Oh, Egypt!
Talk about a society divided. There is of course, the example of almost every country in the Middle East, where there are sectarian divisions so heatedly fanatical that, with tribal influences thrown into the resulting brew is a truly bitter cup guaranteed to do grave harm to the patient, if not kill him outright. Libya remains deeply divided through tribal and sectarian lines, and so too is Iraq and Syria. Add Bahrain, Tunisia, Afghanistan and Pakistan, going a bit further afield.Egypt is where the most recent egregiously volatile, raging, event has taken place, with repercussions that are continuing to unfold and which will ultimately unfold in a way no one can quite predict with any degree of accuracy. That is,over and above what seems obvious now by the way the winds of change are blowing - not toward the democracy that the people who began these revolts pleaded for, but a growing influence of Islamism.
Even with the reputation that the organized game of soccer has as a substitute for engaging in outright war, the teams approach their 'games' against one another as though they were, in fact, conflicts. And, truth is, politics and fundamental disagreements, national pride and jealousies are behind the reputation that the sport and many of its roguishly loutish supporters who respond to losses by their team with violent rampages often resulting in deaths.
In the recently-played soccer match between two Egyptian adversaries, representing their cities, their divergent ideologies and political support, the game itself was an outstanding example of virtual war. While the players themselves were armed with determination and physical prowess and in the case of the Port Said team, a home advantage, their supporters were armed with knives and clubs and incendiary devices.
There is no secret about the antipathy of the teams toward one another. It might seem reasonable that police and security teams would undertake to ensure that no violence would ensue by carefully screening those entering the arena. But the fact was nothing of the like occurred at all; it was as though the police felt this to be an innocuous event, one that could never engender violence.
And some of those attending the event recounted seeing people openly bearing knives with no one questioning let alone restricting their entry. This planned reaction to the conclusion of the game was described as a pay-back war between the supporters of Hosni Mubarak's government and the ruling military clique, and the protesters whose ideology of freedom initiated the Tahrir Square demonstrations.
Egyptians have now gone from authoritarian rule to ruling by military authority, with the same old crowd calling the shots, absent Hosni Mubarak. Which hasn't stopped the bitter protesters from claiming that Hosni Mubarak, old, ailing and incarcerated is still in command and control. Their protests in Cairo have been re-energized by the Port Said riot and killings. Tear gas, rock throwing and injuries have reinvigorated their purpose and overtaken the scene.
But does that largely represent a relatively small, vocal minority, heavily invested in bitterness that their revolutionary protest which seemed to bring them so close to conquering the evil they identified in their society that kept people poor and disenfranchised was tottering toward failure? As others than they have benefited from the protests and the removal of Hosni Mubarak, and free and fair elections have brought the Muslim Brotherhood 48% of the vote, with the Salafists another 22%...?
The simple fact seems to be that Egyptians in general are not all that concerned. About much of anything, other than their desire to see life as they know it, return to normal. That the crisis of financial instability, job creation, safety and security be solved. Outside Tahrir Square, Egyptians want security and social stability. All this unrest is unsettling and not at all useful to their vision of the future.
They're tired of it all. And a curse on both their houses appears the prevailing attitude. They may be right, but they will be ruing the day that this entire disruption to their daily lives, however miserable they may have been, brought them to this place in history. On the other hand, they also likely represent the majority of those who voted for the Muslim Brotherhood and the Salafists.
In which case, more of the same, although not quite the same. Having rid themselves of a tyrant they will now inherit a situation that may make that time of rule seem downright beneficent by comparison.
Labels: Egypt, Islamism, Middle East, Political Realities
posted by Pieface @ Saturday, February 04, 2012
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