Uprising in Tunisia

The Tunisians search for democracy

The Tunisian people caused an uproar as they rose against their government. Their uprising was a sucess as the President Zine al-Abidine Ben Ali stepped down and fled the country after numerous anti-government protests and clashes with police. The protest started with an unemployed man who was stopped by the police from selling vegetables without a license and thus set himself on fire as protest. This then sparked unrest amongst the people about jobs in the town. The violent response from the authorities only ignited further protests.

However, now there is a dilemma on whether the new government can actually make a difference as six ministers from ousted President Ben Ali's old administration have reappeared in the new government of Prime Minister Mohammed Ghannouchi who was also an ally of the former president.

The Tunisian people are now on full alert as they watch their new government at work. They do not want the new government to repeat the mistakes of the old government as they considered it to be an authoritarian style of leadership. The new Tunisian government has to be on their toes as they do not want another spark of protest to arise. For now, the people of Tunisia are in power.

sources: The BBC News

The U.S.A.; Malaysia's Big Brother?

Malaysia's established relationship with the United States of America

The White House stated that Malaysia’s economic vibrancy, democracy, and willingness to cooperate on key security and multilateral issues formed the basis for a strong bilateral partnership with the US. Malaysia's Deputy Prime Minister, Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin said that the US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton had praised Malaysia for its standards in democracy, economy and governance. She said that Malaysia should be an example to other countries as a developing Muslim country.

When Muhyiddin was on an official visit to Washington, Hillary Clinton said that 'Malaysia should be emulated by other developing nations because it is democratic, effectively governed and economically sound'. Muhyiddin also stated that Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak had done a good job in turning Malaysia into a developed Islamic country with the people being well paid.

Clinton and Muhyiddin went on to discuss the development of a Peace Corps program that would help Malaysian teachers and schoolchildren to learn English from visiting American students. This is an initiative Prime Minister Najib suggested to President Obama during their meeting at the ASEAN Summit in New York City. Both of them agreed that such a program would benefit both nations.

Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak on the other hand, visited the United States, meeting with President Barack Obama and was congratulated for initiating legislation against those involved in proliferation of weapons of mass destruction. According to American Policymakers, Najib’s level of public commitment to religious moderation is not easy to find in the Muslim world, and thus puts him in a unique position to benefit both the US and other Muslim-majority nations.

International bodies however, has consistently rated Malaysia so lowly for its transparency, press freedom, education standards and more. With many Malaysians not entirely happy about Malaysia's current situations, questions has been raised. Are other developing countries not as good as ours? Are they less democratic and less effectively governed? Are they not progressing economically well with their limited resources? Did Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin tell Hillary Clinton the whole truth about Malaysia? Now, for better or for worse, Malaysia and the US are developing a stable partnership.

sources: The Malaysian Insider, Malaysia Today, The StarOnline