This is very similar to my Egypt post! A great read that covers "modernity and Islam," with several countries covered, including Tunisia, Libya, Turkey, and some Iran.
"...The whole region is heading toward a moderate Islam and an Islam which is democratic, through the reconciliation between Islam and modernity," the Wall Street Journal quoted him [Rachid Ghannouchi -- leader of the Islamist Ennahda party in Tunisia] as saying...."
"...Even so, many observers of the region say Tunisia has a better chance than most Arab states to forge a moderate Islamist democracy. A former French colony with close ties to Europe, it is the most industrialized of Arab countries, with an educated middle-class and newly thriving media. It is heavily reliant on tourism, and Ennahda has been quick to reassure the industry that alcohol and bikinis won't be outlawed. And whatever the transgressions of the Ben Ali regime that was overthrown in January, it was less mercurial and brutal than that of Gadhafi next door...."
"...Ennahda says it is inspired by the success of Turkey's Justice and Development Party in merging Islam and modernity. Justice and Development has now been in power for nearly a decade; it has won three elections and has presided over rapid economic growth (forecast at 8 per cent this year). It has also advanced the growth of an Islamic space in a country whose secular constitution is fiercely guarded by the military.
Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan, a devout Muslim, made a triumphant tour of North Africa last month (all the more triumphant perhaps because of Turkey's recent falling-out with Israel) to tout the Turkish model. In Tunis, Erdogan predicted: "The success of the electoral process in Tunisia will show the world that democracy and Islam can go together....."
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