Latest in Tag: opinion Highlight
Latest in Tag: opinion
Review: Commentaries ask: âWhat are Islamists fighting for?â
After Islamists organised a number of protests on Friday calling for the implementation of the Sharia, many writers are asking what their exact definition of âShariaâ is. On another note, some columnists criticise the performance of the âopaqueâ security apparatus in Egypt. Who stands against the Sharia? Emad Al-Din Hussein Al-Shorouk newspaper Hussein recalls …
Surviving Cairo
Towards a distant fading light I march the streets of my lambent city. Quietly I move my feet, fearfully I take tiny steps into my questionable direction. Cairo has no room for certainty; certitude has become one of our luxuries. I confess to being one of those who ponder in doubt their very own existence; …
Painting the town red
Adel Heine’s weekly column
Editor’s letter: On the interior and stability nonsense
A few months before the revolution’s spark ignited, I had two Palestinian friends working in the media visiting me in Cairo. The last time I had seen them before this was during an Arab summit in 2007 (we were working together back then). So, the three of us met at a fancy Mohandiseen flat they …
Review: Columns attack Brotherhoodâs electronic militias and slow decision-making processes
Writers explored an assortment of political topics in Egyptian newspapers. Some have debated the issue of the electronic militias of the Muslim Brotherhood, and others have denounced Morsiâs slow pace in making urgent decisions. The failure of the electronic militias Mohamed Salmawi Al-Masry Al-Youm newspaper Salmawi speaks about the groups belonging to the Muslim …
When will Middle Easterners stop seeking to export their image?
Despite the fact that the countries of the Middle East are not currently consumed by war, and that there exists at best a cold peace, or a rather muffled sense of competition between them, it is still a shock to see that there do not exist larger cleavages between these countries with regards to their …
Drawing parallels: The Turkish model
By Ceylan Ozbudak âAâish! Horreyyah! Adala Egtemaâiya!â Who can forget the thrilling chant of the Egyptian people, as they cast off the oppression of Hosni Mubarak and demanded âbread, liberty, and social justiceâ in 2011? Even as the Brotherhood denies that tourism is wilting on the vine, the Egyptian pound is crashing, and Egyptâs foreign …
Review: Op-Eds encourage consensus ahead of elections
The current state of political polarisation might drag Egypt to an even more dangerous stage after the upcoming parliamentary elections. Writers in several newspapers have debated the importance of reaching consensus ahead of the elections. On another note, some other commentators have listed the reasons for President Mohamed Morsiâs failing management. What does the …
Therapy required for Shura Council
Shura Council Human Rights Committee blames women for being victims of sexual assault
The Horror
For the past week I have been avoiding, ducking and evading the black hole of negativity that has seemingly sucked everyone in. It wasnât an easy task especially because for everyone I spoke to, the news of whatâs been happening in the country, from mass sexual assaults and terrorism to police torture of street children, …
Review: Columns attack opposition
The Egyptian opposition is in dire need of creative ideas that can enable them to defeat the ruling Muslim Brotherhood, wrote several commentators. As many opposition groups focus on the constitution and the constituent assembly, parties need to consider new mechanisms to gain the support of Egyptians, who have proved their inclination towards Islamists. …
Rebel Economy Wrap
Then & Now: 11 February 2011/2013
The (not so) curious case of the prime minister and the dirty breasts
âGiant breasts full of milk⊠I want clouds, damn it!â During a memorable scene from Martin Scorseseâs Howard Hughes biopic The Aviator, Hughes, played by Leonardo Di Caprio, asks Professor Fitz, a meteorologist he has hired during the making of his film, Hellâs Angels, when clouds looking like âgiant breasts full of milkâ will appear …
Review: Commentaries ask if opposition is ready for elections
Writers in Egyptian newspapers have explored a variety of topics recently. Some writers questioned the oppositionâs readiness to compete against the Muslim Brotherhood in the upcoming parliamentary elections. Others chide the independent and opposition media for failing to provide a fair coverage of the 12th session of the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC), which is …
Egypt and Iranâodd bedfellows?
By Nervana Mahmoud The extraordinary and well-organised funeral procession of the deposed Iranian Shah in 1980 marked the first state funeral to be held in Old Cairo in modern Egyptâs history. The Egyptian president Anwar Sadat had done his best to give the Shah a dignified burial. Sadat had chosen the beautiful Rifaâi Mosque, where …
Sexual harassment, the Ikhwan and castration
âSuddenly I found my pants down, a hand between my legs. I did not know how he unbuckled my belt without me feeling himâŠâ This is a typical statement beginning Egyptian womenâs tales of sexual harassment. They almost always focus on âthe beltâ the first time they tell their stories as if the belt was …
Open sesame
By Philip Whitfield âIftaáž„ ya simsimâ Ali Baba says, and the mouth of the cave concealing the 40 thievesâ treasure opens wide. The poor woodcutter becomes antiquityâs biggest Lotto winner. We grow up on myths, glorious fiction, and eternityâs morality story of hopeâs triumph over melancholy. The best tales have a beautiful leading lady, a …
Analyzing Morsiâs Presidency
Since Morsi took office, the map of political actors that existed under SCAF has been reconfigured. During the 8 months of Morsiâs presidency, shifting political alliances and power relations have made for a complex political landscape. While such changes are expected in any political system undergoing a process of transformation, in Egypt they were significant …
The editorâs new clothes
Adel Heine’s weekly column
Amidst the chaos, a really bad NGO law is about to be enacted
 By Robert Becker In a year that has been dominated so far by gruesome images of police brutality, horrific gang rape, curfew-busting protests, controversial court decisions, and ineffectual leadership by all Egyptian political forces, it is easy to understand how this 31 January headline caught no oneâs attention: Final draft of NGO law sent to Cabinet …
Can Egypt have a foreign policy?
By Hussein Ibish In the context of ongoing political unrest, is it possible for Egypt to have a functional foreign policy? Probably not. And as long as this is the case, that has profound implications for others in the region, particularly the Palestinians and Syria. Egypt does have a functional national security policy, largely because …
Egypt is not Somalia (it isnât Switzerland, either)
The last two weeks were not a huge surprise. For some, it seems that the last couple of weeks were the result of a strategy by forces opposed to the presidency of Mohamed Morsiâthat the violence was planned, arranged, and implemented. There is a corresponding logic to that line of thoughtâthat had the violence not …
Review: Commentaries debate opposition, violence and corruption
Writers across Egyptian newspapers have explored an assortment of topics. Some of them dissected the deteriorating level of human rights in Egypt, especially after the recent clip of torture showing a man being beaten and dragged across the ground by Central Security Forces (CSF). Other writers condemned the opposition and their failing attempts to establish …
Calm the public?
Every day we look for victims, their families, and their lawyers
The cautionary tale of NSFMommy and MBDaddy
Good morning Children, Today we are going to tell the story of the unfortunately very Egyptian marriage of NSFMommy and MBDaddy. Like most Egyptian marriage stories, itâs a very stupid family drama where there are no heroes and even the victim looks bad in the end. We are not sure if there is a moral …
Review: Op-Eds chide authority for using violence
After the recent video clip showing  an Egyptian man being beaten and dragged by security forces, several commentaries have exposed the issue of human rights violations in Egypt. Many writers pointed fingers at the executive authority, blaming it for the widespread violence. Several columnists believe that the authorities should end the practice of violence to …
Demeaning enough?
They kept repeating the clip in front of me for more than five subsequent times. I starred at the pixelated screen. But it was still okay. The viciousness was clear enough for me. I could see the legs kicking him in the back, sticks hammering him on his head, hands dragging him from his legs …
Egypt: A twilight without a new dawn
By Nervana Mahmoud Egypt has always been portrayed in folk history as a woman with eternal youth, defiant and graceful. But the state that has been proud of its iconic past is currently crumbling at a surprisingly fast pace, and no one seems to be able to stop it. The chaotic scenes witnessed in Egypt …
The Police: Back to square one
Once again we go back to the very basics, to where it all began. What the police did last night around the presidential palace was nothing but a simple reminder of how things are just the same. Those who fell victim to the illusion of change should now wake up and see things for what …
Review: Columnists debate Morsyâs poor performance
Several columnists have denounced Morsyâs recent visit to Germany as an example of his failure to consider the deteriorating political situation in Egypt, criticising his decision to visit Berlin amid the political uproar. Some highlight that many Egyptians regret their choice of Morsy as president. The failing trip to Germany Mohamed Salmawi Al-Masry Al-Youm …