Egypt's first free elections; How farmers help sustain the country

Today was a monumental day for Egypt. They had their first free democratic election in decades... 5,000 years... ever.

No reports yet on what the exact turnout was, but it was definitely significant. It seems that the massive demonstrations over the last week reminded Egyptians of the importance of these elections, the importance of assembling a civilian government as soon as possible. Undoubtedly the number of voters was much greater than it would have been without the recent wave of protests. The lives lost last week were not in vain. Egyptians were reminding each other to that people have lost their lives fighting for the privilege they experienced for the first time today.

I read an article in the Washington Post that interviewed an Egyptian farmer, who said that although he himself could not participate in the demonstrations because he has to work and support his family, he wants his kids to go to school and become educated so they can be "like the ones in Tahrir Square who have the time and education to demand their rights." What a powerful statement. Even Egyptians who have not been in the streets, could not be in the streets, are supporting the movement.

Not all Egyptians in the "silent majority" feel the same. Others are more concerned about the significant drop in crop prices that the crisis has brought. Others still feel the hard times are worth it to secure a better future for the country.

I think the country owes a great deal to these farmers, who have kept the sub-economy going and sustained Egypt through all of this chaos. When I was in Egypt during the first days of the revolution in January, my first concern was of food and supply shortages. But to my amazement, this has never been an issue. Despite the political chaos, daily life goes on throughout Egypt, thanks to non-privatized agriculture and small family-owned businesses that dominate the economy for basic living needs. It really is remarkable. 

Military now in discussion with opposition leaders!

WONDERFUL NEWS!!!

Tantawi, the head of the military council currently controlling Egypt, has agreed to have discussions with opposition leaders, including Muhamed ElBaradei, about forming a presidential council that would transfer governing power to a civilian group!

Furthermore, the Free Islamists, a group of young people that formed from other islamist groups including the Muslim Brotherhood, have officially joined the demonstrators, and have vowed to occupy Tahrir Square until the military has stepped down from power.

Meanwhile, it became clear to the protesters that the police have been using a new form of tear gas - the old remedy of vinigar-soaked cloths doesn't work anymore.
They are now chanting, "Ishaab - youreed - alghaaz - al aadeem!!" (The people want the old tear gas!!)
Typical Egyptian humor. 

March of Millions across Egypt; Obama gets with the program

1 million in Cairo. 1 million in Alexandria. .5 million in Monsura. The Egyptians were back in the streets in droves today, in the largest demonstrations since February. This new wave of demonstrations has been going on for a week now, and it seems the only thing that will bring this second phase of the revolution to an end is the immediate withdrawal of the military. Mubarak's head on a spike wouldn't hurt either. 

We're waiting to see if the young people leading the demonstrations can rally the support of all other political parties in a concerted demand for the military's ouster. They are trying to get leaders from multiple parties, including Muhamed ElBaradei, to form a new civilian government that the people could recognize as the legitimate ruling authority instead of the military.

Today, Obama called on the military to hand power over ASAP to a civilian democratically elected government. Good for him. That took guts, given that the US has been treading on eggshells ever since the revolution began in Egypt. Of all the countries in the Middle East, the US has greatest strategic interest in Egypt: Its population size and influence on trends across the Middle East are major factors, but the primary reason is that the Egyptian military has been the US's pawn upholding the Camp David peace treaty with Israel since 1979, with bribes of $1.3 billion a year - the second largest annual chunk of US foreign aid to any country, after Israel. 

No telling how the new civilian government will feel about that. But the Egyptian military now has blood on its hands - 41 casualties in the last week, and over 1000 wounded (according to the NY Times) - and I guess Obama recognizes that the military cannot hold on to power in Egypt for much longer, and continuing to support them in any way would be a worse move for his administration. So way to go Obama - keep up the pressure...

The Second Backdraft

Clashes continue throughout Egypt. Over 35 killed. Over 1800 wounded. Where does it end???

The civilian branch of the government, including the prime minister, have resigned.

The army generals now have blood on their hands, which will make them more unwilling to give up power. These old men have known nothing but control. They can't even fathom how Egypt could function without them. I don't know how much more it's going to take to make them face reality, but I pray that it won't be a higher body count.

I can't imagine what the families of the victims are going through right now. If it were one of my own cousins, God forbid... I don't want to think about it. Rabbina ma'ahom...

I think the perfect analogy for what's happening in Egypt is a backdraft. A backdraft is where a fire burns up all the oxygen in a closed room and waits for new oxygen to burn. As soon as a door opens, the fire explodes. That's what happened in late January - anger had been building up for decades, but especially in the recent year. Now anger has been building up since that army took power in Egypt - particularly since September when they failed to hand it over - and what we're seeing is the second backdraft. All it takes is a new wind, and the fire that's been deprived of oxygen finally explodes.

Phase 2 of the Revolution has begun - A tough but necessary step

You may have heard about the violent clashes between protestors and the police in Tahrir Square this weekend. If you haven't seen the news reports, in short, police raided Tahrir Friday night to kick out a few hundred protestors that were camped there (sound familiar?). People were outraged by this treatment and took to the streets by the thousands to clash with the police. This was the worst face-off since February. Only one casualty reported thus far, but over 160 injured. A lot of tear gas and rubber bullets and rocks. The conflict went into the early hours of Sunday morning.

Some are concerned that this is exactly what the army wanted, and that now they'll claim grounds for postponing the parliamentary elections that are supposed to take place in a week.

It's difficult to put these events in perspective when you're caught up in the turmoil of the present. But here are a few thoughts that my dad shared with me today:

- This is the necessary second phase of the Revolution. The first phase was, of course, getting rid of Mubarak. The next phase is to get rid of military rule. It had to happen. It was absolutely right for the army to interfere during the revolts in January, but then they failed to hand over power when they said they would in September. They are not politicians, nor do they understand their own history. But all they need to do is look at their neighbors on either side to realize that they can 1) hand over power to civilian government and withdraw peacefully, or 2) attempt to hold on to power and end up like Ghadafi or Asad.

- This struggle will not be as difficult as the first. The army is made up of Egyptians - hardly any family does not have a member serving in the army. The soldiers will be quick to side with civilians because they do not see themselves as a separate ruling entity the way Mubarak's police officers did.

- This is good for the Egyptians: The disagreements that were arising between political factions have been put on hold, and the people are united by a common cause once again.

We'll see how the elections play out next week - hopefully they WILL play out...