❊ No Harm in Democratically Elected Islamists

I don’t share Gino’s pessimism regarding the Arab Spring, even if I did express some dismay over how things turned up in Libya. I really believe that things in Tunisia are different, even if Islamists got elected.

The Islamists in Tunisia are very aware that they want to set a good example for other Arabs and Muslims, and like in Turkey, the Islamists of Tunisia have their power checked by three things:

• An educated, well exposed population (with one of the Arab world’s lowest illiteracy rate)
• A loud, secular opposition that is very aware of the potential of Islamist overreach
• The burden of ruling well, which Islamists across the world have been avoiding.

Hundreds of thousands of Tunisians voted with enviable discipline and lack of violence. They stood in line, patiently waiting for their turn. I find it hard to believe that they made a bad choice.

Bonus reading:

-> Tunisia again points the way for Arab democracy
-> The Tunisian model