Ahmed Seif, a man of courage and principle, 1951-2014 (R.I.P.)

When I was privileged to meet with Ahmed Seif I was impressed by his energy, his integrity and his selfless commitment to the cause of human rights in Egypt.  His voice is needed as much now as ever as a new dictator repudiates the notion of shared human rights in Egypt.  

Insights into the Repressive Character of the Government in Egypt

The response of the Egyptian government to the investigative report "All According to Plan" [حسب الخطة  Arabic link] by Human Rights Watch is extremely revealing and provides insights into the mentality of the al-Sisi regime.  In short, as reported by the flagship al-Ahram, HRW is biased, serves U.S. interests, is in cahoots with the Muslim Brotherhood and had no authority to conduct research in Egypt.  There is a deep-seated suspicion of foreign NGOs in Egypt. I have witnessed it numerous times over the past 35 years.

The latest episode, of course, serves a double purpose, viz., it stifles open discussion of the report and its serious accusations that Field Marshal al-Sisi sits at the helm of a repressive security apparatus that very likely committed crimes against humanity by conducting deliberate mass killings of demonstrators in 2013 following the toppling of Muhammad Mursi as President; and, it serves to warn indigenous rights oriented groups that--unlike HRW officials--they cannot escape reprisal arrests, torture and jail.  You can be sure that while many educated Egyptians with social media access are well aware of the HRW report, but would also confirm that the message to tread very carefully is indelibly received.

The government reaction is addressed by Egyptian Chronicles.

Even in comparison with the worst years of the Mubarak era, this is a very dark chapter in Egypt's modern history.

For official statements in Arabic.

Syrian refugee numbers understate the immensity of the dislocation that has already occurred

Over 300,000 Syrians are refugees outside of their country, in addition to large numbers in Jordan, Iraq, Turkey and Lebanon, there are sizable numbers of better-off Syrians in the Gulf, esp. in the UAE.  What we are lacking are reliable estimates of internal refugees.  As a benchmark, it should be kept in mind that internally displaced persons and external refugees in Iraq (c. 2006-7) reached one seventh of the population of the total population (approx. 28m. vs. 23 m. in Syria) of Iraq, of whom about sixty percent were internally displaced.  That is a reminder that for every one of the 300,000 Syrians who have probably fled their country, there are probably another 300,000 or so who have sought shelter in Syrian villages and towns.  In other words, when considering the numbers of refugees, one should probably assume that the reported numbers are only a fraction of the human dislocation that has occurred to date.

August 22, 2011: Tripoli Falls

Some questions remain, including whether there will be pockets of resistance in the capital, as well as the fate of Mu'ammar al-Qadhdhafi, but the self-styled "jamahiriyya" is now history.  In Egypt, bloated state institutions weathered the end of the Mubarak regime.  One has to wonder when Libyan institutions which were kept weak by design (the army included), will have the capacity to meet the challenges of building a new state.

[First pictures of the Tripoli residents' celebrations upon the arrival of the first revolutionaries to Green Square (now-renamed Maidan al-Shuhada/Martyrs' Square].

The sudden fall of Tripoli is a reminder that once regime loyalists understand that they will never prevail, the denouement is reached far more quickly than expected because defections occur in cascades. Who, after all, wants to be the last denizen of a toppled regime?

The Prisoner: testifying to the immensity of what has happened in Egypt.

Account of a routine interrogation

Tell Me a Secret: I found myself...
The other security guard pointed at me!!!

I was like: ehhhhh..sorry there is misunderstanding here, I am not detained, its only that the mobile phones closet is mistakenly locked!

“come with us, we have some questions please” they said, and I went with them, searching for answers inside my head…