Ayoon wa Azan (Rebellion is justified but not violence)

If President Mohammad Morsi is indeed the first democratically elected Egyptian president as we keep hearing; and if, under the rule of the Muslim Brotherhood, Egypt became a democratic state; this democracy then involves the people's right to protest against its' government, with the only pre-condition that no acts of violence are perpetrated during these protests. Violence is not allowed. The parties breaching this rule today are violating the very foundations of democracy, while raising its' symbol. The opposition announced its “rebellion” on the occasion of the first anniversary of Mohammad Morsi’s access to power. The president responded with a defiant speech, in which he held everybody responsible for the failure except for the role he played, along with his ruling party, the Justice and Development party, which is the MB's political wing. I say that there is neither justice nor development and I welcome all opposing positions. I however refuse the denial of the obviously correct pieces of information. Justice means that citizens should have a minimal level of a good livelihood including their daily food, education, as well as health and social benefits. This is not the case in Egypt. Development on the other hand has also been absent from Egypt, since the fall of the Hosni Mubarak regime. The opponents claim that they have gathered 13 million signatures on petitions calling on the president to resign. Those who told Hosni Mubarak to “leave” are now telling Mohammad Morsi to “leave” as well. Whatever the supporters of the regime say about their opponents being non democratic or against Islam will have repercussions against those who uttered such words. The reasons for a rebellion are warranted. Indeed, the Egyptian economy has collapsed. Thousands of factories have shut down. There is no tourism and no new investments. The Egyptian people are suffering from power and gas shortages as well as a rise in the price of the food products. All of this is taking place now as the summer season is here and the holy month of Ramadan is fast approaching. We then hear news about the continuation of negotiations over a 4.8 billion dollars loan from the International Monetary Fund. If this loan is obtained, the prices of the food and gas products will then increase because one of the loan's terms is to lift the subsidies off these products. What are the president and his party doing to solve the growing crises? The MB group is infiltrating into all the state’s circles and the high ministerial posts such as the posts of directors or administrative heads. Such posts are being granted to MB members based on loyalty to the party rather than proficiency. The Brotherhood and its' supporters now have 13 out of 27 governors. The appointment of Adel al-Khayat, a man who belongs to Al-Gama'a al-Islamiyya, to the post of governor in Luxor, is another indicator that Egypt is being run by amateurs, instead of professionals. Indeed, the man stepped down within days, under the pressure from the street and foreign countries, because he belongs to Al-Gama'a, which is listed as a “terrorist organization” by the American State Department. I remember that back in 1997, some friends and I attended the opening of Opera Aida in Luxor and only a few days later, Al-Gama'a attacked tourists in the temple of Hatshepsut, killing 62 tourists, soldiers, and locals. Today, we have reached a situation where President Mohammad Morsi himself is wanted, after being accused of escaping prison, following the protests against the Mubarak regime on January 25, 2011, with the help of armed groups, some of which are terrorist. Morsi will not be put to trial. However, the charges will persist and the president will thus lose a great deal of his credibility and perhaps of his supporters, who once believed that the promises of the new regime will be kept, because God supports the group. In our countries, a popular saying goes: “Help yourself so that God may help you.” There are indications to the ill ruling by the Egyptian regime to the existence of reasons for rebelling against it. However, the most important thing, on this very day, is to have violence-free protests. Indeed, is no justification at all for the Egyptians to clash and for innocents to fall. The Minister of Defense, Gen. Abdul Fattah al-Sissi, threatened that the army will interfere in case violence were to erupt. The Egyptian armed forces represent a haven of safety and the last and probably only guarantee for the Egyptian people under these circumstances. The views expressed by the author do not necessarily represent or reflect the editorial policy of Arabstoday.