Arab spring. (c2014)

Abstract

Events that followed the Arab Spring have demonstrated a contentious and often irreconcilable relationship between the secular and Islamist’s conceptualizations of Arab democracy. The type and form of the new regime have only infuriated new divisive politics pitting groups in an unwavering struggle, often reversing democratic prospects. This thesis compares and contrasts the different Islamists’ paths followed by Ennahda Movement in Tunisia and the Freedom and Justice Party (FJP) in Egypt in order to reveal aspects of contentions and reconciliations between democracy and Islamism. Whether Post-Arab Spring states will witness the democratization of Islam or Islamization of democracy is what this thesis attempt to reveal.