Those of you who read this page regularly will recall my friend Tarek, who guided me and Trish throughout Egypt this spring. He is my main contact for the TV shows we plan to shoot in Egypt next season. Tarek is a thoughtful and caring Egyptian. He has the means to leave the chaos his country is going through right now, but he chooses to ride it out and contribute to the birth of democracy in his homeland. He and his wife Heba just gave birth to their second child, and he's with the millions out in the streets right now. He has a business and much is at stake, as the government may want to hurt him since he was quite candid in his email to me. Knowing how sensitive this could be, I asked him if I could share this email with my traveling readers. His boldness is an example of the resolve of those Egyptians who are not fundamentalists to earn a pluralistic and secular democracy. Below you'll find his response to my request, followed by his first letter.
My friend and fellow travel guide Tarek stands before a wall of handprints in Egypt.
Hi Rick,
Feel free to print the letter. I feel the good times are about to come. Looking at Tahrir Square and other big squares in Egypt and seeing millions of Egyptians are protesting so peacefully, makes me proud that I am a descendant of a great civilization! I am going to Tahrir Square in a couple of hours to feel the buzz and call for a government that represents our people!
Best Regards,
Tarek
Dear Trish & Rick,
So nice to hear from you and thanks a lot for your kind thoughts. First Heba and I had our new baby girl, Farida. She is three weeks old now and she is so beautiful! I don't think I will have children anymore: After Alia was born, three weeks later came the 25th January Revolution. Now, two weeks after Farida was born, we are having 30th June Revolution!
Remember when you were in Egypt and I stated a few times that Egypt will come through a very dark tunnel before we see the light at the end? I think Egypt is about to enter this dark tunnel now!
On June 30th the Egyptian people went on the streets. Some media says 17 million, others say 33 million. But definitely it was more people than the 25th January Revolution two years ago!
Most people are sick and tired of the Muslim Brotherhood regime, and I am sure you have noticed this when you were here in Egypt. After one year of President Morsi ruling the country, the country is in more debt, we have long queues for petrol, our currency value has dropped by 25 percent; this means more expensive imports for us as we import 80 percent of our needs in Egypt! President Morsi has no idea about how to rule a big and respected country like Egypt and for sure Egypt deserves better!
Our army gave warning yesterday they will interfere if the President doesn't accept the people's demands of early elections and a technocrat government. It is so simple! But he is so stupid and stubborn and saying no to everything!
Egypt has never been as divided as it is now as a result of his regime! What the army is going to do is certainly not a coup. They will be responding to the call of the Egyptian people for the army to save us from Morsi.
The statement made by our army yesterday made most Egyptians at ease as we feel so protected by our army from the fascist extremists! This is the difference between Egypt and Syria. In Syria, the army was with the regime, not the Syrian people. In Egypt the army is with the Egyptian people! This is why we will never have a civil war. Thanks God for that. You may see some street fighting and some people killed over the next few days in the news. Sadly, this is the price to get a fresh start and get back our freedom.
I want my beautiful Egypt back, I miss it so much!!!
Best Regards,
Tarek