The Grand Missed Opportunities for Change in the Modern Ethiopian Political History: Lesson to Be Learnt for Contemporary Democratic Transition

One of the grand problem in the contemporary political history of Ethiopia is an incessant struggle for democratic transition and subsequent failures.Since the 1913,all the attempted hoped-for political transitions have been failed to bring democratic political order.Now Ethiopia has got another golden opportunity:a reform within EPRDF under the reformist prime minster Dr.Abiy Ahmed.However,the polemical question is whether the current democratic transition will success(bring democratic consolidation)or fail(reversion to authoritarianism).This paper,therefore,examined anatomy of missed opportunities for change in the modern Ethiopian political history with the intent of drawing the lessons to be taken into consideration from the past failures for current political reform the country has undergone.The study employed qualitative research approach in which data are gathered through document review and analyzed using critical discourse and historical narrative analysis techniques.The finding of the study shows that in all attempted hoped-for opportunities for change,the elite has followed a winner-takes-all-approach of politics than“a negotiated transition”based on win-win principled politics.Thus,all hoped-for-reform attempts are hijacked by the then elite aspiring hegemonic leadership,business as usual,and paradoxically it replaced new dictators who are more repressive and brutal than their predecessors.These historical legacies has also impacted the current transition the country undergone Therefore,this study suggests that there is a need to draw lesson from past failure:“decolonizing mind”and deconstructing a hyperbolically constructed invented myths that hindered societal transformation via epistemic community is an imperative to realize the country’s aspiration towards a democratic political order.

The Impact of Democratization on“FDI”in Tunisia-A Comparison of Pre and Post Revolution Periods

The study examined the impact of democratization on foreign direct investment in Tunisia and has done a comparison of the pre and post revolution periods.The paper has used secondary data for the variables GDP per capita,FDI,Gross Fixed Capital Formation(GFCF),Current health expenditure(%of GDP)for the period 2001-2018.The study aims to provide arguments of the favorable political conditions for FDI,the purpose is to understand;whether,democracy and autocracy attract FDI in the Pre and Post-event of revolution in Tunisia.In addition,this investigation discusses the key elements for path dependency in democratic transitions from autocracy to democracy.The study found that there is a correlation between the adoption of a democratic regime and the FDI evolution.A democratic regime creates the right political circumstances to improve macroeconomic performance.It can stimulate growth if it is conducted in a stable political environment.

Middle East Upheavals and Democratic Transition of Arab Countri

Prior to the Middle East upheavals,democratic transitions in Arab countries could be roughly divided into three stages,namely,the early constitutional reform,the third wave of democratization and democratic reforms under the impact of the end of the Cold War,and during the democratization process under pressure from the US“Greater Middle East”initiative in the new century.The Middle East upheavals are part of political and social movements that involve the whole Arab world.They have not only some common features,but also huge differences;the long-standing problems in Arab countries in the political,economic and social areas are the fundamental causes of Middle East upheavals.However,in addition to this,they are also affected by the US“Greater Middle East”initiative and other external factors.Democratic reforms and transitions undoubtedly constitute an important part of the Middle East upheavals.Arab countries are currently carrying out democratic reforms,but meanwhile they are also facing many challenges.The core elements that affect the progress of democratic transitions include three factors:Islam,military intervention and geopolitical factors.With respect to the relationship between Islam and democratic transition,the conflicts between religious and secular forces will continue to have an impact on the democratic transition of the Arab countries.0n the other hand,moderate Islamic forces will explore democratization with Islamic characteristics.The relationship between Islam and democracy will be developing in diversified ways,and consecutively adjusting and remodeling.In terms of relationship between military intervention and the democratic transition,there will be a long way to eliminate the impact of military intervention in Arab countries,and a long process from the starting of democracy to democratic consolidation,and eventually to democratic functioning.This also depends on the normalization of relations between religious and secular forces after a long period of interaction and accommodation.On the relationship between geopolitics and democratic transition,complicated internal religious,sectarian and ethnic conflicts,contradictions among Arab countries,ideological competition and regional leadership competition,as well as the military intervention and exports of democracy from Western powers,have exacerbated the turbulence in the Arab democratic transition.