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Casablanca — In an exclusive with the EU Bulletin, ex-EU Commissioner Štefan Füle explains why Morocco and Tunisia are perhaps the only two Arab Spring success stories.
When asked why he thinks Morocco and Tunisia would perhaps be the only two countries that have successfully Füle, the former European Union Enlargement and Neighborhood Policy (ENP) Commissioner tells the EU Bulletin that there are three main reasons for their successes.
“One of the elements,” he says, “is a stronger civil society within these two countries.”
“The second element was, and particularly for Tunisia, that even those Islamist political parties, which you would have otherwise might call ‘Muslim Brotherhood’, have understood their political service to be a service for the country and it was not necessarily some kind of religious ‘fata morgana.’”
“And they have been ready to make some painful compromise delivering their service to the country and to its citizens,” continues.
The third element of the success, says Füle, “was that these two countries have made it much more clear than other partners what they would like to see as an assistance and help from the European Union,” adding that “Morocco and Tunisia were also listening when we were in the sort of most humble way making certain recommendations how this or that reform would work and what kind of impact it might have.”
According to Füle, it seems Morocco’s strong civil society, its commitment to serving its citizens and its humility in asking for advice is what made it an Arab Spring success story.
