Abstract

The 2011 «Arab Spring» seems to announce an evolution of the Southern Mediterranean states towards liberal democracy. The social-economical conditions of these states partially explain the material difficulties which run counter the achievement of such a goal. Moreover, the presence of fundamentalist Islamic groups has brought about the inclusion of Islam and Sharia into some of the new constitutions, with a difficult coexistence of the law drawn from Western legal systems with the Koranic law. In particular, the fundamental right to religious freedom is deeply affected, as the analysis of the new constitutions of Morocco and Egypt shows.