By Alphonce Shiundu

Two years after the Arab Spring revolutions in North Africa， Libya， Tunisia and Egypt all face challenging transitions in a freer socio-political environments at a time when they are dealing with very dire economic realities. The three countries must now find their own ways forward， building leadership and order in the midst of uncertainty.

Egyptian progress

In Egypt， the citizens rose up on January 25， 2011. During 18 days of demonstrations， determined citizens rioted against brutal security forces and formed mammoth crowd sit-ins in Cairos Tahrir Square and successfully toppled the three-decade-old leadership of Hosni Mubarak.

It took a full year for the country to elect a new president， and almost another half a year for the new president to ensure that the country had a new Constitution to harness the dreams of the people who fought in the streets in the name of freedom， respect and dignity.

But as Egypts new President Mohamed Morsi tackled the massive expectations of the newly free Egypt， he had to contend with activists who thought he wanted to entrench Islamists and their strict rhetoric in government.

When Morsi said his decisions wouldnt be subject to review in court， the people fought back. They didnt understand why their new leader wanted to rule by decree. They went back to Tahrir Square. They fought President Morsis supporters. In the end， they got tired and approved the Constitution， although only by a slim majority.

According to Rami Khouri， Director of the Issam Fares Institute for Public Policy and International Affairs at the American University of Beirut， in Beirut， Lebanon， the approval of the Constitution in the referendum is the “most important single moment in the political transformation of the past two years in Egypt.”

“Many Egyptians voted ‘yes because they want to move on with the process of completing their national political and democratic reconfiguration， regardless of flaws in the draft they were offered，” said Khouri in an essay.

The Constitution was approved by 57 percent of the electorate. But Khouri noted that it was flawed， and the referendum itself was blemished. He insists the struggle will continue.

“Egyptians will now slowly and democratically refine their national consensus on key issues that remain vague in the current constitutional draft， related to personal liberties， the roles of religion and the military in state affairs， protection of minorities and other key matters，” Khouri said on the online portal of the Cairo Review of Global Affairs.

Tunisia needs stability

“Unemployment figures also fail to reflect details on the quality of jobs available for youth. It is important to remember that Mohammed Bouazizi， 26， the young Tunisian who burned himself to death and was the catalyst for the Arab Spring revolution， was employed. He was a frustrated street vendor protesting the injustices facing the working poor，”noted Ghada Barsoum， Assistant Professor of the Department of Public Administration at the School of Global Affairs and Public Policy at the American University in Cairo.

The situation is the same all over the country.

In another essay in the Cairo Review journal， Barsoum added that “these ‘bad jobs offer low incomes and no benefits in the form of pension schemes， medical insurance or potential for growth.”

In Tunisia and Libya， the process of drafting new constitutions has also been messy. Drafting a constitution anywhere in the world is always a difficult， contested affair. But in the end， compromises are made， deals are struck and a document that captures the agreed national consensus is produced.

Libya too has its fair share of challenges. The transitional government under Prime Minister Ali Zidan needs to impose order， disband the former rebel forces， rebuild the economy and move toward managing the pledged transition to democracy. The civil war ended after the fall of the fourdecade regime of Muammar Gaddafi， and Zidan is now preparing the ground for a new constitution and fresh parliamentary elections in 2013.

Tunisian Mohammed Bouazizi wanted a better life， some respect and dignity. He didnt want to have his handcart confiscated by the authorities， he hated paying bribes to the local authorities， he didnt want to be slapped， abused and spat on by police officers and he couldnt imagine life without his cart and produce. Thats why he set himself on fire. He died in hospital， but the match that killed him also fired the anger of millions.

Two years after his death and the consequent overthrow of Zine El Abidine Ben Ali， unemployment in Tunisia is still a big problem.

In 2011， the year Bouazizi died， the unemployment rate was at 19 percent， according to data from the World Bank. That was because of the political and economic turmoil that followed the revolution.

“The unemployment rate in 2012 declined to 17.6 percent but this is not enough to reduce the stock of largely unemployed young educated workforce，” the World Bank said in its assessment report.

But the World Bank is optimistic that the economy in Tunisia will keep growing， at 3.7 percent this year， and 4.9 percent next year. However， unemployment will climb to 18 percent this year.

Bouazizis mother was arrested in July 2012， for exchanging insults with a judge. The remnants of Ben Alis frustration still exist in the security establishment and the bureaucracy.

“Tensions also exist between internal security elements and their new political bosses. The army currently shares the governments interest in seeing democratic governance take root in Tunisia. But if the civilian government fails to stabilize the country， the military could take a more direct governing role，” Strategic Forecasting （Stratfor）， a global intelligence firm， noted of the situation in Tunisia.

Defining citizens

For Khouri， the turmoil in Libya， Egypt and Tunisia， is inevitable as people find hope for their nations.

“Citizens know in their bones that in the new Arab world being born， constitutions matter. They are not just symbolic documents， or copies of European texts， as was the case previously. They define who we are as citizens of sovereign states. They capture our values and guarantee our rights and responsibilities. They limit the power of the state. They affirm our humanity. That is why people are out in the streets fighting to make sure that this time around， after three generations of dilapidated statehood and denied citizenship， these constitutions will have integrity， and make us proud to be citizens of sovereign Arab states，” Khouri noted in the essay in the Cairo Review journal.

Looking forward， these countries will need to keep a tight leash on the ruling elite in order to not lose their gains. They will also need sufficient support so that they get the confidence to march toward establishing rule of law and prosperity.

（Reporting from Kenya）