Egypt 'Quickly' Moves Toward Democracy

WORLD -- March 25, 2011 at 2:18 PM EDT

Egypt 'Quickly' Moves Toward Democracy

Video edited by Justin Scuiletti

Egypt's march toward democracy -- from protests in January to President Hosni Mubarak's resignation in February and constitutional changes in March -- was more like a sprint.

Author and blogger William Dobson, who recently returned from a visit to Egypt, sat down with Hari Sreenivasan to discuss the momentous turn of events, and where the process goes from here. The quick pace, which includes parliamentary elections in June and presidential elections in August, might favor established parties, including the Muslim Brotherhood and remnants of the old regime, according to Dobson.

And as anti-government protests spread throughout the region to countries such as Syria, Yemen and Bahrain, regimes are acting swiftly to crack down on dissenters, said Dobson. "They don't want to end up in exile."

But the rush of activity in the region also makes some wonder if the changes will last. "You see a density of change going on -- it's a critical mass -- that makes people wonder is this a wave. It might be, but we don't know for sure," he said.

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