, mainly the Syrian crisis, have contributed to the escalation in Iraq, the paper said.

Iraq is facing devious schemes that aim to sink it into chaos and renew the old civil strife. The situation requires solidarity among all security, government, political and religious institutions.

"The main elements that are lacking are the will and the political system to establish a state that governs all of its people with a nonsectarian mentality. Continued violence and killings of innocent civilians will surely lead to civil confrontations," Al Bayan said.

The country is entering a new phase in its democratic experience as international sanctions are lifted. This should prompt leaders to start a dialogue over constitutional options available to resolve internal issues.

"Arab peoples of all sects have the responsibility today to stand against the deviant ideas and the sectarian storm that threaten to tear apart the Arab social fabric and spark more fighting," the paper concluded.

Brotherhood picks fights in the Gulf

When the former Egyptian president, Hosni Mubarak, was pushed out two years ago, the Saudi kingdom suddenly found itself confronted with an outraged Egyptian public, due to rumours that Saudi Arabia was trying to reinstate Mr Mubarak or to get him out of Egypt. The same accusation was made in rumour against the UAE, columnist Tariq Al Homayed noted in the pan-Arab daily Asharq Al Awsat.

Incitement against Saudi Arabia escalated to the point where angry protests were staged outside the country's embassy in Cairo. The matter was then settled peacefully.

Today, following their fall from power, the Muslim Brotherhood are once again organising marches against the Saudi and UAE embassies in Cairo, on the allegation that both nations are interfering in Egypt's affairs.

Of course these claims are not true. "Saudi and the UAE are mainly concerned with Egypt's stability, which reflects on the entire region. It is the West that is interfering in Egyptian affairs at the moment in an attempt to secure gains for the Brotherhood and Morsi," the writer said.

The Brotherhood played the Saudi interference card in the past to divert the public's attention away from their plot to hijack the revolution and take over power, the paper noted.

* Digest compiled by Racha Makarem