Pharaoh Mubarak is gone, but Egypt's problems remain

By Anne-Beatrice Clasmann Feb 9, 2012, 16:06 GMT

Cairo - It has been a year since Egyptians sent their modern-day pharaoh Hosny Mubarak packing. But since then, revolutionary activists have gone from ecstasy through disappointment to anger. Now they are calling for a general strike.

Many foreign analysts who were at Cairo's Tahrir Square on February 11, 2011, when the long-time president finally announced his resignation, feel the same.

They wonder whether Egypt really is on the path to democracy and if the old system will simply be replaced by yet another unjust political order - this time dominated by Islamists.

These doubts are being fed by recent attacks on freedom of speech, by a trial against German and US foundations with branches in Egypt, and by abuse of demonstrators at the hands of police.

The mostly young members of the protest movement have called for another rally this Saturday - the first anniversary of Mubarak's resignation.

Together with several dozen labour unions and student groups, they are also preparing a general strike, scheduled to begin on February 11. They aim to force the generals who swept to power when Mubarak was ousted to leave the political scene earlier than planned.

But parliamentary elections have shown that the revolutionaries cannot secure a majority. The same applies to the generals' supporters, who are organizing a rally of their own on February 11.

Islamists are now the dominant force in Egypt's new parliament, which was formed following a complex series of elections between late November and mid January.

'February 11 is a day to build things up and not a day of destruction,' Mohsen Radi of the Muslim Brotherhood party was quoted as saying by the Egyptian press.

Meanwhile, the radical Islamic party Al-Nour has created the slogan: 'Legitimacy no longer belongs to the demonstrators on the square, but in parliament.'

With 24 per cent of parliamentary seats, the radical Islamists are now the second largest group in parliament after the Muslim Brotherhood's 47 per cent.

Both the demonstrations and the Islamist slogans poison the Egyptian economy. Tourist numbers are dwindling. Foreign investors have been avoiding Egypt since January 2011.

As a result of political instability, the state is paying horrendous amounts in interest on new loans. The transitional government has had to raise the salaries of civil servants as the people are demanding a 'revolution dividend.'

At the same time, crime is on the rise. In recent weeks, Cairo has been hit by a spate of abductions targeting children from wealthy families, who are then held for ransom.

Investment manager Karim Sadek has every reason to be alarmed. He heads Citadel Capital, one of the biggest investment firms in the region with headquarters in Cairo. Citadel stocks have lost half of their value since Mubarak was ousted. Yet, Sadek hopes that his homeland can look towards a rosy future once the transition period ends - a future without cronyism, illiteracy and police brutality.

During last year's protests, police beat him black and blue when he tried to get medical equipment through to demonstrators on Tahrir Square.

Today, he says: 'I wanted to help because in recent years, I was ashamed of politics in my country. Mubarak ruled Egypt like a pharaoh. And if last year's turmoil had anything positive about it, it was that nobody will ever rule like a pharaoh in Egypt again.'

Only the generals know whether Egyptians will elect a new president in May or June. They are not inclined to let anyone in on their secrets. Ahead of constitutional reform, no one can even say what powers the new president will have.

Former president Mubarak, who now faces the gallows after ordering deadly gunshot fire on demonstrators last year, will probably spend the first anniversary of his resignation as a remand prisoner in his sickbed.