The Latest Anti-Mubarak Demonstration
This afternoon at Cairo University the Popular Campaign for Change held the third Anti-Mubarak demonstration in two and a half months.
The Popular Campaign for Change, aka Kifaya (or Enough), gathered at Cairo U’s main gate a little before 1pm. Several journalist friends and I decided that a fair estimate of protesters to be in the neighborhood of 200 people. Hence, this is considerably smaller than Kifaya hoped would turn out today. It is also smaller than the previous two demonstrations.
As my colleague mentioned, “this is not even big enough to close down traffic” as we snapped photos and compared it to other protests we had previously witnessed. We noted that the Economist, BBC, Reuters, and Cairo magazine were there as well as a number of the Arabic satellite channels and reporters.
Also, it was noted that the same demonstrators that are always there were present. Today’s demo included some Nasserists, Socialist, and Islamists (from Hizb al-`Amal). The Muslim Brotherhood was absent (from our spot accounting). Yet, it is sort of a misnomer to discuss the protesters in such terms because I think it takes away from what they are doing by boxing in them with a particular trend. It seemed a cross-section of society were there even if the numbers were not large.
A few times, the encircled protesters tried to say things about Abu Mazen and Dahlan but quickly quieted to refocus on the Mubarak family, corruption, and inheritance of power. The most common slogans chanted were “Usqut Mubarak” (Down with Mubarak), and “La lil-Mubarak, La lil-Gamal” (No to Mubarak, No to Gamal). My colleague also said they sang the Egyptian national anthem with the words of Kifaya although that was before I arrived.
Around 145pm, the protest began to thin. Five minutes later, it seemed to pick-up again. The only semi-confrontational moment was when one protester demanded space and had a heated exchange with an Amn Markazi (Central Security) soldier. He asked the soldier, “Why do you defend these thieves? Mubarak is a thief, Gamal is a thief, and your director is a thief.” The higher ups in security moved in and removed the soldier and seemed to allow the protester space. This small victory for the protester ended the incident.
Overall, the CSF were calm and visibly on orders not to start trouble. They just stood there in the sun in their helmets with their bamboo sticks watching almost half-bored and unaware of what exactly they were doing. Naturally, they know it was about crowd-control but it was not clear they were even clued into why this crowd needed encircled. Perhaps, they were acting.
Away from the center of the demo, I saw different things. As I stood off to the side, one Cairo U student asked another, “What is this noise all about?” The other one said, “They don’t want Hosni.” In a shocked voice, the first one responded, “All my Goodness!” (ya Khabir Abeyod). It was when I was off to the side that a lot of the plain-clothes security types were respectfully moving the gathered onlookers further away from the demo’s epicenter. They were saying “Ya Basha, yella. Itfadilu” as they shooed us away. It was pretty pointless though as we were out of earshot of the slogans anyways. My sense was that most of the onlookers were looking out of curiosity rather than sympathy.
I returned to the front where I noticed that three students came out of the main gate and tried to join. The CSF tried to intimidate them until the protesters started yelling “Come Come Come”. The security relaxed and one of the three joined in the encircled pillar.
As the demo took place at the main gate, the road is essentially a T-shape. The roads were lined with security trucks of back-up. I am guessing that there were well over 2500 soldiers in addition to all the plain-clothes people running around organizing onlookers, taking names, and photos of individual demonstrators. As noted, traffic moved in its normal slow pace given the time of day.
Around 215pm, the foreign journalists were gone and it did not look as if there would be any other developments.
To view some pictures I took, go to this site.
Arabist.net will continue to follow the developments and check with the organizers to see if any injuries or scuffles broke out. But, as noted, it was well-organized and well-disciplined even if under-attended.
On the taxi ride home, the cabbie was asking me about the protest. He thought the idea of protesting was pointless (Mafish faada yanni). I asked him if Gamal would take power, and he got more serious. He said, “Of course not…this is a republic, not a monarchy.” My feeling was that something has to give for there to be a popular, public rejection of that if the regime is going to take real note.
Categories: Egypt.
20 Responses to “The Latest Anti-Mubarak Demonstration”
- 1 Trackback on Feb 22nd, 2005 at 11:08 am
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Fire Next Time! “reg’ou et-talamza ya ‘am Hamza lel gadd tani” (students back to commitment & hardwork). A very moving article indeed, Josh. But why do some reject a dictator under the sign of another dictator designated as ‘the symbol of dignity’? I do not understand the Nasserists!
If Moubarak was a decolonization hero in the 60’s who is fighting imperialism and trying to pursue a utopia of popular democracy with the naive attitude of experimental poltics of the 60’s and at the same time leading a whole movement in the third world for non-alignement repositioning many cards in the cold war. well I’d say maybe its not the moment to attack him. It is easy to take things out of perspective and call people names.
I don’t like the raising of Nasser’s pictures on this occasion. Like Mubarak and Sadat, Nasser was little more than a dictator. It just goes to show that there are so many competing and fragmented groups each with their own little dictator in Egypt. I was further dissappointed by the small turnout at the Demonstration. I feel that Egyptian people (like other Arabs) are not aware of their selfworth and don’t understand they they can acheive self-actualization through the political process. The popular saying summs it all up: “Khalina Na’kul Aysh” Let us eat bread”. What a pitty!!
This Kifaya group sure seems confused about what it wants, aside from “no to Mubarak.”
you seem not to realize that Kifaya is a platform where many forces join in each with its political platform and analysis.
I am a Nasserist so obviously I dont mind the nasser picture being raised and I have my arguments to couner yours, I only think this is the time to show that Egyptian forces for change are capable of forming a broad alliance aginst the regime. Sectarian political viws are now misplaced, wait till egypt is a true democracy and vote for the party you like, but now you have to accept the diversity of a movement like kefaya and consider it a good thing.
If you do not like the Nasserist, or the Marxist or the Islamists being dominant in Kefaya well join them and make another voice heard. At least there you have three very different forces puting their differences aside and joining forces for change. I respect that.
I very much support the Kifaya movement and admire their courage in challenging a despotic and corrupt regime. My point was that this movement ought to transcend individuals and connect with the avergae man/woman on the streets!
Reuters calls it the largest protest yet, which can’t be right. Wasn’t the other one 1,000 people?
Here’s the BBC story.
From the BBC picture, it does not look like there were “hundreds” of protesters there.
I think the BBC is playing it up to publish a story
I wonder if you would kindly consider reading a post over at my blog. I attempt to connect the dots between Belgrade and Cairo and would be interested in feedback.
Lebanon’s Red and White Revolution
please do not connect diots between the honest people of kifaya and the neo-facists and opportunist and Bush puppets demonstrating now in Beirut. No pasaran.
Thanks for your coverage Josh.
Thanks, Sam, for clarifying. I had noticed the nationalist and possibly ‘ultra’ expression of the Kiev crowds and those in Beirut. As Madame Albright had visited Cairo, I found it interesting that her interlocators there were exponents of the Egyptian left.
I respect Kefaya’s audicity as well, this is not the point. The point is that after all these years since 1919, passing by 1952, our cause is a standstill ‘liberative’ issue, in terms of removing a current regime and carrying out immediate superficial reforms.
nur, Albright did not and will not meet anybody from efaya, if she tried to, she would be target for eggs and rotten tomato. She met Ayman Nour, and he is not left by any means, he is right wing ( it doesnt mean of course that Moubarak has the right to put him in jail, so free Nour, dont get me wrong)
Ich finde Ihre Homepage sehr gut und fundiert. Die Informationen helfen mir bei einer Diplomarbeit für den Bereich der Medizinischen Dokumentation vielen Dank und weiter so.
I admire you on the willingness to share this info with others - good luck!