Another eye-witness account of Egypt's demonstrations, this time from a friend of my friend. Happy Police Day!
I listened to the shouting crowds from my balcony yesterday, as groups of protesters were heading to Tahrir square. I wished I could join but fear held me back. Fear of being harassed or harmed by the forces of the National Security* , fear that going through pain and humiliation would make me more and more hateful of our circumstances, and thus lose my stamina towards carrying on my efforts in making things better on the long term without any political confrontation.
Media manipulation and Twitter blocking changed my stance, it got on my nerves so much that I could not stay in. A one minute phone call from a friend got me out of the house, together we went to Tahrir square.
Yesterday was a firm answer putting an end to all the allegations and brain washing that claimed that the current system is better than all other options in front of us, it was also a good revision to all that I have learned through my Political Science courses. And because I believe in what I’ve learned, I see a ray of light. If change doesn’t happen now, it’s coming none the less. We have changed, and we have proven that we want and deserve to change. And even though all political theories may fail to forecast what will happen, one theory stands true, God is Fair.
First of all, it’s a message to the class of people who claim to be intellectual and civilized, the people who look down at the chaos and express that “this is an ignorant population who don’t deserve democracy”, as if they alone got the exclusive seal of democracy for being from a long gone aristocratic descent or holding passports from democratic countries, without possessing any of the democratic political culture of those countries. Yesterday for the first time in downtown, I was not sexually harassed. For the first time I see youth who are not part of Environmental organizations picking up the garbage, and thousands of people, united despite their differences, sharing food, and water and exchanging opinions, carrying appropriate respectful banners.
Second of all, it’s an answer to all those who think that the Muslim Brotherhood is the only alternative. We did not see them in the demonstrations, and I can claim that the only person I heard chanting religious statements while asking for the downfall of the government, received minimal chanting back compared to others.
Thirdly, it’s a response to all those who don’t value information and freedom of expression. Any contribution adds weight even if it’s through the Internet pages. I admit I was critical of all the Twitter fans in the past since I felt they do nothing but talk and complain. I apologize for that now, if it weren’t for those sites, the information sharing and above all the feeling of unity that was created through people’s comments and pictures, no one would have gone to the streets yesterday.
This has proved that each individual has a role to play considering their abilities. If it weren’t for the people who stayed at home trying to find means of sharing information through the Internet or telephones, and if it weren’t for those who put efforts to transmit and provide coverage of the events, we would have all believed that police officers received flowers and gifts in celebration of the police day and similar ridiculous stories, most interesting of which that some newspapers announced the end of the protests before they actually ended. If it weren’t for those who shared facts on how to deal with the tear gas through the various communication channels, many of us, who are far from experienced in the rituals of protests and demonstrations in countries like ours, would not have lasted these many hours.
Fourth, it’s an answer for all those who accuse the political opposition forces of being traitors. They showed up yesterday and integrated into the crowds without carrying signs or statements of their parties, they joined united for one cause.
Fifth, it’s a response for those who say “we are not like Tunis”, no we are like Tunis, and more. I don’t deny that I initially looked at the issue from a purely theoretical perspective. I believed that we needed to have a large base of educated middle class, rather than a polarized population between a struggling incapable class, and an elite indifferent class. However, yesterday proved that the Egyptian people have had enough. Even those who are not facing the daily struggle of finding food for survival, have vision and have a conscience that pushed them to act.
We are a generation not raised on a culture of confrontation; we have had fear built into us since we were born. We are a generation whose intellectuals have been terrorized by the ruling regime, taught to conform and obey. Now is the time to learn the rules of the game.
* As I left the demonstration, I could sense the hesitation and confusion of the national security guards, as if what is on their minds is “maybe these people are right”
Those fearless politicians have cancelled a conference in case those nasty students stand outside shouting rude things about them.
Their logo isn't the only thing that yellow about the Lib Dems (though it's time the Tories got a similar pasting).
If you're free on Saturday, you could always join in the Taxpayers' Revolt: gathering outside Philip Green's retail empire to point out to shoppers that this government adviser paid himself £1.2 billion tax free by routing it all via Monaco, while our public services are cut.
I seem to have spent a lot of time waiting in the cold today. All, of course, in a good cause.
Neal, Mark, Pritpal and I joined many likeminded middle-class liberals to spend several hours in a Dudley carpark. It was our bit to combat the fascist scourge.
Less flippantly, there's a nasty little groups called the English Defence League which combines football and fascism. They're a front for the British National Party and claim to be anti-Islamic rather than racist (as though that's OK), and every demonstration they hold turns into a rampage on their part - such as in Bolton and Stoke recently (they're all from, and like to wreck, already depressed towns).
Today was Dudley's turn: in the midst of almost total social and economic breakdown, caused by capitalism (a massive out of town mall destroyed what used to be a thriving market town), they massed to protest against a mosque. Predictably, some of them turned to attacking the rozzers, their own stewards (!) and breaking things - several arrests.
In case you wonder about the intellectual capacities of these types, check out the comments on the Youtube video. Here's a sample:
better to get rid asasp !we are losing our english traits ! churches instead of mosque ? its england not fucking india ! dont like it ? fuck off back
Meanwhile, a large proportion of the 3000 police were employed rounding up and filming a bunch of liberals confined to a car park a long way from the fascists. I particularly despise the myriads of police cameramen, the Forward Intelligence Teams, who illegally film everyone and put us all on a database, rather than gather evidence of actual crimes. More pictures here.
I only saw them search Asians
Multiculturalism in action
If the skills required to fight reaction are sectarian bickering and newspaper selling (a ritual activity at such gatherings), then we're highly trained. Rather than actually doing anything, the myriad groupuscules on the British left would rather argue over arcane ideological points. I think they actually enjoy the arguments and fear the responsibility of power.
I could have bought: Socialist Worker (SWP: not socialists, not workers, can't party) Socialist Review Socialist Outlook Socialist Appeal (their seller wasn't very appealing - denied being a party but didn't explain who was funding a newspaper) The Socialist The Militant
and a range of other papers, one for every two demonstrators. Meanwhile, some ineffective speeches were made and drums were banged. Actually, I found it all very appealingly nostalgic - I used to go on lots of these and loved the familiar slogans, the papers, the whistles, the camaraderie. This one was rather nice: some lads dressed up like the old Black Bloc and occasionally made a half-hearted attempt to rush the police lines, but nothing happened.
Still, they also serve who stand and wait, eh? It was important to turn up and remind each other (nobody from the public or the EDL could see us) that the streets aren't the preserve of the fascists. Delightfully, I found myself on the train with these charming fellows, all sloping back to their holes in Stoke - the closest I got all day.
A flying picket
Wiggum waddles into action
I had a brainwave actually. All these fascists seem to hail from absolute dumps, including my hometown of Stoke. They think that everyone of non-British origin should be sent 'home' (despite the utter impossibility of finding anyone who's 'pure British' - it would mean sending all the Anglo-Saxons back to Germany and the Scots back to Ireland).
Josiah Wedgwood, who founded Stoke's ceramics industry. He often sports a beer bottle, and sometimes a Stoke City shirt.
So. Let's give them somewhere nobody else wants, like Dudley. Fence it off. Give them the seeds of any plant that can be proven 'indigenous'. The same with cattle. Remove any tool, machine and object of foreign origin. According to their racial theories, their community will become a Utopia.
Return in, say, 5 years to check the results. My guess is that it won't be an earthly paradise.
Gloriously, as we left the Kapoor exhibition, the Troops Out of Afghanistan demonstration was passing - probably 5,000-10,000. I felt a wave of nostalgia, having whistled and chanted with the best of them in my time. I love the slogans, the odd posters, the witty banners and even the myriad of splinter groups selling poorly-written posters explaining why their groupuscule is the true inheritor of the legacy of Marx/Lenin/Trotsky/Mao/add your own guru here - despite my utter despair that the left can't get together to actually do anything significant. Instead, we'd all rather pretend to be revolutionaries and attack any other sect rather than the actual enemy. Demonstrations like this are particularly useless: nobody's listening, no minds will be changed, but the marchers feel better about themselves.
The MLKP (Marxist-Leninist Communist Party) are banned as terrorists in Turkey - which doesn't bother me. The fact that they are ardent supporters of Enver Hoxha's evil, paranoid brand of communism really does. Don't confuse them with the CPGB-ML, the British sect which considers the CPGB and the CPB to be not nearly Stalinist enough…
The demo was a classic - despite it being about Afghanistan, every other cause was represented. Every Communist Party and Trotskyist group (none of which would ever dream of holding a free debate or standing for election) was there (hell, every member was there), except for the ones no doubt boycotting it for doctrinal reasons. Photos are here, but I'll put my favourites up.
Nuanced. Sophisticated.
That'll show 'em. Isn't condemnation a little… oppressive?
Well if King's Lynn and satellite villages oppose the war, then it'll have to stop!
Massive peaceful protest in Tehran has run into shooting from the security services - what a shame for a vibrant society. Situation ongoing, live coverage here.
