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rug

(82,333 posts)
Sun Jul 13, 2014, 08:01 AM Jul 2014

Egypt’s New President: ‘I Will Not Sleep And Neither Will You. We Must Work, Night And Day –Analysis



Egypt's Abdel Fattah al-Sisi. File photo.

July 13, 2014
Published by the Foreign Policy Research Institute
By Ann M. Lesch

Abdel Fattah El-Sisi, anointed president by 97 percent of the voters in May 2014, addresses Egyptians as their elder brother, insisting on correcting their wayward behavior. He’ll make sure that they get up at 5 a.m. so they can work hard and he’ll ensure that they adhere to ‘correct’ Islamic practices so they stop harassing women. He will rein in consumption by installing energy-efficient light bulbs in every home, and he insists that Egyptians walk or bicycle to work. (He has even calculated exactly how much they will save by not buying fuel for their cars.) Above all, he prioritizes security – the war against terror – which requires national unity and state power. Security trumps the right to protest and the need for higher wages.

With executive and legislative power concentrated in the presidency until the House of Representatives is elected next autumn, his compliant cabinet rushes to meet his demands. Indeed, he compelled the ministers to take the oath of office at 7 a.m. on June 17 and then chaired the first cabinet meeting, which lasted for seven hours. As El-Sisi rises by 5 a.m. for dawn prayers, he expects government officials to be at work by 7 a.m. and for the ministries to function 24/7.

~ snip ~

Abdullah Assem was not the only blogger to run afoul of the security establishment.[12] Security forces arrest many people after targeting their phone calls, Facebook pages and tweets, and have closed 250 websites that they claim incited violence against the police and military. Moreover, even though the new constitution guarantees the right to privacy, the Interior Ministry has issued a request for proposal (RFP) for a Social Networks Security Hazard Monitoring System that will access social media written in multiple forms of written Arabic. Although the ministry claims to target only security threats and criminal activity, the RFP casts a much wider net: the spreading of “destructive ideas” such as “sarcasm; using inappropriate words; calling for the departure of societal pillars; insulting religion, public morality and political stability;”[13] pornography; and calling for anti-state tactics such as illegal demonstrations, strikes and sit-ins. The ministry wants to profile any and all users, including their connections with other people, thereby eliminating all space for self-expression and dissent.

“Insulting religion” is already grounds for arrest. Although the constitution proclaims that “freedom of religion is absolute,” security forces seek to root out ‘deviant’ practices like atheism. Alber Saber, creator of the “Egyptian Atheists” Facebook page, was charged with defaming both Islam and Christianity – and soon after fled abroad. When some young people appeared on TV to proclaim themselves atheist, the Youth Ministry and Al-Azhar announced a campaign to “confront and abolish” atheism[14] because it threatens Egypt’s national unity, and the Interior Ministry set up a crime unit to troll Facebook accounts in order to find atheists to arrest. This conforms to the pattern of attacking anyone who differs from state-defined Sunni beliefs. The government is enforcing regulations that place mosques under the control of the Ministry of Endowments, and ban any other mosques and non-certified preachers. Al-Azhar limits Friday sermons to themes that unify people and promote morality, such as love of the homeland, rationalization of consumption, good manners, and condemning sexual harassment. The current focus on preventing preachers from using their sermons for political purposes wins widespread public support; in the long run, it prevents a diversity of religious expression from flourishing.

http://www.eurasiareview.com/13072014-egypts-new-president-will-sleep-neither-will-must-work-night-day-without-rest/

https://www.facebook.com/EgyptianAtheistsCommunity

Sounds like a nightmare. It's one thing to crack down on religious dissent. It's entirely something else to crack down on sarcasm.
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Egypt’s New President: ‘I Will Not Sleep And Neither Will You. We Must Work, Night And Day –Analysis (Original Post) rug Jul 2014 OP
The mark of human insecurity. Sounds to me like a good night's sleep is exactly what they need. gtar100 Jul 2014 #1

gtar100

(4,192 posts)
1. The mark of human insecurity. Sounds to me like a good night's sleep is exactly what they need.
Sun Jul 13, 2014, 01:22 PM
Jul 2014

Maybe then they will come to their senses. I won't be holding my breath, however.

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