The Egyptian revolution !

As anticipated, Martial Law has been re-imposed, and Egypt is one giant step closer to becoming the state it was “A military Dictatorship” ….. The western Press touches lightly on the subject and moves on to the more important issue of Soccer! … A Press that has learned to consider the tolerance of Bikini tourism as the only criteria for an acceptable freedom loving society! ….. Egypt’s so-called “Supreme constitutional Court” has thrown the Egyptian political future in doubt. The ruling which ordered the Parliament dissolved was also an endorsement of the Pro US/Israeli Air Marshal Ahmed Shafiq for President.

Egyptians have termed this as a “Military Coup” because while it resolved the question of whether or not Shafiq was eligible, as a top member of the Mobarak regime, it threw into doubt the candidacy of his opponent, Dr. Mohammed Mursi, and left this weekend’s presidential election up in the air. The parliamentary election saw Mursi’s Freedom and Justice Party (FJP) winning a huge plurality and nearly a full majority. The court ruled that the election was “unconstitutional.”

Shafiq praised the ruling, saying that it would give him a chance to install a new parliament that “represents all segments of the Egyptian people.” The Egyptian junta apparently saw the ruling coming and re-imposed martial law yesterday, empowering themselves to arrest protesters on virtually any pretext. What happens next is anyone’s guess. If the weekend election does take place, the anger is sure to boost Dr. Mursi’s candidacy. At the same time, the junta has already announced foreign votes, like the one in Israel, claiming 100% of the vote went to Shafiq, so there is a palpable sense that the fix is already in, and that Shafiq will not only be the next president, but will have unchecked power without a parliament.

 At the same time, pretending concern and disgust at this move has started to echo even from Washington. Clinton said “There can be no going back on the democratic transition called for by the Egyptian people”. But Clinton’s statement is nothing more than empty rhetoric. In order to accept it as genuine, one has to erase recent history which saw extensive US support for the former dictator Hosni Mobarak over the course of several decades. It was only after it was clear Mobarak would be ousted, that the Obama administration sided – at least rhetorically – with the people and asked for Mobarak to step down……..Of course, the very next move was to advocate and push for the preservation of as much of the Mobarak regime as they could, namely suggesting Mobarak’s brutal vice president, Omar Suleiman… to replace Mobarak.

 There should actually be no surprise in these moves, the objective is, as it always was, to contain any popular movements that might jeopardize Israel’s status and safeguard (at least for the time being) the Saudi Monarchy. Any popular uprising in that region shall be forced into a longer period of transition whilst reactionaries are fished out by the ever present old guards whose fear of losing influence drives them to brutal excel. ….. At the end of the day, its either a hijacked revolution or a number of controlled social detonations… the result is either a new military dictatorship via martial law a la Mobarak or a massive eruption of frustration….your guess is as good as mine ! (With thanks to J.Glaser & J.Ditz)