EXCLUSIVE: Cairo Under Siege Ahead Of Obama's Speech

Right before he took off from DC, on what the media has been depicting as some "odyssey," to address the Muslim World from Cairo, President Obama had described the 81-year-old Egyptian President Mubarak as a "force for stability." This week Cairo and its twin city Giza have been a showcase of what this "stability" cost.

The capital is under occupation. Security troops are deployed in the main public squares and metro stations. Citizens were detained en masse and shops were told to close down in Bein el-Sarayat area, neighboring Cairo University, where Obama will be speaking. In Al-Azhar University, the co-host of the "historical speech," State Security police raided and detained at least 200 foreign students, held them without charges in unknown locations. Exams were postponed in the major universities fearing demonstrations, and students were told to stay at home. And in several areas in Cairo and Giza, there will be in effect a curfew, where shops won't be allowed to open, citizens instructed not to open their windows. Almost everyone I know will be staying home tomorrow watching Obama's speech, not necessarily because they are keen on knowing what the freshly-elected US leader has to say to the Muslim world, but because they know it will be virtually impossible to move anywhere in the city on Thursday thanks to Obama's force-for-stability host.

Those few dozens, who dared in this atmosphere to call for a peaceful protest against the visit on Wednesday evening, were met by hundreds of plainclothes police informers in Tahrir Square, Cairo's biggest, together with thousands of riot police conscripts in their armored trucks. Police cracked down, rounding up several figures from the opposition, and chasing the rest of the protesters in the side streets of downtown Cairo.

"Republicans screw the Arabs. Democrats screw the Arabs, but with a smile," is a popular saying among the dissidents' circles in Egypt. President Obama's choice of our country as his next destination from where to address the Muslim World only validates the saying. Even before his "historical speech" is delivered, Obama's "mini-historical speeches" have been nothing but one slap after the other on the faces of human rights campaigners in the region. After conversing with the Saudi monarch, "yes we can" changed to "I'm struck by his majesty's wisdom." Will the next step be praising the public beheadings in the kingdom as an example of ideal justice?

Hosni Mubarak has ruled Egypt since 1981 with an iron fist, detention facilities, and a fearful security aparatus which is engaged in systematic torture of dissidents and ordinary Egyptian citizens, as documented by local and international rights watchdogs. He has always managed to get away with good coverage in the Western press, however, that tended to focus on his "moderate" (read: obedient to US foreign policy) role as "peacemaker" in the region, besides the archeological discoverings of the I-so-wanna-be-Indiana-Jones, also known as Mr. Zahi Hawas.

Despite the repression of street politics in the 1980s and 1990s, dissidents got the courage to start mobilizing in the streets ever since the outbreak of the second Palestinian intifada in 2000. From December 2006, the country has been embracing the strongest wave of labor strike action since WWII. The Egyptian workers are striking and organizing under very difficult conditions, with draconian anti-strike laws and state-dominated unions. But what started as a struggle for bread and butter issues is increasing becoming political, with an expanding layer of new strike leaders raising demands for regime change. And in an unprecedented move, the first free trade union in the history of Egypt was declared last December, by the property tax collectors who already went on a three month strike in 2007 bringing down tax collection by 90%. By the domino effect, a wave of free unions is brewing. The formation of free unions have always been in the heart of democratization like we've seen in Poland and South Korea for example.

The Egyptian striking workers will most probably not feature in Obama's speech Thursday, but they together with the pro-democracy movement are seeking allies in the West. Allies that could not be found in the White House or 10 Downing Street. They are non-governmental actors like human rights NGOs, labor and trade unions, which we urge to extend their solidarity to their Egyptian brothers and sisters, and to pressure the US administration into severing all ties and funding to the Mubarak's dictatorship, the second largest recipient of US foreign aid after Israel.

Hossam el-Hamalawy is an Egyptian journalist, blogger and labor organizer. He posts on www.arabawy.org

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Comments

[karela]

I sympathize with the author's plight, but he seems to want Obama's help in getting rid of the Egyptian President. We did that in Iraq and it cost a million Iraqi lives when the extremists started killing their own people with suicide bombs in order to make a point. I don't think we want to be involved in that again. If Egypt wants a different leader, then Egyptians are going to have to do that. We got rid of King George and when enough Egyptians feel that strongly about it, it will happen from within and that is the way it should happen.

[1dogs2]

It appears that el-Hamalawy would be happier if Obama's speech fomented unrest and chaos in the Arab street rather than addressing with respect the heads of the governments with whom he must work for conditions to improve for the disenfranchised in their countries and to break the P/I stalemate. What makes him think that undermining Mubarak would improve those conditions rather than lead to the kind of chaos that occurred in Iraq, which cost many more lives than Saddam took?

As for the security measures taken by the Egyptian government -- they aren't that different from those taken here to protect the President's life. No sympathy for that complaint.

I'd be interested to know whether el-Hamalawy listened to the speech, and even more interested to know whether he HEARD it.

[ymuttley]

Why does everyone just assume that people had to stay home because of tyranny? maybe it was because they didn't want anyone to pull something stupid on Obama!!!

[tippydog11]

I chose to stop pointing myf finger at others mistakes...I also have many myself.....and need to repent.... ..I am not sinless and I to will have much to answer to.....and there will be no excuse he said she said......Life is but a moment...no one knows what the next moment will be...

[morgan1]

This is more business as usual--Embrace the dictators and overlook the suppression of human rights and freedom. Obama is no different than the others before him--His speeches are more colorful and moving but without real substance. They all talk about Palestine and its people, how they should be free and have their own country but we stand by and allow Israel to take their land and slaughter their people. Muslims are not fooled by our rhetoric. The truth of our word is in the destruction of cultures and grave yards.

[morganhoyle]

I am an American who has been living in Cairo for a year now, The hype being put on this is ridiculous Ive traveled across town twice today and it literally took me half the time to get there and back, with 1 added check point which I and everyone one else (yes even the "dangerous" Egyptians) were waved right through.
.

[We-Are-The-Ones]

While I understand the inconvenience, annoyance and harassment involved, I want them to do whatever they have to do to keep the President safe.

[GOPBossLimbaugh]

I second that!

[Doomestic]

This is the most ridiculous idea yet. Obama needs not address the Muslim "world". He needs to address the people who have been oppressed for decades under dictatorships. Being nice to the dictators does not make him anymore popular among muslims. In fact, Muslims know very well how "close" the relationship between the the US and the Arab dictators is.

There was no shortage of hugs and kisses between George Bush and the Saudi King. I doubt that helped much with positive Muslim sentiment. You want better relations with the muslim world?

1. Stop dictating and pressuring the few democratic elections that happen in the Arab world to go the way the US likes, as in Lebanon and Palestine.

2. Pressure dictatorships that do not practice any democracy, by at least stopping the Aid to countries like Egypt, that largely goes into the fat cats pockets.

3. Address the Israeli/Palestinian issue in a balanced way, not in the "PR" way that has been done with settlements. For example the most pressing issue right now is the horrific mass punishment of 1.5 million people in gaza under a cruel and inhumane siege. Tens of thousands of homes have been destroyed, and the people can't rebuild. Students can't seek studies abroad, and patients are still stuck inside Gaza.

That is only one of many things that could help the US image in the Muslim world. Pictorials like closing Guantanamo and cuddling dictators don't go a long way.

[StephBr]

"Muslims know very well how "close" the relationship between the the US and the Arab dictators is"

Tell this Saddam Hussein.

[Doomestic]

Actually Saddam's US relationship is a perfect example of that, until it ran its course. Meaning his relationship was no longer in the US interest.

[maikonen]

"Pressure dictatorships that do not practice any democracy, by at least stopping the Aid to countries like Egypt, that largely goes into the fat cats pockets."

We can't "pressure' any nation into practicing democracy until we start practicing it ourselves. America's image and reputation has been sorely disfigured by the dark deeds of Bush, Cheney & Co.,

[Samlas]

President Obama can only encourage and suggest he cannot force any nation to do anything. It is up to the people of that nation. No one helped America to be where it is now, it was the people that brought it to this level of democracy. As far as Israel and Palestine it is not up to President Obama either it is up to the American people who have not voiced their concerns and just blindly supported Israel for over 60 years and they can influence the American Congress to change its course, and it is up to Israel and Palestine to look forward and change their ideologies. It will be a tough process no questions but eventually things will change.

[MarkOfBrooklyn]

WHy don't you go wage Jihad to liberate them or more conveniently, demonstrate in front of their embassies the way it was done against South Africa in the anti-aprtheid movement? Show your solidarity. Be the change you want to see. Be an example of anti-arab-­authoritar­ian activism.

As bad as it may seem the Arabs don't want us coming and "inerfering in their internal politics". Let's support them however we can, but don't suggest that the president go to harangue the Arab leaders. He is their because it is in America's interest first and foremost.

[LeeCalif]

President Obama had described the 81-year-old Egyptian President Mubarak as a "force for stability."

And a great guy who tortures for US.

[karela]

He isn't doing any torturing for this administration and never will. Democracy rises up from the people who will benefit from it. Egyptians will have to gather around the idea of democracy if it is to happen. That's the only way it can happen----from within.