Arab Spring revisited—the battle for democracy in Egypt | The Economist
- 5 years ago
Six years ago the biggest revolution of the Arab Spring sent shockwaves across the Arab world. The Egyptian revolution was a demand by its people for “bread, freedom and social justice”—but the country has a long way to go to achieve those objectives.
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This week in 2011, millions of Egyptians took to the streets to demand the resignation of President Mubarak after nearly 30 years of authoritarian rule.
Sherif Azer is an Egyptian human rights activist who played a crucial role in organising protests against Mubarak. Sherif had his camera with him and took these photos. After hours of intense battle, the authorities retreated allowing the protestors to march on to the focal point of the revolution: Tahrir Square.
Sherif and the other protestors continued to apply pressure on the government, occupying Tahrir Square until the 11th of February when the vice president announced that the Mubarak regime had fallen.
The Economist reported that "The last times Egypt's army took over, it abolished pluralist democracy", "But Egypt's people appear broadly confident that this experience will not be repeated."
The hopes of the protestors were raised by the first multi-party, multi-candidate elections in the country's history. Mohammed Morsi of the Muslim Brotherhood won the presidential election alongside a large Islamist majority in parliament. After the election the Muslim Brotherhood tried to consolidate power beyond their mandate, prompting further protests until the army intervened.
In 2013 the army, led by Abdel-Fattah al-Sisi, stages a coup. The current regime could not be further removed from the demands of the protestors six years ago.
Sisi has built dozens of prisons, incarcerating thousands of people for speaking out against the regime. In the year that al-Sisi took power The Economist reported on the arrest of one of the most prominent protestors. It is estimated that there are 60,000 political prisoners in Egypt.
Sisi says his harsh tactics are needed to bring stability. He has proposed new economic reforms to try and put the country back on track, but so far he's achieved little.
As the military tightens its grip on the Egyptian people, the freedom that was fought for during the revolution is further away than ever.
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This week in 2011, millions of Egyptians took to the streets to demand the resignation of President Mubarak after nearly 30 years of authoritarian rule.
Sherif Azer is an Egyptian human rights activist who played a crucial role in organising protests against Mubarak. Sherif had his camera with him and took these photos. After hours of intense battle, the authorities retreated allowing the protestors to march on to the focal point of the revolution: Tahrir Square.
Sherif and the other protestors continued to apply pressure on the government, occupying Tahrir Square until the 11th of February when the vice president announced that the Mubarak regime had fallen.
The Economist reported that "The last times Egypt's army took over, it abolished pluralist democracy", "But Egypt's people appear broadly confident that this experience will not be repeated."
The hopes of the protestors were raised by the first multi-party, multi-candidate elections in the country's history. Mohammed Morsi of the Muslim Brotherhood won the presidential election alongside a large Islamist majority in parliament. After the election the Muslim Brotherhood tried to consolidate power beyond their mandate, prompting further protests until the army intervened.
In 2013 the army, led by Abdel-Fattah al-Sisi, stages a coup. The current regime could not be further removed from the demands of the protestors six years ago.
Sisi has built dozens of prisons, incarcerating thousands of people for speaking out against the regime. In the year that al-Sisi took power The Economist reported on the arrest of one of the most prominent protestors. It is estimated that there are 60,000 political prisoners in Egypt.
Sisi says his harsh tactics are needed to bring stability. He has proposed new economic reforms to try and put the country back on track, but so far he's achieved little.
As the military tightens its grip on the Egyptian people, the freedom that was fought for during the revolution is further away than ever.
Daily Watch: mind-stretching short films every day of the working week.
For more from Economist Films visit: http://films.economist.com/
Check out The Economist’s full video catalogue: http://econ.st/20IehQk
Like The Economist on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/TheEconomist/
Follow The Economist on Twitter: https://twitter.com/theeconomist
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Follow us on Medium: https://medium.com/@the_economist