The Ruining of The Economist’s Credibility!

This week, Egyptians celebrated the first anniversary of launching The New Suez Canal, one of the prevalent national projects in our modern history. According to Vice Admiral Mohab Mamish, the Chairman of Suez Canal Authority, The New Suez Canal raised total revenues by 4% in US Dollars and 13.5% in Egyptian Pounds, in comparison to 2014 and 2015. That boom in Suez Canal revenues happened despite the recession in international trade, which reached its peak this year by 14%. 

The miracle of The New Suez Canal goes way beyond its ability to rescue Egypt’s struggling economy, after five years of political unrest and decades of corruption. The huge project of digging the New Suez Canal and building new full-functioning communities around it was created in only one year with pure Egyptian funding and by the hands of Egyptian youth.

Despite the aforementioned optimism-inducing facts, some in the international community chose to see Egypt’s economic status through a pessimistic lens. The Economist, on the same day of celebrating the anniversary of The New Suez Canal, published an editorial with the shocking and totally irrelevant title “The Ruining of Egypt.” In complete contradiction to what we, Egyptians, are experiencing on the ground, the editorial claimed that Egypt is falling apart and the only way to save it is for President Elsisi to leave power and the world to stop providing Egypt with financial or military support. 

To my understanding, this cannot be an editorial, but rather a careless recipe on “how to ruin Egypt.” The editorial’s so-called solutions were nothing but a series of dull incitements that will definitely ruin Egypt if implemented. Meanwhile, The Economist's editor failed to mention well-documented statistics or facts to support his inaccurate claims regarding the current economic strife in Egypt and the actual reasons behind hindering faster progress.

The editorial holds President Elsisi accountable for the heavy heritage of decades of corruption and masked inflation, which he is doing the unthinkable to reform. In addition, The Economist's editor ignored the simple fact that Egypt has been through a merciless economic and political roller-coaster since 2011 revolution. Nonetheless, the war on terror at our Eastern, Western and Southern borders and the violent crimes committed by the Muslim Brotherhood at cities along the Nile Valley limited our revenues from tourism and investment, and consequently augmented our economic exhaustion. That is why since his first day in power, Elsisi’s regime made economic reform and fighting corruption a top priority. 

Under Elsisi, Egyptians witnessed government officials, from low rank civil servants up to ministers, being taken to jail and put on trials for practicing corruption. Last month, the parliament passed a new law to regulate civil service and limit the trajectory of decades of corruption in major governmental sectors. That is in addition to ongoing training programs for civil servants to improve their performance and skills. 

In May, the government completed the construction of Al-Asmarat neighborhood, composed of 6258 housing units on the first phase and 4722 housing units on the second phase; in addition to schools, sports club, fully-equipped hospital, and service centers. The fully-furnished housing units were offered, for free, to the inhabitants of random housing areas in Cairo; i.e. those living in tin houses in dangerous areas with no infrastructure. Tens of similar projects are now being implemented in other governorates, and the priority is given to the long-ignored Upper Egyptian cities, where poverty rates are quite high. 

In June, the government announced the opening of Elsisi Social Housing Project, which provides 400 thousand housing units in new cities all over Egypt. According to the program’s eligibility criteria, young people with limited income resources are given the priority for owning a housing unit for as low as nine thousand Egyptian Pounds in deposit, and three hundred Egyptian Pounds in monthly installments for ten years; compared to nearly three hundred thousand Egyptian Pounds one has to pay to get a similar housing unit at other housing projects.

Some chronic problems related to subsidized food and energy resources have literally vanished because of Elsisi’s policies. The nightmares of constant cutting of electricity and lack of gas at fuel stations have become stories from the past. The new system of supplying subsidized food commodities has increased competitiveness between suppliers, improved the quality of the food provided to citizens, and allowed the poor to fully benefit from the subsidy.

  

Those are just a few examples of many socio-economic reform measures that have been taken within only two years, since Elsisi came in power in mid 2014. The regime’s success in addressing those critical and chronic socio-economic problems in such a record time-frame is, perhaps, the reason why our Arab and European allies are still providing us with military and financial aid. 

When providing military and financial support, our Arab and European allies are helping the Egyptian people and not the regime. They are not supporting Elsisi, personally, to remain in power despite the will of the Egyptians. They are not "dealing with the general they know” as The Economist's Editor claims. They are dealing with the man whom Egyptians voted for with 97% in democratic free and fair elections to represent them. Our allies, voluntarily, took the burden of helping Elsisi to solve Egypt’s problems only to make sure Egypt will remain standing on tough ground amidst a boiling region. It is a matter of inarguable fact that Egypt’s stability and security is an essential guarantee to the security and stability of both the Middle East and Europe. 

I found the editorial’s incitement to Western countries to stop providing Egypt with expensive weapons, one of the most ironic statements ever! Look at the map, for God sake! We are located in the heart of the Middle East, surrounded by falling states from all corners, where terrorism and civil wars have become a statuesque. We are fighting brutal terrorist groups on our Eastern borders (Sinai), Western borders (ISIS in Libya), and even at our Southern borders (terrorist groups in Africa). If Egypt, in the middle of this chaos, does not need weapons to improve its military capacity, who does?!

What I find even more embittering is the editorial’s portrayal of the relationship between Elsisi’s regime and the Egyptian youth as a combat between adversaries. In complete blindness to the truth, the editorial claims that the regime “sees youth as a threat” because they were successful in toppling former regimes. As a young Egyptian, who dedicated her life to advocate human rights and liberal democracy, and a proud co-leader of revolutions against former autocratic and theocratic regimes; I felt particularly offended by those claims. 

President Elsisi has always been a huge supporter to the dreams and aspirations of my generation, even before he becomes the president of the state. Elsisi was a member of the Supreme Council of Armed Forces (SCAF) when the 2011 revolution erupted. Along with SCAF members, he made the brave decision to abandon Mubarak and side with the young revolutionaries. If it was not for that decision by SCAF, I and other thousands like me could have been dead by now. In 2013, when young people launched Tamarod “rebellion” campaign against the theocratic regime of the Muslim Brotherhood, Elsisi, who was the Minister of Defense at the time, did not hesitate to risk his own life by abandoning Morsi and siding with the young protesters, once again.

As soon as he came to power, President Elsisi launched The Presidential Leadership Program (PLP)  to qualify young people under 30 years-old to occupy political leadership positions in the near future. Five hundred young people, at least half of them are women, have already been admitted and are currently receiving their high quality education, for free, under the mentorship of state’s high-profile officials. Nonetheless, thanks to Elsisi’s policies in support of youth political participation, the number of elected youth in the current parliament hit a historical record of 185 elected members (i.e., 32.6%).

In parallel to youth political empowerment policies, Elsisi launched a youth economic empowerment program to support young business entrepreneurs, with an initial fund of 200 billion Egyptian Pounds. In 2015, Forbes ranked Egypt as one of the top ten countries around the world for start-up businesses. 

The Economist’s editor claims that unemployment in Egypt reached 40%. I wonder where he got such an imaginary statistic! According to official statistics by The Central Agency for Public Mobilization and Statistics, the unemployment rates dropped from 13.3% in 2014 to 12.7% by the end of 2015. Again, that was only possible due to the economic reform policies of Elsisi's regime.

The millions of Egyptians – including youth, women, and Coptic Christians – who elected Elsisi, two years ago, realize that the pursuit of liberal democratization and economic welfare is not a matter of voting. It is a long-term challenge, which we have agreed to take only when we found Elsisi; the strong reliable leader whom we trust can lead us through this tough path. We believe in Elsisi, as the right man, on the right time, for the right job. He has never failed us, neither before nor after he came in power. 

I find it disappointing that The Economist’s Editor could not spare a few minutes of his precious time to investigate his inaccurate statistics and information, before publishing. The figures that I have mentioned in this article is only a few of the many well-known facts, which The Economist editor should have investigated before casually writing his shallow recipe on how to ruin Egypt, while ruining the magazine’s credibility in the process.

الحب كلمة... فتكلموا

تأسرني الكلمات، فيها يختبيء تاريخ الشخص وثقافته ورؤيته، الكلمات هي الجسر الممتد بين قلبين والسلاسل التي تربطنا بأشخاص لم نكن نعرفهم قبل أن يتكلموا. أجد نفسي مغرمة بكل شخص يجيد التعبير، وكارهة لكل شخص يدعي أنه لا يعرف كيف يعبر عن نفسه.

لا أصدق من يقول أن الأفعال أهم من الأقوال، فالكلام هو أساس كل فعل وبدايته، من لا يعرف كيف يتكلم، فهو بالتبعية فاشل في كل فعل. حين تفقد قدرتك على التعبير، فإما أنك لست إنسان، أو أنك لا ترى الذي أمامك إنسان. الناس تتواصل بالكلام، الكلام صفة إنسانية خالصة، من لا يعرفها ليس بإنسان، ومن أجادها وأتقنها فهو إنسان راقٍ.

الكلام نعمة حرم الله منها البعض، وحسن استخدام الكلمات موهبة أنعم الله بها على الأنقياء فقط. لو أن العين مرآة الروح، فالكلام هو تراتيل تلك الروح، من لا يعرف كيف يعبر عن نفسه بالكلمات، هو شخص عديم الروح.

من لم يجرب الاستمتاع بتطويع الكلمات للتعبير عن ما في خاطره، لم يدرك معنى الحياة.

الحب كلمة.. فتكلموا.

A Monologue on the Dilemma of Being an Egyptian Human Rights Activist

Couple of weeks ago, I had a very interesting conversation on the odds of being a human rights activist and a civil society professional in Egypt. On an internal flight from Hurghada to Cairo, I met an old friend and colleague whose name recently disappeared from the public scene. He decided to quit his passion as a civil society worker and moved to “doing some money,” as he explained to me. He is ten years older than me, which means he is in mid forties. He started his own business in real estate, a few months ago, and apparently he is doing well in his new career. 

I was first intrigued by the fact that he had the courage to make a career shift in that age and such economic troubles. But what was more intriguing was the question why a human rights professional, as successful as he is, would decide to quit just like that. He invested nearly twenty years of his life in that thorny field. Part of those years, he had to spend in jail because of his strong opinions against the defunct regime of Mubarak. 

His answers to my curious questions put me in a weird confrontation with my own self. I found out that I am facing the same dilemma that he failed to handle and ended up quitting everything he once loved to put his mind at ease. It is about where we, as Egyptian human rights activists, should stand. Should we keep taking confrontational stance towards the state and give the Islamists the golden opportunity to intervene through this window as they did before? Alternatively, should we take a moderate stance of friendship with the political leadership to direct them to the right track of liberal democracy while preserving and respecting state’s agenda in facing those endless security and economic challenges? Should we, as advocates for human rights and liberal democracy, be part of the problem or be part of the solution? And, how?

Before the Arab Spring and Egypt’s revolution in 2011, things were sharply defined. It was obvious to everyone whom was working for human rights, whom was active in political opposition, whom was practicing corruption in the government, and whom was passive. No group wore a mask or manipulated who they were. No one had to hide their real face. The battle was a fair one between those who wanted to keep the corrupt regime in place to keep their interests safe, and those who wanted to end that miserable situation and start a new page where liberal democracy could be the basis to build on. It was easier to choose which side to take.

As soon as the revolution succeeded and Mubarak’s regime was toppled, the hopes turned super high. The previously well-defined groups started to shake and mix really hard. The human rights activist turned into a politician who would not mind playing it dirty to win some seat. The liberal political activist joined forces with the totally illiberal Muslim Brotherhood because they were the only organized group with the highest potential to rule the country. The old corrupt affiliates of the falling regime used their financial power to manipulate media and public opinion into hating the young revolutionists under claims that they have “suspicious” links with the Western World. It was a total mess! 

In the midst of the mess, the Muslim Brotherhood made their way up the ladder and became the new face for Egypt. Their ladder was not democracy, but rather a canny manipulation of media and civil society represented in liberal activists, revolutionaries, and the human rights community. Only a few were strong enough to resist Muslim Brotherhood’s seduction strategies in the form of financial support, promises of positions in the new government, or even removal of due legal burdens. Many were those who wanted to be friends with the new power, in hope to get a bigger piece of the cake. 

Soon after, the Muslim Brotherhood started to Islamize the nation state of Egypt, which we have always known. They wanted it to be part of the bigger Islamic Caliphate that they have always dreamt of. That simply meant a clear threat to all our beliefs of liberal democracy, which goes beyond the minor act of voting to the bigger act of ensuring individualism, civil freedoms, and human rights to all citizens. That was the moment, the few who resisted the earlier temptations to sell themselves to the devil, decided to come together and take action. That was the moment another revolution was born; only one year after having the Islamists in power. And once again, the same military, which sided with revolutionaries in January 2011, sided with them in June 2013; and we won our country back.

We expected the world to support us in 2013 as they supported us in 2011. But, to our disappointment, the international community, in most part, launched a war against the revolutionaries and in favor of the Muslim Brotherhood. International human rights organizations like “Amnesty International” and “Human Rights Watch” which failed to utter a single word to condemn Erdogan’s tyranny in Turkey, as one example, launched a savage campaign against Egypt, based on false claims and total disregard of the mortal combat Egypt is leading against terrorist groups, which are openly wined and dined by the Muslim Brotherhood. 

As a human rights activist, I was perplexed why the international human rights community, in most part, is standing in favor of the extremist Islamists and not in favor of the people who removed them from power. Standing up for human rights should not intervene with the well-being of the state and does not mean standing with extremists. For the human rights activist to do their work right, they should not take a political side. Neutrality towards all political parties is a necessity. 

The fact that the most of the international human rights community sided with the Muslim Brotherhood against our will, as citizens first and human rights advocates second, made us more willing to take side with our military and then with our current regime led by Elsisi, who comes from this same military. We do not view our military as an enemy, but we definitely view autocrats and theocrats as a huge threat to our aspired liberal democracy. We elected Elsisi and took his side because all the other options that were available, then, threatened to bring Islamists and autocrats back. 

Nevertheless, taking the side of the current regime does not mean that my colleagues and I gave up on human rights. On the contrary, approaching the government on issues related to human rights as a friend proved to be much more helpful than other confrontational methods; especially when you are calling for human rights in a country, which is under attack by a wild enemy carrying Islam as a shield. 

If human rights organizations’ job is to confront the regime rather than help it fix its mistakes on human rights agenda, why “Human Rights Watch,” for instance, did not confront Obama on supporting the oppression practiced by the American policemen on Afro-American citizens? Why “Amnesty International” did not confront the consecutive British Prime Ministers supporting police oppression to control riot on several occasions? Why the two organizations, which issue weekly statements condemning Egypt based on false claims, are so silent on the Hitler-style tyranny practiced in Turkey, today, by Erdogan? 

I wrote this monologue as an attempt to confront my own dilemma on where to stand as an Egyptian human rights activist. I think, at this point, I have come to an answer. I have chosen to be part of the solution and not part of the problem. One can always stand up for human rights in a country that is not democratic enough, but if this country falls apart, every thing shall fall with it, including rights and freedoms. The falling Syria is one example of many! 

I do hope this little journal would help the international community understand what we are going through, as Egyptian human rights activists. International human rights organizations, especially those with big names and history, have to stop adopting a political agenda and be true to the human rights values that they claim to defend. They need to be part of the solution and stop adding to our problems.

لأن في الكتابة شفاء... سأكتبه

أغنية وبحر ورمل ولحظة غروب، كانت كافية أن تستدعي كم لا يحتمل من اللوم، لوم النفس هو أقسى أنواع الألم. ولأنهم يقولون أن خير وسيلة لشفاء الألم، هي أن تكتبه، فقد قررت أن أكتب. 

لكن كيف لي أن أكتب عامين من الآلام التي اقترفتها على يد رجل يملك من القسوة والأنانية ما جعلني أتحول من شخص محب للكون ومتفائل دائماً إلى شخص خائف ومتشكك في نوايا ودوافع الناس؟ كيف لي أن أحكي قصة كانت كل لحظات سعادتي فيها وهم أخترعه عقلي كوسيلة للتعايش مع ساعات طويلة من الإحباط وخيبة الأمل أصابت قلبي بلا رحمة؟ كيف لي أن أحكي عن رجل بعت الجميع لأجله، وهو الذي كان يفكر كل يوم كيف يبيعني؟ لكن عزائي أني عندما أكتشفت حقيقة معدنه رميته من حياتي رمياً، وبلا أي ثمن.

ما زلت ألوم نفسي كلما تذكرت المرات التي لم يعاملني بها كما أستحق، كل تلك المرات التي لم يحترم فيها وجودي ولم يحافظ على مشاعري وهو يغازل أخريات تحت عيني وسمعي، كل تلك المرات التي انتقدني فيها لعيب فيه هو، وكل تلك المرات التي بخل علي فيها بكلمة حب، وكل تلك المرات التي نمت فيها بالهاتف في يدي بانتظار كلمة "تصبحي على خير" التي استطاع هو أن ينام دون أن يقولها رغم علمه أني أنتظر، وكل تلك المرات التي طلبت فيها منه أن يساعدني، فخذلني بطلب قطع علاقتنا حتى لا يتحمل مسؤولية بسيطة كتلك، وكل تلك المرات التي قلت له فيها أني أريده سندي وأماني في هذه الدنيا، فكان أول من يتركني أواجه غدر الأيام وحدي، كل تلك المرات التي وقعت فيها ووقف بجانبي فيها أصدقاء لم يكن هو واحداً منهم، وكل تلك المرات التي مارس فيها لعبة الصمت وتركني أضرب رأسي لأني ببساطة لا أعرف لصمته سبباً. 

لقد مارس هذا الرجل على قلبي كل الألعاب النفسية والعقلية التي تعكس حجم العقد النفسية التي يعاني منها هو شخصياً، ومن شدة حبي له كنت أتركه يفعل ذلك بي لعلني أكون سبب في شفائه أو لعله يتغير. في أحد المرات وعدني فعلاً أنه سيتغير، وبعد أسابيع عاد أسوأ مما كان، فالطبع دائماً يغلب التطبع.  

كيف تحملت قسوته تلك، ولماذا فضلته على آخرين قدموا لي قلوبهم على طبق من ألماس؟ لم يكن فيه ميزة واحدة أفضل منهم لأقول أن عقلي هو من رجح كفته، أين كان عقلي من البداية وهو يدمرني بهذا الشكل؟ ربما ميزته الوحيدة كانت أني كنت أحبه بصدق، ولا أندم مطلقاً على أني أحببت دون حساب، فالحب نعمة من الله، سعيد هو من اختبرها وعاشها، وتعيس هو من كانت بين يديه ولم يقدّرها أو يحافظ عليها. دعه يحترق بتعاسته إذاً. لكن كيف لي أنا أن أستعيد نفسي وسعادتي؟ 

بعض الذكريات لها سبعة أرواح، حتى لو قتلتها بكامل إرادتك واحتفلت بالنصر فوق جثتها ثم دفنتها بيديك وصليت لله شكراً أنك تخلصت منها للأبد، ستجدها يوماً ما تعود وبيدها سوط من حنين سيمزقك دون رحمة!

ها أنا قد عملت بالنصيحة، وأخرجته وآلامي من ذاكرتي على صفحة من ورق، لعلها تكون بداية جديدة لقلبي، ولعلني اتخلص من كل هذا الكم من الخوف والشك الذي دخل قلبي خلسة في لحظات ضعف ويأس، وغداً قريباً سأعود من جديد لأنا التي أحبها، تلك الفتاة التي تحب الدنيا وتحبها الدنيا.  

دروس مستفادة من تظاهرة يوم جمعة الأرض أمام نقابة الصحفيين

أوجه هذا البوست بالأساس للسادة الغاضبين دائماً والذين شاركوا في تظاهرة يوم الجمعة الماضية أمام نقابة الصحفيين، كدروس مستفادة، أرجو منهم أن يستوعبوها جيداً، لو كانوا فعلاً مهتمين بالأرض والعرض وسلامة هذا الوطن وبقائه: 

1) الكذب لا يفيد:

أن تكون التظاهرة الحقيقية لا يتجاوز عددها عشرات، في شارع ضيق أمام نقابة الصحفيين، وتصورها أنت على أنها انتفاضة شعبية من أجل إسقاط النظام، فهذا كذب، وعندما يكتشف الناس كذبتك، فتداري عليها بنشر صور قديمة من مظاهرات 2011 و2013، فهذا نصب علني. وأن تدعي بعد كل ذلك نجاح هذه التظاهرة الهزيلة التي لا ترقى لزحمة أتوبيس نقل عام الساعة الثامنة صباح يوم الثلاثاء، فهذا غش. وأن يكون الهدف من التظاهرة كما أدعيتم في الدعوة لها أنها من أجل الأرض والعرض، بينما تتحول بقدرة قادر الهتافات لإسقاط النظام، فهذا شغل تلات ورقات!! لا يمكن إطلاقاً تحقيق نجاح لمطالبك دون كسب القواعد الشعبية في صفك، وإصرارك على ممارسة الكذب والنصب يجعل هذه القواعد تحتقرك.

2) المظاهرات لن تفيد: 

نحن الآن دولة مكتملة المؤسسات، بها مئات الطرق التي تستطيع من خلالها توصيل صوتك لصانع القرار، دون أن تلوح للناس التي أرهقتها خمس سنوات من الفوضى بالعودة لنقطة الصفر، لأنك فقير التجربة ولا تعرف تعمل أي شيء فيه ابتكار، ولا تجيد سوى الصوت العالي، المصريين خاضوا كم من المظاهرات خلال السنوات الماضية أحدثت لهم حالة من الإشباع، والصوت الوحيد الذين يستمعون له الآن هو صوت العمل والعقل. وربما هذا يفسر السبب في اشتباك الأهالي مع المتظاهرين في منطقة وسط البلد وإصرارهم على تسليمهم للشرطة. باختصار، المواطن يرى في مظاهراتك تلك تهور يهدد مصالحه الشخصية، وشايفك واحد عاطل وفاشل أتيت لتدمير ما تعب هو في بنائه بالعرق والكد طيلة سنوات سواء كان هذا الشيء الغالي والثمين هو بيته أو محل عمله، أو وطنه. 

3) حاجز الخوف اتكسر من زمان: 

ضحكت كثيراً عندما قرأت بعض التعليقات التي انتشرت كالجراد على الفيسبوك بعد فشل التظاهرة، وهم يقولون "المهم أننا كسرنا حاجز الخوف، وأرغمنا الدولة على أن تسمعنا وتعرف أن للشارع صوت!" أي هزل هذا الذي تقولون؟ القيادة السياسية الحالية، تعرف تماماً أن الشارع المصري له صوت، وتأخذ برأيه في الاعتبار في كل خطوة تخطوها. ولا تنسوا أن الرئيس السيسي نفسه ومن معه من رجال كانوا هم الداعم لكسر حاجز الخوف عند المصريين من البداية، فالرئيس السيسي كان عضو في المجلس العسكري ورئيس المخابرات وقت قامت ثورة يناير، وهو الذي قرر مع زملائه وقتها الانحياز للشعب وإرادته وصوته، وكان هو أيضاً وزير الدفاع في زمن الإخوان، والذي قرر أن يضع روحه على كفه ويواجههم من أجل إعلاء إرادة هذا الشعب للمرة الثانية. 

4) عاوز تحافظ على الأرض؟ أعمل حاجة مفيدة: 

مع أفتراض أن بعضكم فعلاً يهمه مصلحة مصر ولكن فاهم الوطنية غلط، ومع افتراض حسن النية (التي لا أراها أنا شخصياً فيكم) للأخر، أنصحكم يا سادة بكسر الحاجز النفسي بينكم وبين المواطنين، بأن تكونوا جزء منهم، بأن تكدوا وتكدحوا مثلهم، أن تشاركوهم همهم البسيط في حياة كريمة، وأن تستغلوا طاقتكم إما في الحرب ضد أعداء الوطن، أو في إنجاز عمل مفيد ينتج خيراً للوطن، وليس بإعادة هدم كل شيء. أراهنكم، أن لو الجيش فتح باب التطوع من أجل الدفاع عن الأرض والعرض في سيناء غداً، لن ينضم أي منكم، تماماً مثلما فعلتم في الانتخابات، هذا إن لم تزايدوا على الجيش لأنه طلب منكم التطوع وتتهموه بالتقصير!!

بالله عليكم كونوا على قدر المسؤولية. أي شيء في الدنيا يمكن تعويضه، أما الوطن لو خسرته، فلن يعوضك عنه الكون بكل براحه واتساعه. وأسألوا أشقائنا في دولة عظيمة كان اسمها سوريا.