Egyptian State Security: Reality Check

The Egyptian People Demand More

In the past few days, it has become clear that a segment of the Egyptian population is not satisfied with changes so far and intends to proceed until all demands are met. The one demand that has been particularly in focus in the past few days is about the dismantling of the Egyptian State Security (SS) apparatus. There is, of course good reason for this demand. The fear is that while this apparatus still breathes, the country will never entirely be free. People on Twitter are quick to mention examples like Eastern Europe, where "democracy" was obtained without the dismantling of State Security, and that the same people responsible for State Security were able to hijack the economy and are now among the wealthiest people in those nations.

Dismantling State Security is no small enterprise, however. In wanting to do so, there is reason to believe protesters are not only tugging at the limits of the Egyptian regime, but at the limits of democracy itself. Indeed, all "democratic" nations have State Security organs like the American FBI or French DCRI. Such agencies routinely conduct surveillance on their nation's own citizens and are frequently accused of abusive behavior. One might wonder what would occur in those nations if protesters wanted to storm the buildings and drag all the documents out for everyone and their dog to see. Personally, I'm pretty sure a person or two might get shot, but that's just me.


What Do We Really Want?

When wanting to take down the SS apparatus, some of the things Egyptians want are perfectly understandable. The release of political prisoners comes to mind. Evidence of abuse against the population also comes to mind. Evidence of corruption too. Perhaps more importantly, Egyptians are looking for assurances that past abuses will not be repeated or that SS are not somehow able to manipulate current events in Egypt. True freedom cannot exist when the population is being manipulated and arguably it cannot be fully achieved until the infernal machine is disassembled and laid open for all to see, as some on Twitter have said.


Careful What You Wish For

We must beware though, for ill-conceived dreams are swift to turn into nightmares. Just to be clear, I am not questioning the dream of freedom. I desire it for my country with extreme intensity. One must have the presence of mind to question individual steps on that path though, while never questioning one's commitment to reaching the destination.

There is no assurance whatsoever of what exactly might be found if all of SS documents are seized by the population and thrown out in the open. Some or all of the previously mentioned things are sure to be found, but that wouldn't be all, would it?

There might also be things which implicate Egypt's military in rather unpleasant matters. Because while we've been sitting around romanticizing the army's role in all this, there is no shortage of signs of the Army's complicity with various unfortunate behaviors, which we have conveniently been blaming solely on SS and various assorted groups of thugs. Is that what we want to find? Stuff to blame the Army for? What comes next? Once we find irrefutable evidence of distasteful behavior on the Army's part, what do we do? Go home? Confront it? Because the real question is: IS EVERYONE READY FOR THIS CONFRONTATION? What part of the population will follow? Will the few who dare take it a step beyond that red line simply wind up beaten and jailed by a military tribunal?

Other things we might find include things related to relationships with other nations, including the now infamous "Extraordinary Rendition" program, where the Bush Administration, in its infinite wisdom, set up a sort of torture tourism system not entirely dissimilar to dental or medical tourism. Are we prepared to seriously harm relationships with previously allied nations?


Is There Any Actual Planning Going On?

Everyday, I wonder if anyone is actually thinking about the above. Do people understand what they're going to find at the end of the rope they're tugging on? You don't have to take my word for it but I am pretty sure there is a tiger on the other end of that rope. I'm not saying don't pull. I'm just saying you better be ready. My greatest fear is the idea that the revolution is powered by a bunch of brilliant but emotional people who are doing it all one day at a time, with no contingency planning or backup solutions or even basic arithmetic calculations.


Are We Ready?

I'm not saying it is time to chicken out or give up on our freedom. We have gone too far. If we give up now we might as well just slit our wrists. I am just saying this might be the time to start working through legal and political channels to finish what was started, rather than continue taking the law into our own hands. Maybe we should let the past be and focus on being firm about what we want in our future (this excludes political prisoners, of course, which must be freed - no exceptions.)

If we want to keep tugging on that rope, are we ready for what comes next? Are we ready?

Think long and hard.

State Security Building Stormed in Alexandria

It would appear that a State Security (affectionately known as SS on Twitter) building has been stormed in Alexandria, Egypt on the night between 4th and 5th March.

An initial crowd gathered as it was noticed that SS were disposing of large amounts of documents through burning and shredding. The crowd rapidly grew. The intent was to protest this blatant destruction of evidence of SS activity. Circumstances are not entirely clear, but it appears SS panicked and opened (live) fire on protesters. In their infinite retardedness, SS personnel actually injured army soldiers. The army response was to storm the building. Protesters also entered the building and began seizing large amounts of documents for use as evidence of SS crimes.

At this time, it appears citizens are still inside the building gathering documents. All SS have been arrested, with possibly one killed⁽¹⁾. At least two army soldiers were reported to be in serious condition after initial shooting from SS.

It is important to note that anyone with half a brain left in the Egyptian population does not have an ounce of sympathy for SS and sees them as nothing more than criminals. They have now opened fire on the army, which is possibly one of the stupidest acts by a state security organization ever.

It further appears that SS in Nasr City in Cairo were also disposing of documents but no protest took place at that location.

More news on this topic:

Al Jazeera - Violent Clashes in Alexandria
BBC News - Egypt: Protesters storm Alexandria state security HQ
Chron.com - Hundreds march on State Security building in Egypt
Egyptian Chronicles (blog) - The fall of the State security kingdom in Egypt
SHE2I2 - Protesting Against State Security in Cairo. Demonstrations & Celebrations in Tahrir Square

(1) Correction: a correction was made to the initial version of this article which previously stated there was one deceased member of SS. It appears now confirmed that no deaths occurred.

So you want Egypt to be "Normal" Again?

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So I spent a couple of weeks in Egypt. Mostly Cairo, a bit in Alex. I got to speak to many types of people. Got to meet some cool activists, but also spoke and met with a number of people who were complaining about the revolution. Most complaints of the latter group centered around problems the business community or shop owners were encountering in keeping things afloat. They all wanted things to go back to "normal". Upon further investigation of what "normal" meant, I was able to hear more specific complaints, and they went something like this:

"Look at these 'revolutionaries'. Most of them don't even agree with each other. So many voices and opinions. We'll never get out of this." ("mesh 7ane7'las!")

Some of the complaints varied on the above theme a little but the central issue seemed to be that the entire nation had to agree as one voice on things or else nothing would move. Well I hate to be the bearer of bad news, but if that is what you mean by "normal" then...

NEWSFLASH: NORMAL IS GONE. FOR GOOD. IT IS NEVER COMING BACK.

Hello? The reason no dissenting voices were heard before was that there was a dictatorship in place. If you are sitting around waiting for no one to disagree about anything anymore then you have not understood democracy. What's that? You're complaining about workers striking and holding things up? Where's the problem? Just negotiate. Negotiate like they do in all the other democracies where workers sometimes strike or protest in other ways to support their demands. It's not the end of the world.

Say buhbye to "normal" and get back in gear. Stop crying and do whatever you have to to get things rolling again. Yes, in the midst of dissent, disagreeing factions, strikes, and all of it. If people in other countries can do it, so can you.

Fond Memories of Baghdad Bob

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Big Disclaimer: Before I carry on, I'd like to make it absolutely clear I was not in any way in favor of Iraq's invasion led by the US and never believed propaganda about WMD for a single second. I never bought the bit about them wanting to remove dictators once WMDs turned out to be a complete hoax either. It is abundantly clear today that removing dictators for its own sake is not even close to being on the US foreign policy agenda.

Good. Now that we have that out of the way, I have to say every Arab dictator speech brings back fond memories of Baghdad Bob. Remember him? He was funny as hell. I am talking about Muhammad Saeed al-Sahhaf who was Iraq's "information" minister during the 2003 invasion of his country. We're using the word "information" in a rather generous manner here, but we might as well so as to give the guy credit for services rendered above and beyond the call of duty, reason, logic, and several other things.

This guy was amazing. He was still mouthing off and making ballsy speeches when armor elements of the US 3rd Infantry Division were rolling into Baghdad. We I saw his final speech I was half expecting him to get tackled to the ground any minute now in mid-sentence. You could see armor maneuvering in the distance behind him as he was saying everything was fine and the infidels were toast.

During recent events, I couldn't help thinking of this guy as I watched dictators make unfortunate speeches in attempts to threaten their population and make like everything is under control even after the point of no return has been crossed by a long way. Their discourse becomes totally disconnected from reality and part of us almost wants to feel sorry for them. (I said "almost".)

What is far from funny, of course, is what those dictators are doing to their population. If it weren't for that, it would be pure comedy.

We Are Not Tunisia or Egypt

We keep hearing this line, don't we. Seriously, it has become a requirement of any Arab leader speech at this point. My concern is that it has become so automatic, in fact, that I'm a little worried the Egyptian government might inadvertently use it if things get messy again in Egypt.

Circumventing Internet Access Restrictions

In recent events across North Africa and the Middle East, access to information and ability to share information have proven crucial tools for people demanding their freedom, and for independent news. It is no surprise then that governments (including Egypt) have at one point or another imposed heavy restrictions on internet access. Some continue to do so.

Depending on the kind of restrictions governments apply to limit or entirely prohibit access to sites like Facebook or Twitter or even the entire internet, some solutions may exist for circumventing these restrictions.

Firstly, take a look at Wikipedia's Internet Censorship page, and pay special attention to the Circumvention section. Some of these solutions may be applicable to your situation. If you have some extra time, also have a look at this article: The Traveler’s Guide To Bypassing Internet Censorship.

Also, Total Social Media's Web 3.0 Lab information page for Bahrain ISPs is very useful. Provides information about ISPs working with the government as well as suggestions for circumventing internet access restrictions. Have a look.

Total Social Media also has an interesting tool called the climaMeter for measuring tweet density at any location in the world. Analysing density of tweets from a particular location can provide clues as to what may be going on or what may be about to happen.



DISCLAIMER:
- I am not affiliated with Total Social Media in any way
- Clima is a Trademark of Total Social Media 2011 © All rights reserved

Egypt: Many Revolutions Are Yet to Come

From Wikipedia:

A revolution (from the Latin revolutio, "a turn around") is a fundamental change in power or organizational structures that takes place in a relatively short period of time. Its use to refer to political change dates from the scientific revolution occasioned by Copernicus' famous De Revolutionibus Orbium Coelestium. Aristotle described two types of political revolution:

1. Complete change from one constitution to another
2. Modification of an existing constitution.

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Formal definitions aside, it seems to me that revolutions (in the political sense) are usually about people freeing themselves from some sort of oppressive force. If we take a good look at Egypt's January 25th movement under this definition, many questions remain open.

Firstly, I'm at a bit of a loss as to fully defining the Jan25 revolution. What I can say for sure is that we as Egyptians are now free of one particular oppressive force: the one composed of Mubarak and his entourage. My certainty stops there however. For now, we're not even sure we are or will be free of military rule, despite the army's reassuring statements. When one observes communication from various fragmented groups in the aftermath of the revolution, it appears people are still complaining about all sorts of oppression.

For starters, I am seeing women take a stand (at least on the net) for themselves, and rightly so. Issues range from inadequate representation in decision-making circles to rampant harassment to various other women's rights issues - some closely related to religious matters. One can only conclude then, that whatever oppresses them was not dealt with within the Jan 25th movement. This is normal, not all things can be done at once. But it does indicate that their revolution is yet to come.

Another recurring theme in recent days is about freedom of religion and belief. Much discussion has taken place regarding the constitution's notorious Article 2. The religious problem goes beyond the issues Coptic Egyptians usually face. Twitter users are quick to mention you are risking jail if you declare yourself to be atheist or that you belong to any number of other belief systems including Scientology, Jehova's Witness or Bahaii. If various religious groups are to benefit from any freedom, it is likely they will also have to stand up for their rights at some point in the future. This, unfortunately, will be no easy battle by my humble estimates.

Likewise, ongoing strikes in multiple sectors indicate that workers have not entirely - some would argue not even close - freed themselves from what ails them. As the country braces for the removal or at least increased scrutiny of various corrupt practices, workers worry about their pay. This is because the aforementioned corrupt practices were woven into everyone's life. How is an employee earning between LE200 to LE400 a month supposed to feed a family? Bribes were a part of everyday life. If they go, then the pay needs to change. Whether or not all the corruption will actually stop is still an open issue as well.

Many more problems exist in Egyptian society and not all were resolved within the revolution. In fact, the only issue that was terminally resolved was Mubarak's departure. Everything else is still up in the air. It seems we were far more focused on what we were getting away from than on where we were headed. We knew we wanted democracy, but no one really had a plan, except maybe the army and to a lesser extent the Brotherhood. In hindsight, it seems they were the only ones to hit the ground running when Mubarak bailed out.

Some of these revolutions will never take place, because nature can be cruel like that. Others will resolve themselves naturally if/when democracy settles in and we can vote our way to a better future. Others yet may require wide-scale demonstrations and strikes, and will further test the Egyptian citizen's resolve.

The danger now is having a premature sense of closure as the world's attention moves on to other rapidly changing countries and the excitement dies down. Or of letting the energy fade as physical and emotional exhaustion kick in after the difficult test Egypt's people have had to endure. The above-mentioned issues and many more are NOT closed.

The pursuit of freedom requires relentless vigilance.

One Last Speech?

I am thinking this isn't going to be a very popular idea, but I'm increasingly feeling Mubarak should make one last speech. One from the heart, one with nothing to lose -- and nothing to gain.

If he were to make one last public appearance to tell us how he feels, what he thinks he did well, what he thinks were terrible mistakes. To tell us he loves his country and he is sorry about things that went wrong.

Anything he says may utterly lack credibility for many, but he'd be saying this with no political gains in mind. It's not like he could return or his son could return. The Egyptian people are so kind-hearted that we don't actually know how to hate. I think we would listen, we would nod our approval at him making one sincere speech and we would move on.

I think one last speech would change the image he will leave in the history books. What do you think?

Huge Opportunities Are About to be Missed

And the consequences are going to last for decades. I am talking about representation in talks with Egypt's Temporary Military Administration. Why?

People are complaining that this and that group isn't represented, typically women, youth, religions other than Islam, and others. I am also hearing a lot of complaints about possible Muslim Brotherhood over-representation.

You know why the MB is well represented? It is dead simple. Some dude showed up and said "Hey, I represent all those people here, equaling X% of Egyptian society and we would like our voices heard." In a transition to democracy, no one can refuse such a request.

But what are those other people doing? The ones complaining? Well I don't want to be harsh, but from what I can tell some are still working hard to further their democratic agenda, but many are either taking a break, or basking in the glory, or painting their toenails or whatever. History is still being written. It is being written RIGHT NOW. Toppling Mubarak was only the beginning.

People who want to be represented need to do something about it. No one is going to be more royalist than the king. If you aren't doing anything to make sure your views, your religion, or your gender is benefiting from proper representation then you are de facto accepting whatever outcome nature provides you with.

Freedom is not asked for, it is taken. That, the Egyptian people have done. The same holds true for all the following steps. If you want more women representatives, youth representatives, or any others, they must be selected and endorsed by other women, youth or whatever demographic they're from and they must be IMPOSED in talks.

What will occur in the following months will likely influence the course of matters for decades. There are huge opportunities right this moment, including adding a feminist revolution component to the vast changes we are experiencing.

If these opportunities are missed, try again in 2060.

Cairo

So I've been in Cairo since the 11th now. Got here on the day Egypt moved on from 30 years of stagnation. Been to Tahrir Square at least for a while every day, got some pictures and video of various events.

One of the things that really impressed me was seeing citizens, many of whom were protesters, putting great care into cleaning the square and even repainting the sidewalks. The sense of solidarity is amazing. People don't hesitate to ask others for help. I saw a long human chain of people holding hands to protect fresh paint on a sidewalk in the square. The atmosphere on those first few days was like living in a utopia.

I also saw police/security forces demonstrate yesterday. It was odd and a little surreal. These people shot citizens.

Now, much remains to be done, and things get a little more serious as the euphoria settles. One of the challenges I see is preserving the same energy level for change after things go back to "normal".