Traditional Civil–Security Sector Relations in the Arab World

Abstract

This chapter explains how regimes in the Arab World have disrupted civil–security sector relations (CSSR) as a means of controlling individuals and communities. The privatization of CSSR has long been an important means for Arab regimes to protect themselves against a public they considered to be a threat. This chapter illustrates how the abuse of the statutory security sector for regime security does not only undermine individual security in the public but also eventually weakens regime security. The absence of physical security and the resulting societal distrust towards the security sector is an important root cause of the Arab Spring and needs to be understood in an effort to restore public security in the Arab World moving forward.