Matt McCarten: Revolutions akin to overthrow of feudalism

The citizen revolutions sweeping through North Africa and the Middle East are an inspiration to other oppressed people in the world and to those of us who can only sit on the sidelines and cheer them on.

At present the region's rulers fall into three categories: those who have already been overthrown by their citizens (Tunisia and Egypt); those who soon will be (Yemen and Syria); and those whose rulers will relinquish power by voluntary reform - Morocco and, hopefully, a few more.

Anyone who knows anything about the 1848 revolutions in Europe that swept away feudal totalitarianism will appreciate the almost identical historical moment being played out now.

Watching unarmed citizens defying their murderous and ruthless oppressors in support of the free civil society and open democratic system that we largely enjoy in New Zealand, makes me appreciate more the people in our own history who struggled to make it so.

How many of us would march in the streets unarmed as the Syrians do every day knowing at any moment some state thug could shoot us dead? Hundreds of thousands, possibly millions, of ordinary civilians in that region have put themselves in death's way this year. This week, it was Libya's turn.

In 1969, Captain Muammar Gaddafi, with other idealistic young army officers, overthrew their country's previous despot and became darlings of many on the political left in the same mould as Che Guevara. They emancipated women by giving them equal rights to men. They introduced a free education system that today gives Libya the highest literacy rates in the region.

Libyan society is, in the main, multi-lingual and well-educated and no doubt it was a surprise to many of us that Libyan television coverage showed many of the population speaking fluent English.

We also know Gaddafi funded revolutionary and progressive movements throughout the world. Nelson Mandela and the ANC to this day praise Libya for its support in their years of struggle against apartheid. But, over the years, Gaddafi became more distant and seemingly eccentric, morphing into just another despot. I suppose 42 years as a supreme leader would drive anyone nuts. His expulsion of 30,000 stateless Palestinians from Libya, his admission of support for terrorist acts and his cosying up to right-wing leaders in the West should have convinced anyone he was no longer the figure many thought he was.

I have friends who still believe Gaddafi is worthy of support and is unfairly misrepresented in the Western media. This is largely true but any ruler, whatever their political colours, who orders the shooting of unarmed protesters loses all moral authority.

It was only after these atrocities that his opponents armed themselves and fought back. Nato's bombing of Gaddafi's forces tipped the odds of course, but no one doubts their victory over the Gaddafi regime was because of the support and participation of the overwhelming majority of Libyan people.

I predict within a decade every other oppressive state in that region will fall too. It will be messy. Many more people will die. Mistakes will be made.

But then overthrowing and replacing any oppressive system is always difficult.

The wonderful thing about the widespread access to the internet is modern revolutions are driven from below by ordinary citizens. Their ideas are spread worldwide without censorship and, as a consequence, the inspiration of the Arab Spring is a game changer throughout the world.

For instance, a Chinese friend came back from China recently saying that, in just weeks, the mood in her country had changed.

People everywhere who were until recently scared of speaking out were openly defying their rulers. When the Chinese one-party state inevitably implodes, then human history as we know it will really begin a new chapter.

As a child I was inspired by Jesus Christ's revolutionary prediction that one day the meek will inherit the Earth. I like to think what is happening in North Africa is an example of that.