Alber Saber, photo from his blog.

Egyptian blogger and computer science student, Alber Saber, has been arrested and charged with insulting Islam.  He is being held in while the investigation continues. There are concerns for his safety in custody as he has already apparently had his neck slashed with a razor blade after guards told the prisoners of the reason for his arrest. It is almost certain the guard’s words were meant to encourage exactly this outcome.

Saber has also announced via family that he is starting a hunger strike.

On Wednesday, September 12th, a Muslim friend and neighbor using Saber’s computer reportedly discovered that he was the admin for the Egyptian Athiests Facebook page, which is the largest of several such groups online with over a thousand “likes”.  On September 10 the notorious “Innocence of Muslims” had been posted on the site. Over the next two days crowds began to gather outside his house, threatening Saber and his mother.

On Thursday night Saber’s mother called the police, hoping for protection. When the police arrived however, rather than fending the threatening mob outside, they arrested her son.

The charge according to his lawyer and supporters, focuses on videos in which Saber discusses his own Coptic faith or lack thereof.  This makes sense as to charge anyone for posting the “Innocence of Muslims” video would set an impossible precedent. Even conservative broadcasters have also shown the video, or sections of it on their shows. It is not yet clear however, which materials will be included in the case against him, which is currently in the hands of the General Prosecutor. The next hearing is expected in four days.

After talking with Saber’s friends it seems likely to me that Egypt’s Islamist leaders are hoping to create a local issue where they can be seen as the tough guys, to distract Egyptians from how the furor in the international arena, in the context of which they seem impotent.

You can show your support by liking the Free Alber Saber page on Facebook.

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Egypt’s president, Mohammad Morsy of the Muslim Brotherhood, has asserted civilian presidential control, or at least the appearance of it, over the Egyptian military. Today he released a surprise statementrevealing he had demanded the resignation of several top generals, including Field Marshal Mohammed Hussein Tantawi.

Tantawi, as the minister of defence and the head of the Supreme Council of Armed Forces, had been the country’s effective ruler during the transition from Mubarak. He was seen by many as holding more real power than the President himself. The statement also named Mahmoud Mekki, a former senior judge, as vice president (leaving Morsy’s promise to include a female and a Christian among a group of co-vice presidents unfulfilled).

A constitutional amendment annexing presidential powers, issued by the military as the president was being elected, will be revoked. This also reverts powers previously held by the parliament (which the Supreme Constitutional Court dissolved on an electoral technicality). Morsy has, it seems, vested his presidency with both full executive powers and the legislative responsibilities that SCAF had assumed from the parliament after Mubarak’s fall.

Perhaps most important of these is responsibility for guiding the drafting process of the new constitution. Should the constituent assembly named for the task by parliament be unable to complete the document, a new assembly shall be selected not by SCAF or by parliament (the status of which remains ambiguous) but by Morsy himself…

Read the rest here.

I’m an Australian freelance journalist, who was arrested, along with my colleagues, in the textile town of Mahalla, a couple hours north of Cairo, where I had gone to interview an important dissident labour leader on the anniversary of Mubarak’s demise. After being held for more than 56 hours by various authorities, and charged with inciting unrest (it is specifically alleged we promised to give money to children if they threw rocks at a police station), we were released, but placed on travel ban pending a decision. The charges carry a maximum penalty of seven years.

My equipment, including all data back ups, has been taken (both what I had with me and things taken from my apartment in a separate raid) and the information trawled through by the authorities.  At least one of my sources (a dissident police officer) has been harassed about his connection to me.

For nearly five months now,  I have been stuck here, dependent on the unions benevolent fund and other organisations set up to help journalists in crisis. During this time, while the embassy staff has made what efforts they can, there has been no leadership or action from the government on my behalf, with the exception of a private letter from the foreign minister to his Egyptian counterpart.  Comparing this with his vigorous engagement on behalf of Ms Melinda Taylor, an Australian lawyer detained in Libya, just country over, shows a deep inconsistency in his, and indeed the governments, commitment to the rights of Australians abroad.

Nowhere is this inconsistency more painfully obvious than in the case of Julian Assange. His abandonment by the Australian government is now so complete that he has been forced to seek refuge in Ecuador.

It is my belief, also, that it is the Assange case lurking in the background that is at least partially to blame for the government’s failure to act on my case. After helping me, a journalist of little note facing pollicised charges in Egypt, how could they fail to act on behalf of Assange, one of the premier journalists of his generation, facing the wrath of the worlds super power in the form of a secret grand jury?

This should be a reminder to all of us, especially my colleagues in the press, that when the freedom of one of us is forfeit, it not only morally, but also practically, imperils the freedom of us all.

The Muslim Brotherhood’s Mohamad Morsy may not be the ideal revolutionary president, but he’s not military or a Mubarak crony, and that counts for something.

 

Hold your nose and cheer. Egypt’s revolution has prevailed — sort of.

After tense days of delay, the Muslim Brotherhood’s candidate Mohamed Morsy, was announced as the official winner. Tahrir Square, already host to throngs of Muslim Brotherhood supporters, erupted with the news of the announcement. Fireworks were let off and chants of “God is Great” and “long live Egypt” resonated throughout the square and many of Cairo’s suburbs.

The party in Tahrir raged into the night, with some voices from within the Brotherhood threatening to keep up their mobilisation should the SCAF not backtrack on its pre-announcement power grab.

Morsy’s first speech as president, however, consisted mainly of boilerplate talk of building a brighter future together, Egypt being “one big family” and a series of reassurances. First he restated his admiration for the armed forces, aiming to cool fears of an Islamist-military confrontation, or even civil war, like that of Algeria or Sudan.

Next he restated his loyalty to the martyrs, and those injured in the revolution, promising to honour their memory by continuing the goals of the revolution. He promised to move towards a modern democratic state and be a president for “all Egyptians”.

To allay fears about minority mistreatment at the hands of an Islamist government, Morsy stated all would be equal before the law. He stressed his peacefulness, and Egypt’s continuing commitment to all international agreements (a reassurance about peace with Israel).

Bearded and bespectacled, the middle aged Morsy presents more like a headmaster than a warrior chief. While Egypt is in desperate need of a President with solid administrative capacity, without there first being a major cleansing to root out widespread clientism and corruption administration may prove difficult. It is unclear whether the Brotherhood has either the inclination or capacity to do so…

Read the rest here.

I would like to start once more by saying how honoured I am that the organisers sought to include my sentiments in today’s events, and for the continuous support I have received from so many of those who also fight for Assange and Wikileaks.

For those of you unfamiliar with my case, I am an Australian journalist who was arrested in Mahalla, a textile town outside of Cairo, while trying to interview a union leader. My colleagues and I were held for a total of 56 hours by the police, the state security services and military intelligence, as well as a few hours in the care of the general prosecutor’s office, where we were charged with inciting vandalism. Specifically it is alleged we promised to give money to children if they threw rocks at a police station. The charges carry a maximum penalty of seven years in prison. Four months has passed without a decision about whether to set a trial date or let us go. While embassy staff have done all they can without leadership from Canberra, the Australian government is yet to speak out or act on my behalf.

It is my belief that one reason for their reluctance, is that by acting on my behalf, they would be setting their failure to act on Assange in too sharp a contrast. It is a reminder, one that should be heeded by the Australian press in particular, that giving up on the freedom of one, not only morally, but also practically, compromises the freedom of all.

Our arrest was part of an ongoing attempt by the corrupt and oppressive regime, which has survived the ousting of its leader, to paint all those who protest, strike, or dissent, as agents of an enemy force.

The great hypocrisy is of course, that it those who kill and imprison protesters, are themselves backed by a nefarious foreign power: The United States funds the oppressive Egyptian Military to the tune of 1.3 Billion dollars a year.

As I write this a coup is taking place in Egypt. Martial Law has been declared. Parliament has been dissolved. Truckloads of troops and police, and armoured vehicles are deployed around the country. The Supreme Council of Armed Forces, a group of generals who appointed themselves the countries leaders following the fall of Mubarak, are dropping the pretence that they intend to give up power.

The People and government of Ecuador, know better than I what horrors this may bode for Egypt. No one needs to tell them what terrible crimes the American empire is willing to commit.

It is these crimes, this empire in all its violent dirty detail, that Assange has exposed so extensively. In doing so he has shown great courage, and those he has embarrassed wish him a terrible retribution.

I urge the government of Ecuador to honour his courage, to protect his rights, and to take the side of truth against the side of power. To all of you gathered here today, congratulations, you have already chosen the right side. Keep up the struggle

Yours in solidarity

Austin G Mackell

The Egyptian Parliament has been dissolved and security forces are back in the streets – signs that Mubarak’s regime is making a comeback even as the old dictator’s health is reportedly failing, writes Austin Mackell

Watching the internet light up following official claims that Mubarak was “clinically dead“, it was impossible not to think of the classic Simpsons double episode Who Shot Mr Burns. Near the start of the second episode Springfield’s anchorman Kent Brockman tells us “Burns was rushed to a nearby hospital where he was pronounced dead. He was then moved to better hospital, where doctors upgraded his condition to alive.” The main difference being that in Mubarak’s case the first hospital was inside a prison and the second was not.

During his reign, it was illegal to spread rumours about his health. Since his downfall such rumours have been constant. As a result, many were sceptical. Ismubarakdead.com didn’t flinch. Their page confidently stated “NO” throughout.

 Of course, it is possible the geriatric autocrat’s condition did deteriorate, and even as official sources claimed, that his heart stopped. This raises the question whether a normal Egyptian prisoner would be rushed out to a military hospital in the same situation. Has no one ever died before in an Egyptian prison hospital? Given the reliability of official statements in Egypt we don’t have much more of a reason to believe this narrative than we have to hold, as this author and others have speculated, that Mubarak is a zombie.

Read the rest here

The Egyptian presidential election is imminent and the fallout from the Mubarak trial is far from settled.

Nearly a year and a half after the fall of the dictator, two critical political battles are taking place in Egypt.

One is the presidential contest which will likely see a Ahmed Shafik, a long term minister (and short term prime minister) under Mubarak face off against the Muslim Brotherhood’s candidate, Mohamed Morsy, in a second round of voting to be held on 16 and 17 June.

The other is the more profound battle between the amorphous street politics of the revolutionary youth and the realm of formal politics, which has delivered Egypt into what some have called the “worst possible outcome“.

New Matilda spoke with Sharif Abdel Kouddous, a highly respected Egyptian-American reporter and commentator, about the intersection between these two trends.

The revolutionaries who had so forcefully set the agenda in the protests following January 25 last year, have so far garnered “no representation in the formal political process”, Kouddous told NM.

Instead this contest is taking place between the entrenched political elite which is “fighting for its life, tooth and nail” and its “mirror establishment” in the Brotherhood.

Read the rest here.

What are the latest developments with the Presidential elections – what do the first round results show, and is it clear who will be contesting the second round?

 

The first round of the elections show that the Muslim Brotherhood and the remnants of the old regime, the felool, are still able to out-compete the revolutionaries in terms of an electoral process.

 

The winner by a small margin was the Muslim Brotherhood’s candidate, Mohamed Morsi, and second was Ahmed Shafik, who was Prime Minister under Mubarak appointed at the very last minute of his regime’s life. It looks now like the final race will be between those two candidates, which is a huge disappointment for the revolutionaries.

 

There was a left-wing secular candidate called Hamdi Sabahi, who was written off by many people as an outside because he didn’t have the resources and infrastructure many of the other candidates had – he came in third. Considering that he was also competing for the vote with Abul Fotouh, an Islamist who had split from the Brotherhood towards the moderate side who was also considered a revolutionary candidate – those two between them, if they’d had a combined revolutionary vote they would have had a clear lead.

 

Of course many of the revolutionaries boycotted the first round. I wonder if they are questioning that seeing how close Sabahi came to winning it.

 

Secondly, now there’s a much stronger call for a boycott as well, since it’s the Muslim Brotherhood versus the old regime. There’s been some controvery over some revolutionaries saying to back the Muslim brotherhood because at least they aren’t from the old dictatorship, while others are saying no, they already have control of the parliament, handing them control of the presidency as well would be handing over too much control at the formative stage. In any case, most revolutionaries, in terms of people who have been active on the streets, are still saying the street is where the battle has to happen for the next few years – that’s the position of the April 6 youth movement. That’s why they didn’t contest the elections, they say that you don’t have elections during a revolutionary phase, the revolution has to be more complete.

Who is exactly is Hamdi Sabahi? What does he stand for?

 

Sabahi is the founder of the Dignity party; he was an MP under President Mubarak, he won a seat in 2005, though he’s credited as being one of the few voices of resistance in that parliament asides from the Brotherhood. He really ran as the poor man’s candidate. His party is Nasserist; carrying on the spirit of pan-arab socialism would be his root ideology, although it’s moderated and the message is much more populist and nasserist than ideological

How widely was the boycott observed?

 

It’s hard to know how widely it was observed; it’s clear that the turnout was lower than the parliamentary election, which some revolutionaries have called a victory because it means the population is losing faith in SCAF’s electoral process. But you could also make the argument that that was simply the result of the Salafi candidate Abbou Ismael being disqualified ahead of the poll. Because the Salafists didn’t have a candidate to vote for – some voted for Abol Fotouh, or for Morsi, but you can imagine a lot of them were a lot less motivated to vote not having a major Salafi candidate on the ballot. This would also explain why there was what’s been considered a majority secular vote, if you add up Sabahi, Shafik and Amr Moussa, the former foreign minister, which people have been using to say Egyptians have turned to secular candidates. But you can question that because the Salafis may have been sitting out as well.

 

That has probably been a bigger boycott (although it may not have been phrased that way) than the active calls for a boycott from Tahrir Square and the revolutionary youth networks around it. However, that being said, now that it’s a race between Morsi and Shafik you might see a much bigger boycott in the second round.

What is the situation with Tahrir Square and the revolutionary layer? Is the Square still occupied?

 

There’s basically a constant occupation now in Tahrir Square with people protesting – earlier today they had at least a few hundred there protesting due to allegations of fraud by Shafik. In fact, there’s been reports of fraud by both Shafik and Moussa as well as the Brotherhood by April 6 and various news outlets as well. But the general impression is that there was a lot of small irregularities but not necessarily enough to have influenced the vote. It doesn’t mean there was a concerted plan to rig the campaigns, but perhaps just the kind of dirty campaigning you see everywhere.

 

Some people are protesting of that – a lot of them, Sabahi’s supporters – but the Square’s been pretty much permanently occupied since the clashes of the Occupy Cabinet incident in early December. All throughout 2011 there was an ongoing struggle for physical control of the Square, and now it seems the army and the police have pretty much given up on it. The protesters were allowed to keep the central island with tents, as well as the space in front of the central administrative building the Mogamma.

 

So the revolutionary youth won that space in those clashes, and actually now we’ve seen the latest clashes taking place outside the ministry of defence, which occured just before the elections. There were numbers of Salafis demonstrating because their candidate Abbou Ismael had been disqualified, actually on the basis that his mother was an American citizen – which some were disputing, claiming there’s a conspiracy against him, etc etc.

 

Either way his supporters went down to protest the decision at the electoral commission, and they were joined by secular supporters and opponents of the SCAF as well; there were 11 deaths reported there, in the final week before the election. There is still definitely real tension on the streets and the possibility of more of these battles – particularly if Shafik wins, I might add.

 

I should add that the significance of protest moving to the MOD is that the protesters are moving more into more confrontation – we’ve got Tahrir now and that’s great, now let’s move on the next seat of power, seems to be the idea.

Is the Brotherhood taking out the presidential election likely to change the balance of power or weaken SCAF’s hold over the country?

 

That’s very difficult to know – it’s certainly going to change the balance of power. What the relationship between the brotherhood and the military will be like and how it’ll evolve is really difficult to know. People are talking about some kind of deal being made between the Brotherhood and the SCAF – there’s probably been all kinds of deals made, but I don’t think that there’s a marriage between the two about to take place where we see them unite as the stable new elite, although something like that may evolve. Really we’re in a period when making predictions is a good way to look stupid; if you look at the polling during the last election votes fluctuated wildly in the days before the elections. Things are really in flux here, there aren’t established political forces like we’re used to dealing with in Australia. There is the brotherhood and there is the military but there’s this huge chaotic force at work in the political sphere as well of the revolution.

How has the labour movement related to the elections?

 

The one thing that was clear after the parliamentary elections was that until now the labour movement as a whole hadn’t emerged on scene as any sort of political force. But with the emergence of Sabahi as such a strong candidate, there’s certainly evidence that this is on the cards in the future. This was a suprise to many here, including people like me with an interest in the labour movement, as we didn’t see anything like this gaining support in the parliamentary elections – but there’s clearly an affinity for labour in Sabahi’s platform, in what he’s standing for. We don’t know how real that would be if he got into power, of course. His candidacy underlines the new dynamics which are starting to emerge – there are the candidates like Moussa and Shafik, whose primary qualifications are having served in the old regime, and whose popularity has its own reasons like name recognition – but if you remove them from the equation you have the Muslim Brotherhood and Islamic conservatism on the right and then Arab nationalism on the left, and then you have a candidate like Abol Fotouh in the middle who is some kind of mix of all of those. So this is a political spectrum very similar to ours – although with such population and poverty in Egypt there’s a lot more space for leftward movement, which is exciting.

Did any radical left forces make a decent showing in the results?

 

That depends how you define “radical” – there was Khaled Ali, who was seen as the revolution’s candidate. How radical his rhetoric exactly would be I’m not clear on – I haven’t seen many of his speeches translated – but my impression is he’s been seen as the candidate of the revolutionary youth, so radical in that sence, although certainly not as far to the left as the Revolutionary Socialists, who didn’t field a candidate, and who now have gained a lot of ire for their leadership figures suggesting Morsi should be backed to prevent the return of old leadership.

 

But the candidate on the left of note was Sabahi – and his platform was significantly to the left. The difference between Sabahi and Shafik or Moussa was much bigger than the difference between major left and right candidates in any western elections, so the revolutionary situation has already opened up more democratic space than we already have in the west. His platform was explicitly about wealth redistribution; instead of following the line being tossed around by the IMF for cutting or “targetting” subsidies, he’s talking about the need to expand subsidies and providing more services. His success has come as a surprise, and it changes the political landscape. Of course the success of Shafik and Morsi were also suprises and much more unpleasant ones.

What is the latest with your case? Has the regime indicated if they are going to press the charges?

 

We’re still not clear whether we’ll be taken to court or not; what we’ve got are preliminary charges – the Egyptian legal system is modelled on the French, so it doesn’t really mirror Australia’s. The charges are with the prosecutor’s office, who is then meant to decide whether it goes to court or the case is archived. That’s been the case for the last 3 months, and there hasn’t been any real progress – we’ve heard of paper moving from one office to another, so we don’t know when to expect any resolution.

Are you free to travel and report?

 

To an extent – my passport was taken when I was arrested, and it’s being held along with my laptop and camera and other stuff, so it makes it quite difficult to move around. In the initial period after my arrest I was quite nervous when moving around of being recognised in the street as the spy from TV; I was kicked out my apartment and my neighbourhood has sort-of turned against me after our story was flashed on state TV. It’s already been made quite difficult for journalists in general, foreign journalists in particular, by virtue of all of the media about foreign conspirators and such. And if I were in the situation where I had to explain myself to a large group of people why I don’t have my passport, what I’m doing, etc etc – it’s a situation which might complicate things with the case. But the main thing is that I’m not allowed to leave the country while this is going on – I can’t travel home to Australia or anywhere else, which is an inconvenience. But there’s a veiled threat in all of this; we’re very confident we would win if the case went to court, but however improbable it is, this notion of 5 to 7 years sentence is in the back of your mind; it makes it hard to live a normal life, let alone work or move around.

What do you have to say to Bob Carr and the Australian government?

 

I wish Bob Carr would take a more active interest in the case. He’s been very standoffish and hasn’t responded to any of my friends, family or supporters – even through the union, I was only able to get what looked like a form letter our of him saying they can’t interfere with the Egyptian legal process. On the other hand, the motion introduced by Greens Senator Lee Rhiannon to the Senate was passed calling on the Australian government to ensure due process was followed. I don’t know how much information Bob Carr has about the case; you at Green Left probably are quite aware that what is happening is anything but due process. From the beginning this is an act of political thuggery, not a matter of law an order. The Australian government should have the gonads to speak out on that, as it should have for all of the human rights abuses committed by the Egyptian forces and all of the remnants of the old regime. But there’s a silence on that, as there is on so many other issues, because Washington says to be quiet about it, so we do.

 

My case is nothing compared to what happened to people like David Hicks or Mamdouh Habib. Habib was brought to Egypt – he didn’t come here of his own free will but was “rendered” or kidnapped here, and tortured for 6 months. He has alleged the Australian government was complicit in that, and they certainly still haven’t cleared their name of that. You can see that today with the case of Julian Assange, or with our case here – the government certainly doesn’t hold the rights of it’s citizens as its first priority.

Photo by @JLLLOW

Below is the text of a letter which was read on my behalf at #Rally4JA events held in Australia. I know that at the Sydney rally it was read by a friend and hero of mine Antony Loewenstein. The text is also available on the Stop The War Coalition’s website.

I would like to start by saying how honoured I was when asked to write this letter.

I must also take this opportunity to thank Mr Assange for the time he has taken to raise attention regarding my case. Someone of his profile finding time to speak about my situation would be worthy of thanks in any case. Given the far more serious persecution he is facing, it  shows a remarkable sense of solidarity and concern for others.

As the polls close on the second day of voting in Egypt’s first meaningful presidential elections, the Muslim Brotherhood’s candidateMohamad Morsy — who was polling in the low single digits just a few weeks ago — has emerged as the frontrunner.

His victory demonstrates the combined effectiveness of the Muslim Brotherhood’s grassroots organisational muscle, healthy funding base and the popular appeal of their moderate Islamic branding.

With official results not released until next week and the other major candidates too closely packed to call, it is as yet unclear who will compete with Morsy in the one-on-one second round, to take place in June….

Read the rest here.