Under Construction: Egypt

News from the Egyptian Street and Media Translated Without Comment from Arabic into English As a Public Service
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A secular state is presently under construction in Egypt.  It is a return to a historical status of the pre-Nasser Egypt.  In the new Egypt, following the January 25 Revolution, religion and the state do not mix.  In Tahir, the Egyptian flag of the 1919 revolution against British occupation - a crescent embracing the cross, symbolizing Muslim/Coptic unity - was again raised at Tahrir.  At a meeting between Dr. Abdullah Al-Husseini, Egypt's Minister for Religious Affairs, and the Russian Ambassador, Al-Husseini stated that Egypt is a secular state with religious traditions.  These traditions, the Egyptian Minster added, do not mix religion with the state.

At this transitional period from Mubarak's Egypt to a newly-reconstructed Egypt, the Supreme Council for Armed Forces issued its Internet message No.45.  In it, it warned against Facebook messages with no attribution spreading false rumors aiming at inflaming sectarian strife.  Among the false rumors which the Supreme Council's message is refuting is that some of the January 25 youth are being detained.  In this regard, the Council stressed that the Armed Forces of Egypt, a conscripted army, is the security shield of the Revolution.

Under the leadership of Dr. Abdel-Aziz Higazy, Minister for National Dialogue, and a former Prime Minister of Egypt, 51 national leaders, including some of the January 25 youth, began their work in Cairo.  In a statement to the press, Dr. Higazy defined 5 axes to that dialogue.  These are democracy; human rights; development of human and social resources; development of economical and financial resources; and culture, inter-faith dialogue, and public information.  The aim is to hold these national dialogue sessions to all governorates of Egypt and to translate these findings into national policies.

In his first public statement, Dr. Muhammed Morsi, leader of the new party called "Liberty and Justice," with 90% membership of the Muslim Brotherhood, declared that this new party, which is presently under construction, would be ready to join a future coalition government in Egypt.

An unprecedented meeting took place between the Rector of Al-Azhar, the main religious institution for Islamic learning (established more than 1000 years ago), Imam Dr. Ahmed-El-Tayieb, and the General Guide of the Muslim Brotherhood on May 3.  Following that meeting, Dr. El-Tayieb stressed that Al-Azhar aims at unifying the message of Islam to its people and to the world.  He went on to say that Al-Azhar aims at propagating moderation and tolerance, and the elimination of extremist fatwas (religious pronouncements).

The news of the slaying of Osama Bin Laden in Pakistan at the hands of the U.S. Special Forces on May 1, were greeted as the most important event in anti-terror activities throughout the world since 9/11.  The main comments on that event was that Bin Laden's rise to notoriety was the direct consequence of dictatorship in the Arab/Muslim region.  But after a decade has passed since 9/11, a new type of youth arose in that region leading to the revolutions in Tunisia, Egypt, Libya, Yemen and elsewhere.  The new generation, using social information technology had as a global objective, not terror a la Al-Qaeda, but the Rule of Law and states based on democratic principles.  The popularity of Bin Laden had drastically waned even before his demise.