Following the Jasmine Revolution in Tunisia, the world is focused on the Egyptian democratization movement.
Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak has repeatedly said that he does not intend to quit, but his efforts, including dissolving parliament and appointing one of his hard-line associates, Omar Suleiman, vice president, are nothing more than temporal expedients. The protests in Cairo have gotten bigger, and the U.S. now says that Egypt needs specific measures for democratization and political reform. Supporting statements have been released in the U.S., Canada, U.K. France, Switzerland and even South Korea.
Yet dictators who reign for many years are characterized by the fact that they are not able to realize objectively the changing nature of reality, even when it is bearing down upon them. They tend not to be awake and, therefore, do not know the way the world is turning. The latest and most distinct example is Mubarak’s appointment of Suleiman, as if that would be enough to halt the protests. It was a move that showed, more than any other, how the Mubarak era is effectively over.
The most pressing matter is the post-Mubarak era, which will hopefully be a time of democratization. But the Egyptian protests are not just for democratization; they are also to solve economic problems. Approximately half the population is paid less than two dollars a day and the real unemployment rate is purportedly around 20 percent, even though the official figure is just 9 percent.
The “April 6 Youth Movement” is supposedly leading the movement. It is an Egyptian Facebook group started on April 8, 2008 to support laborers in northern industrial regions. It was this group which held a massive welcoming event for Mohammed Al Baradei, the former IAEA head and now a figure in the protests, when he returned to the country in February last year.
The process of Egyptian democratization is unlikely to be smooth. However, it is obvious that Mubarak should resign his position; the military authorities should maintain political neutrality and the people should agree with the most reasonable democratization schedule, carry out elections and establish a democratic government.
Meanwhile, the current situation in Egypt raises not a few points with respect to the North Korean issues.
First, on the downside; the latest internal situation in North Korea does not allow social networking power to make effective inroads like in Tunisia and Egypt. Therefore, if North Korea’s democratization is to succeed, freedom of information must precede all else. Circulation of information is the crucial link between these two countries.
In both cases, it will be difficult to achieve fundamental reform in either case unless Mubarak and Kim Jong Il resign. Just as the Egyptian people did not accept the newly-appointed vice president and prime minster, the North Korean people in the post-Kim Jong Il era will not accept any Kim family members.
On the other hand, one difference between the two countries is that in Egypt people will have to implement the democratic process in the future, while North Korea has South Korea, a trustworthy supporter if ever there was one. South Korea’s successful experience of industrialization, democratization, education and more will accrue to the North Korean people, minimizing errors and avoiding wasting time.
The most important thing is to lead moves forward towards democratization. For this, the basic element is to use to the full all tools of information circulation: radio, TV, cell phone, DVD, foreign newspaper, leaflet, book and so on. In the long term, taking the initiative in ideological warfare in order to make the North Korean people aware of the democratic world is the most important and effective thing on a North Korea’s long path to democracy.
Additionally, there must be democratic movements in North Korean society working against the Kim Jong Il regime, even though they may be weak, and the international community and South Korea must support them.
There are many progressive NGOs in international community, not to mention in South Korea. They must contribute to establishing and supporting the creation of democratization groups in the North. This move to help the North Korean people directly will surely be difficult to carry out, but it is truly what progressives are for.
