Egypt

Recycling Our Attitudes

Via Egypt Today, by Nadine El Sayed

Walking down the Corniche in Giza, I was pleasantly surprised to find three recycling bins installed, one in front of Gold’s Gym and the other in front of Cairo Yacht Club. I didn’t understand why the two bins were installed about 100 meters apart while the rest weren’t even half as frequent, but I was happy to see them nonetheless.

So as I am standing there gleaming and taking a picture of the three recycling bins, I see a man throwing a piece of paper down the street, just about 200 meters away from the bin. Needless to say, my happiness deflates and I am harshly brought back to our streets reality. Then I remembered standing in front of the recycling bins for the first time in London and wondering where the soda can should go. And I also remembered a conversation I overheard at the American University in Cairo’s (AUC) new campus where students weren’t only puzzled as to what goes where, but they were also quite cynical. They told one another there was no point in separating waste since they saw garbage collectors mixing the three bins together into one big container anyway. So it hit me, much like many other projects in Egypt, if this project isn’t followed through properly, well implemented, executed and promoted, then this is just another waste in public money. It takes more than three bins to clean our acts I am not yet positive that this project is government-backed, according to the security men on the streets, the sayes (valet) and workers at a nearby restaurants, it was the garbage collectors contracting companies who put it. However, I failed to receive any confirmation from the ministry. But in all cases, the Ministry of Environment had announced a month ago its plan for keeping Egypt’s streets clean and solving the garbage issue, a plan that ended with introducing recycling as the third phase to the project. Realistically speaking, I really do not expect people’s attitudes towards waste to change because they see three shiny, colorful bins — ones they most probably have no clue how to use anyway. It takes a massive awareness building campaigns, strict and well-executed littering penalties and mostly, consistency. We should be seeing recycling bins everywhere to adopt this attitude, recycling part-time means no recycling at all. People don’t just become environmentally aware once every now and then when they do come across with recycling bins. The three bins were labeled “Cans and Bottles,” “Paper and Plastic,” and “Organic Material.” Mind you, we are trying to get someone who would most conveniently throw the rest of his sandwich away to walk over to the bins and choose the right one to throw it in. Not only does he care less about recycling and has been used to throwing waste in the streets all his life, but he also probably has no clue how to use the bins if he wanted to. Recycling, everywhere in the world, didn’t start by the bins — the bins are a crucial step to be applauded of course, but it takes awareness and law to change our long-instilled attitudes. People simply throw their burning cigarettes away on the streets, as opposed to the ashtray in the car, not bothering with cleanliness or even safety — why should they bother with the environment?

This isn’t to say that people are careless about the environment, but they really still don’t know any better. Talks about environmental issues are smirked at in Egypt, many consider environmental awareness a luxury that takes a backseat to basic necessities of life. But unless we start to understand that the environment is a basic necessity of life, our attitudes are really unlikely to change. Unless the benefits of recycling and threats of status quo are clearly promoted, and people are taught how to separate their waste, then there’s no point of wasting effort and money on this. et

via www.egypttoday.com

Ahram poll reveals Moussa still Egypt's favoured presidential candidate - Presidential elections news - Presidential elections 2012

This week's pole--Moussa has led in all the weekly poles so far.

Via Ahram Online

Amr Moussa (Photo: Reuters)

In the weekly statistical poll conducted by Al-Ahram Political Studies Centre, the poll reveals on Monday that presidential hopeful, Amr Moussa, Mubarak's former foreign minister, takes the majority of votes.

Specifically, Moussa had 41.1 percent of the votes in the poll.

Presidential contender Abdel Moneim Abul-Fotouh, former Muslim Brotherhood leader, took 27.3 percent of the votes.

Together, Moussa and Abul-Fotouh have 68.4 percent of the total votes.

The poll was conducted between 21 - 24 April.

After the Salafist Nour Party and Salafist Scholar Shura Council announced their endorsement of Abul-Fotouh on Saturday, supporters backing Abul-Fotouh are expected to rise. 

Presidential runner, Ahmed Shafiq, a former prime minister and air force chief, came in third place and achieved 11.9 percent of votes.

Hamdeen Sabbahi, Nasserist candidate running on an independent ticket, got 7.4 percent of the poll's votes.

Selim El-Awa, well-known islamist thinker, received 5.7 percent of the votes while Muslim Brotherhood's candidate Morsi received the lowest percentage of votes, at 3.6 percent.

The poll revealed that Moussa and Abul-Fotouh are in tight competition over the central governorates, especially Cairo, Dakahliya, Sharqiya and Qalioubiya.

Moussa reigned in Upper Egypt governorates: Assiut, Qena and Sohag.

However, the poll showed that Abul-Fotouh had the votes of Minya, Beni Sueif and Fayoum governorates.

As for Shafiq, the poll revealed that he has Menoufiya governorate, unlike both front-runners.

The poll was conducted on a sample of 1,200 individuals through personal interviews. It is a representative sample of central governerates; excluding coastal governorates, such as North Sinai, South Sinai, Marsa Matrouh, Al-Wadi Al-Gadid and Red Sea governerate. These governorates excluded from the poll, however, represent less than 2% of Egypt's population.

The thirteen presidential candidates will officially start campaigning on Monday.

Presidential elections will take place on 23 and 24 May, and the president will be named on 21 June after a runoff voting round, if necessary, on 16 and 17 June.

 

via english.ahram.org.eg

Whatever happened to the Egyptian presidential candidates?

Vai Ahram Online. by Samer Soliman

Egyptians are suffering a dearth of inspiring presidential candidates due to decades of political decay and corruption - we must be patient until we get the politicians we deserve

More important than finding out which presidential candidate someone supports, is knowing why they support him. About three weeks ago, I was riding a taxi to the airport and wasted no time in finding out the cab driver’s opinion about his preferred presidential candidate. Like most, the driver tried to avoid answering the question until he first found out who I supported. I also was evasive and refused to answer the question before he replied first. Finally, he told me either Ahmed Shafiq or Hamdeen Sabbahi.

I asked him why Shafiq and he said because he was able to upgrade Cairo Airport. Why Sabbahi? Because he is like Gamal Abdel-Nasser in his nationalist projects. I was not really surprised by the driver’s indecision between a candidate from the “remnants” and a “revolutionary.” The choices of average citizens have a different logic than us “non-average” folk in the political and public realm.

What are the similarities between Shafiq and Sabbahi in the driver’s opinion? I believe, he said, they are both capable of managing well public affairs or the state. This is the primary attribute that the Egyptian street is seeking in the president of the republic. A strong manager or chief civil servant who can salvage the state apparatus from the abysmal state it descended to in recent years, which hit rock bottom under the rule of the Supreme Council of the Armed Forces (SCAF).

When garbage and remains of dead animals pile up on the streets of “posh” areas just like in lower class districts, and when people are exposed to unprecedented levels of insecurity, it is no wonder that large segments of Egyptians are seeking a president who is more like a chief civil servant.

A successful manager is a fundamental quality that the Egyptian street is seeking, which is why Mohamed ElBaradei was considered a presidential contender. When new politicians were looking for an alternative to Mubarak, they chose an Egyptian who through his qualifications and hard work was able to become a successful manager of a major and important international organisation, the International Atomic Energy Agency. ElBaradei’s job description is “international civil servant,” which is why young politicians sought him out to manage the Egyptian state apparatus, after it had reached appalling levels of failure and corruption that prevented it from producing successful civil servants. In fact, successful employees were regularly “cleansed” out of the state apparatus, pursued and defeated until they stopped succeeding.

ElBaradei’s advantage was not only that he is a successful employee but also is free of the corruption and oppression of Mubarak’s regime. His problem was that he was an international employee, which is a curse in Egyptian politics after it deteriorated under decades of rule by the military and security agencies. The adjective “international” undermines the person’s loyalty to Egypt and his integrity. The president must be honest and trustworthy in order to be entrusted with the interests of the people, which is a characterisation that security agencies and some groups were able to strip from ElBaradei in a coordinated campaign of character assassination.

And hence, ElBaradei left the post of chief civil servant for others to contest, mainly Amr Moussa and Ahmed Shafiq – after Omar Suleiman was eliminated. Suleiman came to battle with a thick moustache and security background to present himself as a strong civil servant who could control the dilapidated state apparatus.

An honest and trustworthy person is what many Egyptians sought in Hazem Salah Abu-Ismail. His “pleasant” face, charming smile, comforting calm, and confident tone made him an idol for his supporters who trusted him. Egypt suffers a problem of mistrust; if I ask you to count how many people you trust in this country, there won’t be many beyond the circle of your family and close friends. The crisis of trust is linked to the absence of a state of law, the dominance of the rules of the jungle, and shocking rampant corruption in state and society. That is why everyone is competing with and battling the others, and why many Egyptians chose to support a religious man “who fears God” in order to have a president they can trust.

In the absence of institutional foundations that allow society to oversee the office of president, it is logical for some to vote for someone they blindly trust, and who better than a devout religious man whose "qualities can be seen in his face.” He sold his supporters the notion that he can be blindly trusted, and told them, "You can trust me to sit and negotiate with the Americans and Israelis." But alas, it was proven with documents that Abu-Ismail is not trustworthy, and so he exits the contest leaving his supporters shell-shocked and in denial of all the hard facts that prove his mother is a US citizen.

Abu-Ismail left the presidential race and he may eventually be prosecuted for fraud and end up in jail, after a brief political career during which he shook Egyptian politics. It is a harsh but beneficial lesson for millions of his supporters who in the future will know that “clothing doth not a religious man make,” and that a beard and a zibiba (dark mark on the forehead) is not evidence of righteousness and virtue. Abu-Ismail exited leaving the model of honest and trustworthy for another candidate.

A master storyteller and inspirational speaker is the third attribute that a significant segment of the people is seeking in the next president. This is logical since we spent 30 years with a president who hardly ever spoke to us, and when he did he usually was reading a text written by someone else to babble on about his achievements in bridges, sewage and telephone lines, etc. Hardly anything about the future, or hopes for the future.

This is another feature that Abu-Ismail was very successful in; he is a successful preacher, and a preacher’s primary merchandise is words that inspire, promising a great future if not in this world then in the next. In this manner, he is very similar to a politician; the main merchandise in politics is also words and storytelling and the ability to inspire hope and build momentum.

A great president is not only a chief civil servant and manager able to fine-tune the performance of his subordinates, but is also an inspirational figure, a master orator who can penetrate the hearts and minds of citizens who are not his subordinates and outside the state apparatus.

The problem with Egypt is that the political arena has been stifled and muzzled for 60 years, which is why leaders have no training in speechmaking or addressing the people on a regular basis – except in the religious domain. This explains why today the political scene is dominated by men of religion and preachers – Muslims and Christians – and why many players on the political stage have religious backgrounds.

Chief civil servant, honest, trustworthy and master storyteller – there are the most important qualities that I believe many Egyptians are seeking in their next president, but none of them are present in one candidate. Every time people bet on a candidate who they think possesses these attributes, they eventually find out it is but an illusion.

Be patient fellow citizens, Egypt’s new political arena has only existed for one year, but in the coming years the country will witness hundreds and thousands of new leaders who will realise the aspiration of Egyptians for a capable president who can govern this patient citizenry who have been afflicted with catastrophes for so long, but nonetheless continue to dream of a better tomorrow.

via english.ahram.org.eg

Egypt parliamentary committee rejects SCAF criteria for constituent assembly

Via Ahram Online

Criteria agreed upon Saturday by military council and political party representatives for choosing members of new constitution-drafting assembly rejected by parliamentary committee

A parliamentary committee has rejected the agreement reached Saturday by the Supreme Council of the Armed Forces (SCAF) and political party representatives, which put in place six main criteria for choosing members of Egypt's constitution-drafting assembly.

Mahmoud El-Khodeiry, head parliament's legislative and constitutional committee, described the agreement as an infringement upon the authority of parliament to freely choose members of the constituent assembly responsible for drafting Egypt's new constitution as dictated by article 60 of the constitutional declaration.  

Earlier this month, parliament's speaker Mohamed Saad El-Katatni commissioned the committee to define the criteria for selecting members of the constituent assembly.     

However, the SCAF met with political parties on Saturday and agreed upon six main criteria by which the constituent assembly would be formed.

In response, El-Khodeiry stated that he was frustrated with how it was taken for granted that these criteria had already been agreed upon without his committee being notified. He added that had the criteria agreed upon in Saturday's meeting been sent to the committee they would have been discussed and incorporated with the committee's suggestions.

Meanwhile, the Muslim Brotherhood's Sobhi Saleh justified the meeting, explaining that the criteria suggested were not obligatory and thus did not infringe upon the committee's authority. He added that in the end, parliament would choose the constituent assembly and the committee would set the criteria.

Mamdouh Ismail MP criticised the Brotherhood, the largest party in parliament, for attending the meeting and ignoring parliament's committee.

The committee will be filing a complaint to parliament's speaker, Mohamed Saad El-Katatni, after which parliament will vote either to support the criteria dictated by Saturday's meeting with the SCAF or for the committee to continue its discussions over the criteria for membership of the constituent assembly.

The 6 points agreed upon in the meeting are:  

1. Consensus has to be reached over the proportions allotted to each societal group or faction in deference to the administrative court ruling.
2. Consensus has to be reached over any single constitutional article. In case consensus cannot be reached, a two-thirds majority must be reached and if such a majority cannot be reached within 24 hours, then a 57-member majority – out of 100 members – would be sufficient. 
3. Each party will choose its own representatives. Religious institutions will also choose their representatives. Al-Azhar will choose four, while Egypt's churches including the Catholic, Orthodox and Anglican will choose six representatives. Ten legal and constitutional experts will be chosen and a member of each judicial institution will also be represented in the constituent assembly. Farmers will be allotted two constituents and workers will also be granted two seats. Public figures including women, students and the disabled will also be assigned seats. 
4. Efforts will be exerted to finish the drafting of the new constitution before presidential election runoffs are completed.
5. Egypt's de-facto leader and SCAF head Field Marshal Hussein Tantawi will call both upper and lower houses of parliament to stage a joint meeting to elect members of the constituent assembly.
6. A supervising committee will be formed to include representatives of the Wafd Party, the Muslim Brotherhood's Freedom and Justice Party, the Egyptian Bloc, El-Hadara Party and the Ghad El-Thawra Party. The committee will also include independent MPs including Mostafa Bakry and Marian Malak.

Attempts by Egypt's political elites to proceed in the constitutional-drafting process have been beset with troubles from the start, the first assembly being disbanded.

Days after the formation of the first assembly, a mass walkout jeopardised the constitution-drafting body. Members from liberal and leftist parties, independent prominent figures and representatives of professional and trade unions as well as representatives of the Coptic Church and Egypt's main Islamic authority, Al-Azhar, all pulled out, citing disproportionate representation.

via english.ahram.org.eg

State media: Egyptian military council will form new government

Cairo (CNN) -- The head of Egypt's ruling military council announced that he would form a new government "within hours," state media reported Sunday.

The announcement by Field Marshal Hussein Tantawi came just hours after that nation's lower parliamentary house suspended its session to protest the civilian government led by Mubarak-era Prime Minister Kamal Ganzouri.

In remarks broadcast on state television, Speaker Saad el-Katatni of the Freedom and Justice Party said that the lower house was suspending its session for a week to protest the ruling Supreme Council of the Armed Forces ignoring calls to dismiss Ganzouri's government.

The Freedom and Justice Party is the political arm of Egypt's long-banned Muslim Brotherhood, which has claimed the lion's share of seats in Egypt's parliament and become a leading force in the country's new politics.

In recent weeks, the group has clashed with the military council and the civilian government the generals installed.

The Brotherhood has as its stated aim the establishment of a more traditional Islamic society in Egypt. It was officially banned in Egypt under Mubarak but unofficially tolerated, though its members were periodically harassed and jailed.

This month, the Brotherhood announced that the Freedom and Justice Party had nominated 62-year-old multimillionaire businessman Khairat al-Shater as its candidate for president in May, though he was later disqualified. The group's candidate is now the lesser-known Mohamed Morsi.

Elections are scheduled to start May 23.

via edition.cnn.com

Three of five revolutionary candidates set to unite in presidency race

Via Ahram Online

(Clockwise) El-Hariri, Sabbahi, Ali, Abul-Fotouh and El-Bastawisi

Presidential candidate Abul-Ezz El-Hariri revealed Friday he is on the verge of reaching an agreement with fellow contenders, Hamdeen Sabbahi and Hisham El-Bastawisi, that would see two of the aforementioned candidates withdraw from the presidential race to back the third, in an attempt to unite revolutionary voters.

"I think we are about to reach an agreement between Hamdeen Sabbahi, El-Bastawisi and me over one presidential candidate," El-Hariri said on his Twitter account, without naming a favourite.

"This is what you (revolutionaries) wished would happen – that Hamdeen Sabbahi and I work together in presidential elections. We will unite to support one candidate to represent the revolutionaries."

Al-Ahram's Arabic website reported that the three presidential contestants – upon reaching an accord – will put their signatures to a statement before officially announcing the decision. The trio's respective presidential campaigns would also be dedicated to support the chosen sole candidate, according to Al-Ahram's Arabic site.

Socialist and labour activist El-Hariri, Nasserist opposition figure, Sabbahi and prominent reformist judge, El-Bastawisi, emerged from last year's uprising as high-profile revolutionary figures. They stood alongside Tahrir Square's protesters and called for the overthrow of president Hosni Mubarak.

Commenting on the forthcoming alliance of the three candidates, political analyst Mohamed El-Agati told Ahram Online, "I think it is a good step, but it is not enough to unify the revolutionary vote behind one candidate."

He added: "In order to unite revolutionary votes, all revolutionary figures must be involved in that agreement. In other words, [Islamist activist and former Muslim Brotherhood leader] Abdel-Moneim Abul-Fotouh and [renowned lawyer and activist] Khaled Ali.

"Khaled Ali is willing to be involved in such an agreement to unite all revolutionary constituents, if all candidates representing the revolution are on board. Apparently, though, Abul-Fotouh wants to run for president on his own."

Abul-Fotouh committed to Brotherhood?

El-Hariri later, in an interview with Al-Ahram's Arabic website, stated that he refuses to have Abul-Fotouh as a partner in the alliance. "The alliance is my idea, which I came up with over four months ago and set criteria for," he said.

"The candidates in this alliance must be popular, reputable and have comprehensive platforms that will save Egypt by improving all aspects of life: social, political and economic.

"I chose figures like Sabbahi and El-Bastawisi, because they [are considered] democratic forces and among the principles they espouse is that Egypt be a secular state - not theocratic.

"Abul-Fotouh wouldn't harmonise with that civic idea, because he is committed to the [Brotherhood's] Supreme Guide [Mohamed Badie] and not to the people. Neither does he have his own platform as a presidential candidate.

"His platform is the same as the Brotherhood's," charged El-Hariri, "So he cannot be with us."

El-Hariri also pointed to Abul-Fotouh's previous political positions, saying: "He endorsed the fake constitutional declaration [a temporary constitution voted for in March in 2011] and supports the Camp David treaty [with Israel].

"He is also among those who refused to amend Article 28 [of the constitutional declaration]." Critics of Article 28 argue that it grants the Supreme Presidential Electoral Commission (SPEC) unfettered authority.

Abul-Fotouh was expelled from the Brotherhood shortly after the 18-day uprising for announcing his intention to run for president, thereby going against the group's decision at the time not to field a presidential candidate.

The Brotherhood later backtracked on its decision and announced Khairat El-Shater as their candidate - the man who is widely believed to be responsible for Abul-Fotouh's expulsion from the Brotherhood.

The SPEC, however, concluded that El-Shater is ineligible to run for president due to legal problems and was ruled out of the race. The Brotherhood, subsequently, fielded Mohamed Mursi, the head of their political wing, the Freedom and Justice Party (FJP), in the presidential contest instead.

The other accepted presidential candidates are diplomat and politician Amr Moussa; former commander of the Egyptian Air Force Ahmed Shafiq; ex-deputy director of intelligence Hossam Khairallah; international law PhD Abdallah El-Ashaal; Islamic thinker and writer Mohamed Selim El-Awa; former police officer Mahmoud Hossam and police expert Mohamed Fawzy.

Egypt's presidential elections will take place on 23 and 24 May and the president will be named on 21 June after a runoff-voting round, if needed, on 16 and 17 June.

via english.ahram.org.eg

Egyptian protests over detained lawyer shut Saudi embassy

Did Egyptians think that the Saudis would take the bashing sitting down? They now believe that they can resolve and attain anything and everything by insults and protests. What a shame!

Via BBC News

Egyptians have held angry protests outside the Saudi embassy in Cairo this week

Saudi Arabia has shut its embassy and consulates in Egypt following protests over an Egyptian lawyer who has been detained in Saudi Arabia.

The Saudi ambassador to Egypt had also been recalled, the Saudi state news agency said.

Egyptian protesters have demanded the release of human rights lawyer Ahmed al-Gizawi.

The head of Egypt's ruling military council has expressed surprise over the Saudi move.

Field Marshal Hussein Tantawi contacted the Saudi government on Saturday to try to resolve the issue, the Egyptian Mena news agency reported.

'Sharp escalation'

The Saudi closures affect the embassy in Cairo as well as consulates in the cities of Alexandria and Suez.

The BBC's Jon Leyne says the Saudi action marks a sharp escalation of a row that has been going on for some days.

Mr Gizawi was detained earlier this month on arrival in Saudi Arabia and accused of insulting King Abdullah.

Egyptian activists say he was held after lodging a complaint against Saudi Arabia for its treatment of Egyptians in its prisons.

His family says he had gone to perform a minor pilgrimage - a detail which has angered many Egyptians who feel resentment at the kingdom's treatment of Egyptians.

But Saudi authorities say Mr Gizawi was found by airport officials to be carrying drugs - allegedly more than 20,000 anti-anxiety pills - in his luggage.

They doubt Mr Gizawi was on a pilgrimage, as they say he was not wearing white pilgrims' clothes.

Observers say it is the worst diplomatic falling-out between the two regional powers since Saudi Arabia severed ties after Egypt signed a peace deal with Israel in 1979.

Many Egyptians work in Saudi Arabia and there have often been cases where they say they have been mistreated under Saudi law.

via www.bbc.co.uk

Workers plan to celebrate Labor Day with marches in Cairo, governorates

Via Egypt Independent

Photographed by AFP
A number of labor unions plan to celebrate Labor Day on Tuesday the first of May through marches and demonstrations in several governorates under the slogan of "social equality for laborers."

The Independent Federation of Trade Unions, the Egyptian Center of Economic Rights, the Hisham Mubarak Law Center and the Suez federal workers are among a number of groups organizing marches to emphasize the rights of the laborers and their demands. The Socialist Popular Alliance Party, the Egyptian Socialist Party, the Egyptian Communist Party, the Workers and Farmers Party, the Revolutionary Socialists, the Kazeboon (Liars) campaign and the Youth for Freedom and Justice movement will also arrange demonstrations.

In Cairo, a march from the headquarters of the Independent Egyptian Federation of Trade Unions on Qasr al-Aini Street to the People's Assembly and the cabinet will begin at noon.

The organizers hope that the MPs will cancel their holiday to spend the day meeting with laborers and discussing their issues.

In Alexandria, a march is scheduled to begin at noon from Manshiyya neighborhood that will end at the headquarters of the governorate.

Laborers in Suez will march from Shoaq Palace in Martyrs Square to the headquarters of the governorate.

In Daqahlia, a march to the governorate headquarters in Mansoura City will set off from Mansoura Stadium at noon.  

The organizers of the marches called on governors and officials in governorates across Egypt to be present at their offices that day to receive laborers and hear their demands.

Abdul Hafeez Tayel, director of the Egyptian Center for the Right to Education, one of the organizers of the marches, said a formal request had been sent to MPs to be present at the People's Assembly to meet with marchers.

Kamal Abbas, general coordinator at the Center for Trade Union and Workers' Services said: "The center will participate in the Democratic Conference of Egyptian Workers on Labor Day by organizing a mass rally in front of Parliament at 2 pm on 1 May, under the slogan, “We want a free union” to call for the completion of the law on trade unions' freedoms.”

Abbas added that “another labor conference will be organized at El Sawy Culture Wheel on the same day in which a number of labor leaders and representatives of various unions will participate.”

Abbas denied rumors that government or military representatives will be invited to the conference.

Edited translation from Al-Masry Al-Youm

via www.egyptindependent.com

MEI Editor's Blog: Anatomy of a Hoax and Media Credulity: The "Egypt Necrophilia Law" Story

Via Middle East Institute--I agree--an article worthy of quoting in full. 

A quote attributed (dubiously) to Mark Twain has it that "A lie can go halfway around the world while truth is getting its boots on." And that was before the Internet. There was a classic example of this yesterday, when a story so grotesque, bizarre, and appalling that you'd think no one would believe it without evidence (and there was none) managed to turn up in print media and all over the Internet before a few intrepid souls noticed that there was no credible sourcing to the story. It's a case study in the down side of instant 24/7 reporting, and it tells us something about the tendency for Western media to believe absolutely anything about Islamists. Even this, from the (usually) respectable, liberal, Huffington Post, which is less sensational than some of the reports:

Egypt’s new Islamist-dominated parliament is preparing to introduce a controversial law that would allow husbands to have sex with their deceased wives up to six hours after death.

Known as the “farewell Intercourse” law, the measure is being championed as part of a raft of reforms introduced by the parliament that will also see the minimum age of marriage lowered to 14 for girls.

After an inevitable "WHAT!!!???" response, which of the following options do you think was the reaction of many (thankfully, not all) of the media?:

1. Traditional journalistic due diligence: Who has introduced this outrageous law in Parliament. What are the sources of the story? Where is this supposed bill in the Parliamentary process? When was it introduced? Why would anybody believe this outrageous story without even citing the name of one Member of Parliament supporting such a bill? Or:
2. Just reprint it without checking with anyone. After all, I saw it on the Internet, so it must be true. 

Yes, a lot of folks who should know better chose door number two.

It's such an outrageous story that one is reminded of Josef Goebbels' famous dictum that "the bigger the lie, the more people will believe it." This story, improbable as it ought to have seemed to anyone with common sense, somehow went halfway round the world before truth could get its boots on. Several Egyptian reporters/bloggers and an American or two have gradually reconstructed where this grotesque report came from, and I am trying to summarize all their findings here.

I'll cite specific instances below, but this story turned up in English first, I think, in the English website of Al-Arabiya, was picked up by the tabloid The Daily Mail, and then started to turn up all over the place: in rabid right-wing Islamophobic sites, of course, but also in liberal venues like The Huffington Post. For the right, it proves the morbid perversity of Islam; for the left, it proves the repression of women. Both points might be well taken if anyone had the slightest evidence that any such law exists. No one has produced any.Yet by the time it gets to The Daily Mail, the story has become:

Egyptian husbands will soon be legally allowed to have sex with their dead wives - for up to six hours after their death. The controversial new law is part of a raft of measures being introduced by the Islamist-dominated parliament.

Now it "will soon be legally allowed" under a law "introduced by the Islamist-dominated parliament." It sounds like it's a done deal, about to be rammed through a pliant parliament. Very alarming, except for the minor detail of not being true

There were a few voices who actually used their heads and called BS early on. Several Egyptian journalists and bloggers, notably journalist Sarah Carr and blogger Zeinobia, who I'll quote in discussing how this bizarre thing got started below, and Dan Murphy at the Christian Science Monitor, in a piece entitled "Egypt 'Necrophilia Law'? Hooey, Utter Hooey.  Murphy's response should have been the first reaction of any serious reporter, or of anyone familiar with Egypt. It was pretty much mine, which is why I didn't mention the story. (Well, my reaction wasn't precisely "utter hooey," because I'm not sure I've ever actually said, or even thought, "hooey," but apparently you can't say "bullshit" in The Christian Science Monitor.)

As Murphy put it:

There's of course one problem: The chances of any such piece of legislation being considered by the Egyptian parliament for a vote is zero. And the chance of it ever passing is less than that. In fact, color me highly skeptical that anyone is even trying to advance a piece of legislation like this through Egypt's parliament. I'm willing to be proven wrong. It's possible that there's one or two lawmakers completely out of step with the rest of parliament. Maybe. 

No one has proven him wrong. Although Murphy and the Egyptian blogosphere were raising red flags, the story made its way around. Gossip sites and sensational sites joined the Islamophobic sites in repeating the tale.

Andrew Sullivan, whose widely-read blog at The Daily Beast is usually above this sort of thing, but who distrusts fundamentalism whether Christian or Muslim, quoted The Daily Mail (since he's British, I doubt if he had it confused with The Economist as far as reliability goes), and had some harsh words for Islam. Admittedly and to his credit, he has since noted and quoted the evidence that the story's untrue, but it's further evidence of how far this story went and how respectable media bought it for a while.

So how did this story go so far? The following reconstruction is based on others' work, mostly 1) Egyptian journalist Sarah Carr, who posted a response to the Daily Mail article (which is now buried in a comments thread that runs to more than 800, but which she posted to Facebook for the record) and has since pursued the issue, blogger Zeinobia, who was also on the case early, and Murphy's previously cited CSM article. Carr, I think, nails the unspoken presumptions that helped spread the story:

While I appreciate that the Daily Mail sifts the Internet daily for news pieces that will confirm to its readers that Muslims are all book-burning, wife-incarcerating, turban-wearing lunatics, and while I appreciate that this item is particularly attractive because of its salaciousness, if Lee Moran had troubled himself to do a little bit of research beyond translating an op-ed and a TV talking head, he would have discovered that in fact, a draft law to allow men to bonk their deceased wives does not exist. This may seem remarkable, given that Egyptians (i.e. scary mooslems) revolted in 2011 for PRECISELY this right, but there we are.

If Mr Moran's googling had been more thorough he would have discovered that this rumour was started by a local wacko who, alas, has a public platform by virtue of the fact that he owns a satellite channel.

This is what seems to be the timeline:

1. The only named person who is known to have actually claimed that Islam supports this bizarre idea is a Moroccan sheikh, Zamzami Abdelbari, a fringe figure, and even he apparently said it was a repulsive practice. I've spoken before somewhere on this blog about my reluctance to indulge in the latest "crazy sheikh/crazy fatwa" report, in which the media focuses on a so-called "fatwa" from some self-proclaimed "sheikh" with a following that may include his immediate family, and treat this as some sort of "official" ruling. This guy has nothing to do with Egypt.

2. Next, the plot moves to Egyptian satellite TV owner/talk show host/conspiracy theorist Tawfiq Okasha. Okasha has been a critic of the revolutionaries, a conspiracist who sees the US and Israel behind everything, a rabble-rouser last mentioned on this blog as being blamed for promoting attacks on the US Embassy. Zeinobia compares him to the US' Glenn Beck. This broadcast (Arabic) seems to be the first appearance of this idea  of "Farewell intercourse"  (مضاجعة الوداع) in Egypt:



3. Next, the story moves to the state-owned Al-Ahram where a secularist, anti-Islamist columnist named Amr Abdel Samea edtorialized that the Egyptian National Organization for Women were protesting this and a proposed law reducing the marriage age (which actually is advocated by some Islamists.) The link is in Arabic. It doesn't clearly cite a specific bill or any advocates of such a bill. It refers to "talk about" such a bill, but not specifying by whom. It's more a case of  a rhetorical "if the Islamists have their way they're liable to do something this crazy."

4. Abdel Samea's op-ed then provokes in turn a sensational TV commentary from Gaber al-Qarnouty on the channel ON TV. He quotes Abdel Samea but talks as if there is actually a draft law under discussion. It has gone from nightmare scenario to stated fact:



5. It's this Qarnouty broadcast that was picked up by the English website of Al-Arabiya, in the post that was then picked up throughout the West:

Egyptian prominent journalist and TV anchor Jaber al-Qarmouty on Tuesday referred to Abdul Samea’s article in his daily show on Egyptian ON TV and criticized the whole notion of “permitting a husband to have sex with his wife after her death under a so-called ‘Farewell Intercourse’ draft law.”

“This is very serious. Could the panel that will draft the Egyptian constitution possibly discuss such issues? Did Abdul Samea see by his own eyes the text of the message sent by Talawi to Katatni? This is unbelievable. It is a catastrophe to give the husband such a right! Has the Islamic trend reached that far? Is there really a draft law in this regard? Are there people thinking in this manner?” 

Of course, the answer to Qarnouty's rhetorical questions are "No, no, and no." But the next step is the jump to the Daily Mail report that "Egyptian husbands will soon be legally allowed to have sex with their dead wives." The fact that there's no basis for the report that anyone has yet found, is of course lost in translation.

Sarah Carr again:"Conclusion: It's a load of bollocks." That's the British equivalent of Murphy's "utter hooey." It's a crock.

Once again, at the end of the day there no "there" there, there's no story. Most of the respectable media that reported the story yesterday have put up hedging clarifications, but this is a story that didn't need to spread so widely to begin with. There may be a Moroccan sheikh who's this far over the edge, kbut there's no necrophilia bill in the Egyptian Parliament.

Posted by Michael Collins Dunn at 4/27/2012 05:24:00 PM

Labels: coffeehouse gossip, Egypt, Islam, Islamophobia, media, sex and sexuality

via mideasti.blogspot.ca

Are Islamists stupid?

Adel Imam, an Egyptian comedian with a 40-year-span in the business of laughter mainly, was tried in two separate accounts on blasphemy—insulting and abusing Islam in films and plays that have been shown and played for decades.

In the first trial, Imam received a three-month sentence. He will appeal, no doubt. In the second one, Imam’s case was dismissed. But Imam’s situation is one of the many examples that Egyptians have witnessed lately, situations that exemplify the Islamist mode of thinking and how far it wants to go, and the reaction of Egyptians to it.

Every day a new story about a ban or a curtailment emerges and gets circulated. The examples are many: Naguib Mahfouz’s novels promote prostitution and drugs, as the Salafist candidate, Shahat, reiterated. (http://english.ahram.org.eg/~/NewsContent/1/64/28310/Egypt/Politics-/Naguib-Mahfouz-promoted-prostitution-and-drugs-Sal.aspx); the age of marriage for girls should be lowered to 14 (http://english.alarabiya.net/articles/2012/04/25/210198.html); or teaching English is a foreign plot. (http://gulfnews.com/news/region/egypt/salafist-egyptian-mp-assails-teaching-english-as-foreign-plot-1.987631). These stories are leaving Egyptians bewildered and in total disbelief. The pious men, and women, they chose to lead the country are neglecting the main issues and focusing on promoting ignorance.

Some of these weird stories have occurred to test the waters. Islamists want to see how far they can go; they’d like to make social and political amendments that would suit their ways, so they try their luck in the hopes that the approach would gain momentum. If it works, albeit; if it doesn’t, nothing is lost.

One of these let’s-test-the-waters episodes is seen when member Mamdouh Ismail of the Salafi party, Al Nour, stood up from his seat in parliament, went to the microphone, and recited the call for prayers. He continued to recite even when he was asked to uphold his call by the speaker.

Ismail was making a point: that parliament should not convene when prayer is due, and that prayer should be performed before and ahead of any other duty or task. Had he succeeded, many changes would have taken place. If parliament was to stop functioning at certain times, then the same would occur regarding when lectures start, shops close, and movie theatres run. Everyone would be expected to stop what he or she is doing to pray, which is not the case in Egypt today. People continue to attend classes, go about their businesses, and postpone praying until a more convenient time. And Islam allows people a few hours to pray, and if unable, they can pray at a later time.

Had Ismail gotten away with changing the protocol by which parliament convenes, it would have entailed by far more changes across Egypt. Sure his effort this time round did not reap any benefit, but who knows? It may work the next time round—that’s all it takes: an effort.

I find Ismail’s effort frivolous, but a more risky Islamic image is seen in people such as Azza El Garf. Azza El Garf is one of the few women parliamentarians elected in the last parliament election. Because she is a woman, her in-total agreement with the laws that diminish women to slaves and objects, is quite frightening. “She has made a splash by talking about tightening Egypt's already stringent divorce laws, rolling back the ban on female genital mutilation, and reportedly denying that sexual harassment exists in Egypt. ” http://www.foreignpolicy.com/articles/2012/04/23/Feminism_Brotherhood_Style

In all the above mentioned cases, the Islamists in parliament have portrayed a peculiarly opaque picture of what would be considered agreeable under the auspices of Islam:  women returned to the harem times, entertainment curbed, and total control of how life is led in Egypt today.

The question now is whether Islamists gained from these stories. I believe that all these stories have portrayed Islamists as ignorant and bias. Stories go viral and in the process demean the image of Muslim parliamentarians. I believe Islamists are not ignorant, so it is a shame that they continue to make odd demands that belittle from their cause and image.

Have these stories helped the Islamists’ cause? Indeed not. In fact, liberal Egyptians are ecstatic; they want to give Islamists enough rope to hang themselves. Indeed, Islamists have stained the image of Islam much to chagrin of moderate Islamists. Talk to the pious that may have chosen a fundamentalist, and they will tell you immediately that they will not vote for one anymore.

A word of caution to Islamists: stop belittling from yourselves. Your approach will most definitely work against you. Islam is by far more superior than you make it. Egyptians will definitely lose faith in you though they will never lose faith in Islam.