Some major questions about the course of politics in Egypt during its transitional period are now being raised. Last Saturday the voters went to the polls and passed a series of 9 constitutional amendments by a large majority. Those amendments were supported by the NDP which was Mubarak's party and the Muslim Brotherhood. They were opposed by various groups of younger more secularly oriented protesters who were a force in the push to get rid of Mubarak.
The Egyptian military has long occupied a significant economic role in the affairs of the country.
The Egyptian Military
The senior members of the military control about 40% of the nation's business enterprises. They are the employers of a very large portion of the Egyptian workforce. The atmosphere created by Mubarak's departure has emboldened workers to go on strike for higher wages. This has created anguish for the military leaders who are running the country.
Egypt protests against anti-protest law
The Egyptian cabinet approved yesterday a decree-law that criminalises strikes, protests, demonstrations and sit-ins that interrupt private or state owned businesses or affect the economy in any way.
The decree-law also assigns severe punishment to those who call for or incite action, with the maximum sentence one year in prison and fines of up to half a million pounds.
The new law, which still needs to be approved by the Supreme Council of the Armed Forces, will be in force as long as the emergency law is still in force. Egypt has been in a state of emergency since the assassination of former president Anwar Sadat in 1981.
Since former president Hosni Mubarak stepped down on 11 February, Egypt has witnessed escalating nationwide labour strikes and political protests. Amongst those protesting have been university students, political activists, railway workers, doctors, pharmacists, lawyers, journalists, pensioners and the police force.
It is anticipated that if this law is implemented it will lead to a new round of protest. There are also questions being raised about the direction that political life is likely to follow under the tentative electoral process that has been laid out.
Islamist Group Is Rising Force in a New Egypt
In post-revolutionary Egypt, where hope and confusion collide in the daily struggle to build a new nation, religion has emerged as a powerful political force, following an uprising that was based on secular ideals. The Muslim Brotherhood, an Islamist group once banned by the state, is at the forefront, transformed into a tacit partner with the military government that many fear will thwart fundamental changes.
It is also clear that the young, educated secular activists who initially propelled the nonideological revolution are no longer the driving political force — at least not at the moment.
The Muslim Brotherhood was long outlawed as a formal political party under Mubarak's rule. However, they were able to maintain a minority presence in the parliament by running as independents. In that politically repressive environment they and the NDP were the only coherently organized political organizations. There appears to be some kind of alliance of convenience between these two historically antagonistic groups to oppose what they see as a threat of serious revolutionary upheaval.
The NYT article referenced above has a touch of Islamic hysteria about it. It seems to equate all Islamic political movements with those that espouse a theocratic state. When the protest first began to gather force in Egypt I explored the Muslim Brotherhood and its history.
The Muslim Brotherhood In Egypt
They are not the most radical Islamic political party in Egypt. I am personally someone who would just as soon see religion of any type kept out of politics. However, that certainly doesn't happen in the US. I see no reason to get hysterical over the possibility of participation of religiously oriented parties in a democratic political system.
Egypt appears to have a long and likely difficult road ahead in discovering its political destiny. The action of the military to assume immediate control while making promises of a transitional political process has so far avoided the kind of violent chaos that is happening next door in Libya. However, Egypt is still a nation in a very significant state of political and economic instability. It is a clear reminder that none of these revolutionary movements have a guaranteed outcome. Getting rid of autocratic regimes is indeed a necessary first condition for change. But a number of other conditions must come about in order to achieve stable democratic governments. One of those is that the citizens of any given country must create their own system. Attempts to impose it from without simply do not work.