ABSTRACT
Scholars and policy makers tend to overlook the sectarian and ethnic map simmering underneath the geographical map of the Middle East. But a thorough analysis of the region and its turbulent politics and an estimation of its political trajectory cannot be meaningfully done without a deeper understanding of the status of minorities and the key role they are destined to play in shaping its future. Many scholars believe that consociationalism is the most suitable political arrangement for ethnically and religiously divided societies. There were hopes that the Arab Spring would be the thunderous shock that would rouse the Arab nation from its deep slumber, help sow the flowers of democracy, chart new paths of progress and prosperity, and lay the foundation for a brave new world. The first parliamentary elections in Tunisia after the Arab Spring brought Islamists to power as well.
