EGYPT’S REVOLUTION: CHANGING THE FACE OF THE MIDDLE EAST By Mohamed Kamel

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EGYPT’S REVOLUTION: CHANGING THE FACE OF THE MIDDLE EAST

By Mohamed Kamel – Special to the CIC Friday Magazine

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What we have been seeing in Egypt over the past several weeks is not a coup d’état or a simple demonstration; it is a people's revolution against tyranny. 

While President Hosni Mubarak repeatedly rejected their calls for democracy and social justice, few thought that Egyptians would revolt en masse, with such strong demands and clear determination.

Over the past 30 years, Egypt under Mubarak has been going from bad to worse.  Services have steadily deteriorated and people’s basic needs are not being met; meanwhile an elite class of business tycoons built enormous personal wealth at the people’s expense. These individuals joined forces with the governing Mubarak family, creating an unholy marriage between wealth and politics.

But why did this long-simmering revolt erupt now, in 2011?

Over the past year, Mubarak’s arrogant regime extended its humiliation of the Egyptian people, showing that its only priority is staying in power, whatever the price.

In 2010, police brutality reached a new high when youth were killed in the streets and their parents were ordered to bury them without knowing why and how they had died.  Then on June 6, 2010 the shocking murder of Khaled Said by police outside an internet café in Alexandria opened Egyptians’ eyes to the ongoing abuse. In November, fraudulent parliamentary elections had brought public tolerance with this dysfunctional administration to the breaking-point. 

At the same time, the Egyptian government was raising sectarian tensions between Muslims and Christians. While this had been going on previously, the New Year attack on worshippers at an Alexandria church where 23 died, showed that Mubarak’s regime will do anything to suppress the people and turn them against each other. Many believe that this atrocity was directly planned within the government, while more conservative critics say it was ignored intentionally.

As part of a widely alleged cover-up, 32-year-old Mohamed Sayyid Bilal was arrested within days of the Alexandria church attack, but despite evidence that torture was inflicted, police failed to extract a confession from him. Bilal died in detention, another fatality believed (like that of Khaled Said) to be the direct result of police abuse.

This accumulation of oppression and humiliation suffered by the Egyptian people galvanized its youth, all born during the Mubarak regime. This generation has been taught that revolution is bad word and dignity is a foreign concept to them. Despite the fact that the Mubarak regime has been responsible for the enforced unemployment of most people under 30, they have been portrayed as a lazy and useless generation of drug addicts and criminals. The government’s anti-youth propaganda reached the point where the rest of the world began to think it was true.

But the Egyptian situation was not unique; Tunisia was deteriorating under a similar weight of political corruption and inefficiency. When the Tunisian people suddenly rose up in revolt, their action was also a surprise to the world and at first few thought they would succeed.  But they did, and their revolution inspired all Arab people to believe that their collective will could prevail.

Unlike Tunisia, however, Egyptians must now deal with the implications of the long-standing relations between Mubarak’s regime and the U.S., as well as the cold peace accord between their nation and Israel.

Many there believe that the U.S. and Israel have collaborated to bid on the death of the Egyptian people by planning for a new Western-oriented reality in the Middle East. This new reality would have Israel establishing peace accords with puppet governments that would brainwash their people into submission and apathy. The cornerstone of this failed policy has been the American hypocrisy of propping up dictatorships under the pretense of supporting allies.

But the only true foundation of peace is based on democracy and justice.  When people across the Middle East have their basic human rights and a say in their future, only then will Israel be able to live in peace and American interests be legitimately served.

Meanwhile, as the Egyptian revolution gains ground, Mubarak is still playing games of deception, making only a few concessions under pressure in attempts to contain the popular uprising.

He dismissed his government not because it failed the people, but because it failed him. He appointed military strongman, General Omar Suleiman (widely acknowledged as the “CIA’s point man in Egypt”) as vice-president because it became clear that only the army can defend him and Mubarak’s son Gamal could not be allowed to continue competing with an army candidate to take over his father’s position.

Meanwhile, Gamal Mubarak and his supporters are being held responsible by many for the deaths and injuries of demonstrators on the streets and in Tahrir Square.

The revolution has so far gained a lot of ground and proved to the entire world that the Egyptian people are not as complacent and cynical as they have been portrayed.  Mubarak has by now realized that even if he does succeed in crushing the revolution, the dream of appointing his son to be president after him is in tatters. Such a family dynasty would of course have guaranteed the continuity of Mubarak-controlled power and wealth (currently estimated at $70 billion).

Knowing he must ultimately leave, it seems clear now that Mubarak’s intention is not to step down before taking revenge upon ordinary Egyptians. As Mohamed Hassanin Haikel said; “The worst in Egypt will try to destroy the best of it.”

As for Israel and the U.S., Egypt’s uprising woke them up to the unpleasant fact that they have been wrong from day one. They certainly will not give up quickly, however, and are trying to buy time tin order to rearrange the political cards in Egypt and the entire region.

Will they succeed? I believe not. The Egyptian people are solidly united in thought and action. They are tired of the fabricated sectarian tensions that were unheard-of before Mubarak unleashed his version of Machiavellian “divide and conquer” policy.

Today, both Christians and Muslims are standing together hand in hand, even publicly praying together Tahrir square, and we see the Muslim Brotherhood protecting churches.

When people revolt, it is a sure sign that they have finally broken down the walls of fear built up around them for so long. A broken fear can never be re-injected.

(Mohamed S. Kamel is a freelance writer and editor of http://forafreeegypt.blogspot.com/  He is a professional engineer, co-founder of the Canadian Egyptian for Democracy CEFD, and National Association for Change in Egypt, Taghyeer–Canada).  He can be reached at public@mohamedkamel.com This article was edited and slightly abridged for the Canadian Islamic Congress Friday Magazine.)

It is a Revolution that is changing the face of the Middle East By Mohamed Kamel

It is a Revolution that is changing the face of the Middle East

By Mohamed Kamel

Feb 6, 2011

What we have been seeing in Egypt over the last couple of weeks or so, is not a coup d’état and it is not a simple demonstration, but it is a people's revolution against tyranny.  

Mubarak kept rejecting repeated calls, by the Egyptian people, for democracy and justice. But no one ever thought that the Egyptians will revolt in this mass, carrying strong demands with a clear determination.

Why did the Egyptians revolt?

In the last 30 years, Egypt was going from bad to worse.  The situation of services and basic needs are deteriorating daily, while selective money makers are building their wealth on people’s suffering. These individuals joined forces with the governing family, creating an unholy marriage between the wealth and the regime.

Why now?

In the last year, the arrogant regime extended its humiliation of the Egyptian people without conservation.  It became well known that the regime doesn’t care about anything but staying in power whatever the price could be.

Almost a year ago, police brutality crossed the line when youth were killed and thrown in the streets.  Their parents were ordered to bury them without knowledge of the reason behind their death.  The murder of Khaled Said on June 6^th, 2010, shocking Egypt is what opened people’s eyes to these crimes.

  

This crime was trailed by the well known fraudulent parliamentary election in November 2010. 

Parallel to this the Egyptian government was raising the sectarian tension between Muslims and Christians. While this has been going on for a long time came the attack on Alexandria’s church to prove that this regime will do anything to control the people and turn them against each other. Many believe that this was done by the regime, while the most conservative views say it was ignored intentionally.

To cover it up, the government arrested Mohamed Sayyid Bilal and after using all sorts of torture they failed to get a confession out of him.  After which, they did the same thing as with Khaled Said.

This accumulation of humiliation to the Egyptian people encouraged the youth, all born during the Mubarak regime.

This generation has been taught that revolution is a bad word and dignity has been removed from their dictionary.  They have been portrayed as drug addicts, carless and a useless generation. This reached the point that we thought it was true.

As Egypt was, Tunisia was as well.  When the Tunisian people decided to revolt, no one ever thought that this would happen or even less that they would succeed.  But they did, and that was the trigger that showed to all Arab people that their will could and will prevail.

On the other side, there is the Egyptian regime, the USA policies and the cold peace accord between Egypt and Israel.

USA and Israel bid on the death of the Egyptian people, as they planned to create a new reality in the Middle East.  A reality in which, Israel has a peace accord with some puppet governments where they can brain wash people to the point where they would be convinced that there is no way out.

USA’s hypocrisy in breaching democracy and supporting dictatorship, as long as they are their allies, was the corner stone of this failed policy.

The only solution for peace is democracy and justice.  When people can have their rights and a say in their future, only then Israel could live in peace and USA people’s interest could be served.

While the revolution is gaining ground, Mubarak is still playing his deceptive game. However, he has finally been pressured to make a few concessions as a move to contain the revolution.

He dismissed his failed government, because it failed him, not because if failed the Egyptian people. He appointed a vice-president because it became clear, only the army can defend him and Omar Soliman was the army candidate that was struggling with Mubarak’s son.

Meanwhile, his son and his gangs released their thugs and police forces onto the streets to kill whomever they can, such as during the Tahrir Square massacre. 

While the Egyptian people showed Mubarak the red card he remains defiant.  Why?

The revolution gained a lot of grounds, and proved to the entire world that the Egyptian people are not as they have been portrayed.  Mubarak realized that even if he is going to be able to crush the revolution, he lost his family’s dream to appoint his son as a new president and guarantee the continuity of his family’s power control and accumulation of wealth, estimated at $70 Billion.

As such, he can’t leave before taking revenge from the Egyptians.  And if he has to destroy Egypt he will, as Mohamed Hassanin Haikel said: “The worst in Egypt will try to destroy the best of it”.

Back to the USA and Israel dream.  They woke up to this storm that proved to them that they were wrong from day one.  They certainly will not give up so quickly, and so they are trying to buy time to rearrange the cards in Egypt and the entire region.

Are they going to succeed? I am sure not. The Egyptian people are solidly united in thought and action. They are tired of the fabricated sectarian tension that was unheard of before Mubarak’s Machiavellian policy of “Divide and Conquer.” Today, both Christians and Muslims are standing together, hand in hand. Now, we see Muslims and Christians praying in public in Tahrir square and we see the Muslim Brotherhood protecting churches.

When people revolt, it is a sign that people broke the siege of fear that had been built around them.  A broken fear can never be re-injected.

* Mohamed S. Kamel: is a Freelance writer, the editor of http://forafreeegypt.blogspot.com/ , he is a professional engineer, a co-founder of the Canadian Egyptian for Democracy (CEFD), National Association for Change in Egypt (Taghyeer – Canada).  He could be reached at public@mohamedkamel.com