July 12, 2013
by Ismail Rifaat
Comments Off on A Potentially Momentous Date for Egypt
Posted July 12, 2013
Being born in Egypt, I care about, and follow developments there. I recently visited in February/April and experienced firsthand how many people were disenchanted about prevailing conditions; including members of my family and friends, as well as others such as the taxi drivers whom I chatted with. Apart from enjoying meeting family and friends, a Nile cruise, and the clear waters of the Red sea, I was myself dismayed at the apparent chaotic conditions that prevailed in Egypt; such as haphazard urban development, lack of security, and mile long lines of vehicles waiting at diesel pumping stations.
Here in the US we have just celebrated the fourth of July. The French will soon celebrate the fourteenth of July. I feel that the third of July -the day the Egyptian army ousted former President Morsi- might assume a similar status in the annals of history. I will explain why.
Since returning to the US, I followed up on the news, and was privileged to receive updates, and monitor group discussions of family, friends, and other intellectuals about current developments in Egypt. Many are elated about the ouster of Morsi, while others -even if they disapproved of Morsi- are dismayed at the breach of democratic principles.
In theory, democracy appears to be an ideal way for self governance. However, you need only to examine prevailing conditions in the USA today to realize how flawed the system is, and what negative conditions it could lead to in practice; my book “For the People by the People” illustrates this proposition. Accordingly, without derision of democratic principles, I do not regard deviation from these principles in Egypt as being necessarily catastrophic. Besides, one could consider the ouster of Morsi as ‘a democratic coup d’etat’. Also, there were no mechanisms in place to impeach the president. This limited the people’s options for action.
What worries me most is the breach of the time honored axiom of the separation of state and religion. Irrespective of their perceived incompetence in managing state affairs, and their dubious methods of attaining their goals, the Moslem Brotherhood (MB) was acting contrary to the axiom. It was actively institutionalizing a religious Sunni state in Egypt, thus aggravating the polarization of the believers in different religions and sects; including Shiah Moslems. This plays into the hands of those whose intent is to divide and conquer. In addition, the institution of Islamic laws entails regression to outdated norms of civic organization. This could have thwarted the progress of Egypt for many decades in the future. My concern over these issues readily trumps my concern over short term deviation from democratic principles; if the deviation ultimately proves to be short term. Therefore, I am sympathetic with the Egyptian army’s action to contain the MB and to prevent it from implementing its agenda.
Before the 1952 Nasser revolution, democracy was practiced under the Monarchy in a way similar to other democratic countries. This led to conditions both as good, and as bad as those prevailing in the USA today. Also, before Nasser, and even for a few years after Nasser, Egypt was effectively a secular state. Moslems, Copts, and Jews lived in harmony in Egypt. For the sake of brevity, I will not cite incidents from personal experience that would attest to that. The question then is how did the practice of democracy and the prevalence of secularity recede in the first place?
The answer can be readily attributed to imperial capitalism. The British in their quest to divide and conquer drew the borders of several incongruous states in the Middle East. Most pertinently and ruinously, they created the State of Israel on Palestinian lands. The US inherited the Empire and generally continued its machinations.
There is no doubt in my mind that the creation of Israel led to Nasser’s revolution, and to ever growing polarization of Jews and Moslems. I am convinced that imperial capitalism and Zionism causally affected the growth of radical Islamism, both in Egypt leading to the MB assuming power, and to the radicalization of Moslems internationally leading to sorrowful events such as 9/11. In short, deviation from the time honored axiom of the separation of state and religion as it has been practiced in Israel, has led to undesirable conditions.
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Now, the army -presumably- acted in response to overwhelming popular outrage. It is specifically the nature of the outrage –rather than the army’s action- that is most significant in considering the third of July as potentially a historic date. From what I have seen and heard, the outrage seems to reflect a sentiment that craves emancipation from religious radicalism; as such it could usher a new era of rational and sustainable development, both in Egypt and elsewhere.
Moving forward in Egypt is likely to be difficult and dangerous. While it is understood that the MB may have to be initially restrained in order to avert further clashes and bloodshed, all are advised to forgive and forget and to work together to build the country in democratic fashion.
As far as the US is concerned, several often contradictory theories are cited about its role in influencing developments. One plausible theory is that the US orchestrated events, from Nasser’s revolution, to the ouster of Mubarak, the election of Morsi, and his demise. Although this might be true, I still maintain the significance of the sentiment that millions of Egyptians have displayed; neither the mighty USA nor the Egyptian military could have possibly orchestrated that. Perhaps the US could refrain from both overtly and covertly influencing developments, and wait on the sidelines for a few months to allow Egyptians to sort out their internal problems. This might prove to be in the best long term interest of the USA.
Last but not least, the people of Israel might wish to seriously consider the Arab Spring and the most recent developments in Egypt. This might evoke some thoughts that could impact their future.
Easier said than done, you might say; and I would be inclined to agree. However, painting a picture of possible desirable conditions sometimes works as a catalyst in bringing such conditions about.
