What happened in Egypt? What happened in Egypt is a popular impeachment of a President, who was indeed democratically elected, but managed during one year to lose all legitimacy by his failure to address the legitimate aspirations of the vast majority of the Egyptian people and the demands of the January 25th revolution that toppled his predecessor. It is the second wave of the Egyptian revolution of January 25. It is my assessment – and I think it was that of the Egyptian armed forces - that what was at stake was not a functioning democracy, because what we had was anything but, but rather the state itself which was in a clear and present danger of failing to deliver on its most basic responsibilities, including protecting its borders, public security and services, respect for universal human rights, religious freedoms and the rule of law. Out of national responsibility, not the pursuit of any political role, and since November 2012, the Egyptian armed forces have tried – both directly and indirectly together with other national institutions, such as Al-Azhar and the Coptic Church, to play a constructive role in encouraging the former President to defuse the political crisis gripping the country through dialogue and building consensus by means of the political process. Unfortunately, those calls were not heeded, and as a result the Tamarod (Rebel) movement managed to collect the signatures of 22 million Egyptians, and on June 30 and for four consecutive days, Egyptians poured into the streets requesting early presidential elections, an absolutely democratic demand, so as the responsibility of leadership is turned to an efficient and representative government capable of meeting the legitimate aspirations of the Egyptian people. I would have preferred for the former President to use the many opportunities he was has to conduct a serious and meaningful dialogue and to offer the real compromises needed for a functioning democracy inclusive of all to emerge. Unfortunately, he missed each and every one of those opportunities. He rejected the extended hand of the opposition to work together. Moreover, he used his public appearance to threaten the Egyptian people with violence and bloodshed. In short, the former President was the main reason for his own demise. Egypt today has a priceless opportunity to reset its political transition onto a path that is civilian-led, inclusive of all Egyptians irrespective of religion and political affiliation, and swift so as to move back as quickly as possible to elected political institutions that represent the free will of the Egyptian people. The roadmap announced by the Egyptian armed forces is a step in the right direction, but it needs to be complemented with a clear timeline. Morsi For one year, former President Mohamed Morsi has sat on economic calamity that aggravated – rather than address – the heavy inheritance of the past. Poverty skyrocketed. Unemployment was on the rise. Budget deficit was widening. The Egyptian currency was in a free fall. The former President did not miss an opportunity to aggravate division and polarization in a society that is still licking the wounds of it recent past, but trusted him – albeit his razor-thin victory - to deliver. He didn’t. The result was 22 million signatures to impeach him. 17 million people – according to the most conservative assessments - in the streets protesting nationwide to bring an end to his misrule
Posted on: Fri, 05 Jul 2013 14:23:13 +0000
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