By using this site, you agree to the Privacy Policy and Terms of Use.
Accept
DailynewsegyptDailynewsegypt
  • Home
  • Business
    BusinessShow More
    Egypt to issue new bonds for climate, social goals
    Egypt to issue new bonds for climate, social goals
    September 27, 2023
    Saudi Public Investment Fund eyes stake in Palm Hills Development
    Saudi Public Investment Fund eyes stake in Palm Hills Development
    September 27, 2023
    UNDP, MBRF launch online learning initiative for Arab countries
    UNDP, MBRF launch online learning initiative for Arab countries
    September 27, 2023
    Egypt Post invests in Roaderz platform to enhance e-commerce, delivery services
    Egypt Post invests in Roaderz platform to enhance e-commerce, delivery services
    September 27, 2023
    GAFI to grant 45 more golden licences to boost investment
    GAFI to grant 45 more golden licences to boost investment
    September 27, 2023
  • Politics
    PoliticsShow More
    Egypt’s Irrigation Minister highlights climate challenges for water sector
    Egypt’s Irrigation Minister highlights climate challenges for water sector
    September 27, 2023
    CCCPA, Senghor University join forces for African peace, development
    CCCPA, Senghor University join forces for African peace, development
    September 27, 2023
    Arab League chief urges more funding, investment for food security
    Arab League chief urges more funding, investment for food security
    September 27, 2023
    Egypt denounces Houthi attack on Bahraini forces in Saudi Arabia
    Egypt denounces Houthi attack on Bahraini forces in Saudi Arabia
    September 27, 2023
    vPalestine urges international action to end Israeli occupation, crimes
    Palestine urges international action to end Israeli occupation, crimes
    September 26, 2023
  • Interviews
    InterviewsShow More
    Microsoft Egypt aims to provide advanced AI models, build solid AI ecosystem: Mirna Arif
    Microsoft Egypt aims to provide advanced AI models, build solid AI ecosystem: Mirna Arif
    September 18, 2023
    I love privacy, and I am not concerned about competition: Yasmine Sabry
    I love privacy, and I am not concerned about competition: Yasmine Sabry
    September 14, 2023
    Sustainability, digital transformation at the heart of our strategy: Heidelberg Materials Egypt
    Sustainability, digital transformation at the heart of our strategy: Heidelberg Materials Egypt
    September 12, 2023
    India welcomes Egypt's BRICS membership: Boosting trade, investment, and access to strategic commodities
    India welcomes Egypt’s BRICS membership: Boosting trade, investment, and access to strategic commodities
    September 11, 2023
    The box office is not a measure of success: Basma Hassan
    The box office is not a measure of success: Basma
    September 6, 2023
  • Culture
  • Opinion
  • Sports
  • Lifestyle
Reading: “The Revolution continues”: No longer a slogan
Share
Notification
Latest News
Genetically engineering associations between plants and nitrogen-fixing microbes could lessen dependence on synthetic fertilizer
Genetically engineering associations between plants and nitrogen-fixing microbes could lessen dependence on synthetic fertilizer
Science
Earthworms contribute to 6.5% of global grain production, says new research
Earthworms contribute to 6.5% of global grain production, says new research
Science
Researchers build and test a framework for achieving climate resilience across diverse fisheries
Researchers build and test a framework for achieving climate resilience across diverse fisheries
Science
Egypt to issue new bonds for climate, social goals
Egypt to issue new bonds for climate, social goals
Business
Saudi Public Investment Fund eyes stake in Palm Hills Development
Saudi Public Investment Fund eyes stake in Palm Hills Development
Business
Aa
Aa
DailynewsegyptDailynewsegypt
  • Home
  • Business
  • Politics
  • Interviews
  • Culture
  • Opinion
  • Sports
  • Lifestyle
  • Home
  • Business
  • Politics
  • Interviews
  • Culture
  • Opinion
  • Sports
  • Lifestyle
Have an existing account? Sign In
Follow US
  • Advertise
© 2023 DNE News. All Rights Reserved.
Dailynewsegypt > Blog > Opinion > “The Revolution continues”: No longer a slogan
Opinion

“The Revolution continues”: No longer a slogan

H.A. Hellyer
Last updated: 2013/03/05 at 5:36 PM
By H.A. Hellyer 10 Min Read
Share
Dr H.A. Hellyer
Dr H A Hellyer
SHARE
Dr H.A. Hellyer
Dr H.A. Hellyer

When the crowds swelled in the Square of Liberation in January 2011, the chant of al-sha’ab yurid isqat al-nidham (‘the people demand the fall of the regime’) was a pithy slogan. By the time Hosni Mubarak was pushed out of power eighteen days later, Tahrir Square had become much more than simply a place where people demanded his fall.

Two years on, and at a critical point where the transition is likely to enter a very difficult stage, the challenges in front of the revolution and the strategies of the revolution, ought to be considered in light of the importance of those days.

Egyptians have now divided into camps vis-à-vis those original eighteen days. There were always going to be those who thought that the revolution produced those days, and they culminated in the downfall of Hosni Mubarak. In other words, for this camp, those days are essentially irrelevant to the present or the future.

Yet, there were others who believed that those eighteen days were special, and formed the basis of hope for a better future. They’ve since changed their minds and decided: not really. For them, those eighteen days might have been special, but they probably were not as special as the revolutionaries want Egyptians to believe.

As far as they are concerned, the revolution is over – it failed, and that’s that. Moreover, as the argument goes, it is irrelevant – Egyptians have a different battle ahead of them now against the Islamists, and they will have to work with people who were against the eighteen days in order to forge forward against this new enemy.

And then: there are others.

Those others recognise three things. The first is that the initial eighteen days were not a deviation from what Egyptians are – but a reflection of what is deeply Egyptian. This is what they achieved, when left to their own devices – a pluralistic civil society where diversity was respected, and a standard of ethical behaviour was maintained.

These were Egyptians from all walks of life and backgrounds – and this is what they accomplished. Everyone in that square recognised what was happening in those eighteen days as very much indigenous – but for many, it was an Egypt they had only seen glimpses of before.

In those eighteen days, Egyptians did not create a utopia or something akin to an imaginary place – they saw an Egypt that every Egyptian would recognise as real and representative of the best of Egyptians.

On the one hand, this was a vanguard of Egyptians, in that they refused to accept that Egypt was terminally condemned to the state it was in – but on the other, it was a vanguard that was nonetheless representative of all social and economic classes of Egyptian society. It was not the elite of Egyptians – it was only elitist in that they believed in the right of Egyptians to believe that Tahrir was possible.

The safest place in Cairo during those eighteen days was Tahrir Square – no-one who was there can forget that. The place where women were shown the most respect was that square; the place where differences of political opinion were most cherished was that square; religious harmony was most strong in that square.

The strength of a free and open civil society was shown, and proven, in that square. Those there built something very real – something organic, and not induced by outside pressures. In so doing, they reminded themselves that this was Egypt.

The second is that in society at large, for a variety of reasons, Egypt’s spirit, as reflected in those days, has taken a beating. If anything, Egypt on the whole has regressed tremendously. That ‘Tahrir Effect’ has not thrived – it remains and exists, but it is scattered and dispersed.

In such a situation, with the economic situation getting worse and worse, social problems are becoming more and more entrenched – which translates into political problems. Egyptians are not saints – they are human beings that at their best create environments like the Tahrir of January 25th, 2011. They are also human beings that at their worst create environments like the Tahrir of January 25th, 2013, where women were targeted in sexual attacks.

The fact of the matter is that while sexual harassment didn’t happen in the square, it does now – very, very, very often, and often progresses to sexual violence. They are also human beings where sectarianism and identity politics, strategically utilised and instrumentalised, can be harnessed to incredibly deleterious effects.

The fact of the matter is that while sectarian sentiments were subsumed in the square, they are not now – and it is progressively becoming an epidemic. The fact of the matter is that the pluralistic, open civil society that animated the square is certainly not what Egyptians live in now.

The third is that those challenges – all of those challenges – can be addressed, and are not insurmountable. Because the original eighteen days were not extraordinary, but a manifestation of what Egyptians are capable of; they can do something like that again. Not in terms of another square of protest to bring down such a ruler – that’s another issue – but in terms of inculcating such behaviour, where such a ruler becomes irrelevant by force of right.

That is precisely the point behind why those eighteen days in that square remain so critical to forming and informing perspectives on the challenges facing Egypt today. A particular standard was set in those days – and the success of the revolution can only be claimed when that standard is met. All of this remains relevant to those who believe in the revolution – because it serves to define strategy, as well as the types of alliances that can be engaged in to bring it to fruition.

There are two dangers in front of those who believe in the revolution in this period. The first is that they underestimate the scale of the problems that face Egypt now and how far Egypt has gone from the spirit of the Square in those eighteen days – no-one can afford to be naïve about the depth of those issues.

The second is that they underestimate the importance of commitment to that Square in those eighteen days. That becomes a question of strategy that faces many of the opposition forces now, as they consider alliances with other forces that stood against the revolution as it began in order to stand against the Islamists in this phase.

If those forces are now truly committed to the revolution, and would have stood in that Square in retrospect, that is one thing. If they would not, then where are the principles that brought people out in the first place? Where is that commitment to that change that took place, when they would have been quite happy for the Square to have fallen under the boot of oppression?

‘The Revolution Continues’ is no longer a slogan or a chant. It is a firm commitment to recognising that what happened in the Square in those 18 days is a snapshot of what Egypt actually is at its core – and what this revolution will fight to make all of Egypt, far beyond the square, once again. Insisting upon that is not failing to see the challenges – it is an expression of confidence that those challenges can be met, and overcome. That is the promise of the revolution of the 25th of January.

You Might Also Like

Opinion| Switzerland, a reliable partner of Egypt in a changing world

Egypt plans to sell stakes in AlexBank, Vodafone, and other assets by June 2024

Egypt, Sudan, and Ethiopia resume talks on GERD in Addis Ababa

Egypt, Jordan, and Iraq discuss economic, political cooperation in New York

Egypt, India affirm their strategic partnership, discuss regional issues

TAGGED: DNE, Dr H A Hellyer, Economy, Egypt, Ikhwan, islamists, Morsi, muslim bortherhood, NSF, opinion, Opposition
Share this Article
Facebook Twitter Email Print
By H.A. Hellyer
Dr H A Hellyer, a non-resident fellow at the Brookings Institution, is a Cairo-based specialist on Arab affairs, and relations between the Muslim world and the west. Fellow at ISPU, he was previously senior practice consultant at Gallup, and senior research fellow at Warwick University. Find him online @hahellyer and www.hahellyer.com .
Previous Article On the youth and the revolution
Next Article On boycotting the elections: Shadow vote
Leave a comment

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Ad image
Ad image

Stay Connected

Facebook Like
Twitter Follow
Instagram Follow
Youtube Subscribe

Latest News

Genetically engineering associations between plants and nitrogen-fixing microbes could lessen dependence on synthetic fertilizer
Genetically engineering associations between plants and nitrogen-fixing microbes could lessen dependence on synthetic fertilizer
Science
Earthworms contribute to 6.5% of global grain production, says new research
Earthworms contribute to 6.5% of global grain production, says new research
Science
Researchers build and test a framework for achieving climate resilience across diverse fisheries
Researchers build and test a framework for achieving climate resilience across diverse fisheries
Science
Egypt to issue new bonds for climate, social goals
Egypt to issue new bonds for climate, social goals
Business
//
Egypt’s only independent daily newspaper in English. Discuss the country’s latest with the paper’s reporters, editors, and other readers.

Quick Link

  • Home
  • Business
  • Politics
  • Interviews
  • Culture
  • Opinion
  • Sports
  • Lifestyle

Sign Up for Our Newsletter

Subscribe to our newsletter to get our newest articles instantly!

© 2023 DNE News. All Rights Reserved.

Join Us!

Subscribe to our newsletter and never miss our latest news, podcasts etc..

Zero spam, Unsubscribe at any time.

Removed from reading list

Undo
Welcome Back!

Sign in to your account

Lost your password?