Since then the Egyptian military has set up a panel to rewrite the 6 key provisions of the Constitution that have helped Mubarak consolidate power for more than 3 decades... in 10 days. The military's move is promising, however, until an elected government is formed, there is an anxiety that the military could steal the chance to take over. What happens in the next year will dictate Egypt's entire future.
There are still many things to be done, like releasing the 80 or so missing protesters that were taken in by the Secret Police, as well as 3 decades worth of political prisoners thrown aside during Mubarak's reign. Corruption needs to be weeded out and key elements of the Egyptian police force need to be punished for their actions against civilians. Most importantly, is the arrest and charging of Egypt's Interior Minister (who is still in his position) who is largely believed responsible for the police beatings of the protesters as well as the organization of the Secret Police. These are on top of what I believe should be an international effort by specific countries like Egypt, the U.S., Britain, and Switzerland to capture all of the Mubarak family's assets that were gained through years off stealing money from the Egyptian people through special interest deals with the Egyptian regime (these nations have most of Mubarak's assets). The Swiss have already frozen his assets, and the othernations should follow suite. I also think that Mubarak and Suleiman should be put on trial for decades of violence, torture, killings and more crimes that you can imagine.
I want to take some time to applause the military, NOW I understand why the Egyptians love their army, navy and air force so much. It's the topic of this blogpost because they deserve the attention, not for what I've already mentioned (their progressive moves toward democracy) but because of what many people don't actually know: How close we were to another Tienanmen Square...
In what is now considered a pretty outdated article, one of my favorite writer, Robert Fisk, writes after Mubarak's announcement that he won't resign. However, he gives us insight into what happened sometime before the speech. I've already linked the article so I'll just take out the important snippets and here he describes the most critical moment of the revolution:
"But the critical moment came on the evening of 30 January when, it is now clear, Mubarak ordered the Egyptian Third Army to crush the demonstrators in Tahrir Square with their tanks after flying F-16 fighter bombers at low level over the protesters."With the army strategically placed at all important points in Cairo and around Tahrir Square, a bloodbath would have ensued. It is a profound discovery and a very scary one. If anyone thinks Mubarak was a misunderstood softy (by ignoring the past 30 years of oppression) we can see now how brutal of a leader he was. This move, if executed, would have killed thousands if not tens of thousands of people instantly.
So why didn't it happen? Turns out the much loved Egyptian military has a conscience, Fisk continues:
"Many of the senior tank commanders could be seen tearing off their headsets – over which they had received the fatal orders – to use their mobile phones. They were, it now transpires, calling their own military families for advice. Fathers who had spent their lives serving the Egyptian army told their sons to disobey, that they must never kill their own people."It's no wonder the people chant: "The army and the people stand together – the army and the people are united. The army and the people belong to one hand."
Thank God for the Egyptian military and I think we all should put our trust in their work to establish a better future.
In case you aren't aware of how serious Tienanmen Square Massacre was here are some good videos (some have songs, but included for good footage:
Please Share on your network, email, comment or subscribe!
No comments:
Post a Comment