Protests spread in Egypt as discontent with military rule grows

[alp227]

Source: The Guardian

Protests have brought Egypt's administrative and commercial nerve centres to a standstill , as government attempts to stem a growing wave of opposition to military rule succeeded only in galvanising demonstrators further.

The interim prime minister, Essam Sharaf, took to the airwaves late on Saturday pledging to "meet the people's demands", following mass rallies across the country in which Egyptians accused the ruling council of army generals of betraying the revolution that toppled Hosni Mubarak this year.

In a short and strained address to the nation, Sharaf said all police officers accused of killing protesters would be stopped from working, and promised that the trials of former Mubarak ministers and other regime officials would proceed "as soon as possible". He insisted that social and economic problems would be reviewed by the army-appointed transitional cabinet.

But activists dismissed the announcement as empty rhetoric and claimed it contained nothing substantive. "His speech sounded like one of these tricks of the old government," Sherif, an engineer in his late 20s, told local news website Ahram Online. "If this government is unable to take serious steps, it should resign."

Read more: http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2011/jul/10/egypt-protests-spread-cairo-suez

[Drale]

1. Its probably going to be at least 10 years before there is any stability in Egypt. /nt

[JackRiddler]

8. I don't think so... There is a chance that things break the right way this year...

Really, it's up to the army council. They could meet the demands for ending the state of emergency, releasing prisoners, setting up prosecutions, allowing parties to organize, holding elections under truly democratic conditions (which would mean a longer timetable and fair rules long in advance), while giving way to a civilian transitional council sooner...

[derby378]

2. Hope somebody managed to stockpile some arms just in case

This whole military takeover has been making me nervous for a long, long time.

[JackRiddler]

9. Fantasy. The real prescription for chaos and dictatorship.

[derby378]

11. Check your American history again (n/t)

[JackRiddler]

12. I'm probably not getting it from the same NRA cartoon as you.

[derby378]

14. Keep telling yourself that (n/t)

[juxtaposed]

3. i think people just want to be free I know that leaves a lot of doors open

I like to be governed and have rules to live by. I like the idea if i don't like a law i can challenge it.

[StarsInHerHair]

4. wow how awful it looks like Egypt traded a dictator for a military dictatorship

.

[defendandprotect]

6. ... but isn't it likely military are acting for Egyptian elites -- perhaps even...

elites off shore?

Don't know enough about this but how nuts could a handful of miltiary be unless

they are representing true hidden power?



Meanwhile ...

:hi:

[StarsInHerHair]

7. I know, what with Libya's 'rebe' group moving to establish a bank as 1 of their

very first acts...........I worry that what we're seeing may really be COUNTER-revolutions all over the mid-near east

[defendandprotect]

10. Thanks for the reply --

so much going on that I have lost track of the revolutions --

And agree with your concern --


:)

[defendandprotect]

5. Kind of lost track of their struggle, but obviously Mubark was heading up

a huge criminal enterprise -- presumably for other elites --

Or is the military so fond of torture that they don't want the dictatorship to end?

[Igel]

13. I like their set of complaints.

The first boils down to the accusation that those they deposed and those they think hurt them haven't been found guilty.

One can imagine what'll happen if any of the police, it turns out, are found to have really good alibis and aren't found guilty. The humiliation of not having somebody pay--even if it's the wrong person--will be intense. That the crowd was disobeyed will also be seen as making the military even more uppity.

It'll be the same with Mubarak. The assumption was that Egypt would be wealthy without him and his cronies, and by arresting/trying/sentencing them all the money will be returned and Egypt will be wealthy. When it turns out that Egypt is just poor, and all the money taken by Mubarak et crew would still leave Egypt poor were it returned, there'll be widespread dissatisfaction. The humiliation of being poor for some reason other than being wronged. Ouch.

Esp. when democracy doesn't produce instant wealth, in a great confusing of economics and political systems.

Then there's the social problems. Most are caused by a lot of poverty (and the effects that poverty has), sectarian problems, lack of economic growth and a huge population increase. Politics aren't going to help those, at least not democracy. Now, something like Stalinism, where all the rich are beaten down and fairly impoverished (and punished, esp. if they inherited their wealth and are especially guilty in some weird way), generally helps for a while--the poor at least don't feel as envious and humiliated.