Egyptian Turmoil

It seems the eye of the storm has passed as riots and demonstrations began again in Egypt last week, resulting in a fierce crackdown by the military amid cries for the military to step down from power. Lately, discontent with the ruling military class has risen, due to the expansion of the emergency laws, which are still in place despite the fact that the revolution was supposed to get rid of them. Also, the military has been heavy-handed with it's crackdowns, limiting free speech in new additions to the emergency laws, trying thousands of civilians in closed military court, and using excessive force to quell any backlash from the public. I just don't get how this is at all acceptable and what exactly the military is thinking. Obviously, there are some people in charge that don't want to let go of the old ways. And obviously this will not stand. Limiting free speech further? Did they think that they'd be able to sweep that under the rug and walk away? No, the Egyptian people are not blind and have taken notice. So what else is there to do when your government is still restricting your rights, but to protest?



So they did. They protested just as they have been since January, demanding their basic rights, their own government, a say in what happens. And once again they were met with violence, a swift and brutal retaliation by the police. And why is this happening? What is causing more bloodshed on the behalf of the Egyptian people? Their own government, the military council. Now you could try to cut them some slack, surely trying to guide a country in chaos towards democracy is terribly difficult to do. But it seems to me that the military council has little care towards true democracy. If they did, why would they try civilians in military court, outside of the realm of their peers? Why would they limit free speech, especially speech against the military council? Why would feel the need to beat down their own people? Obviously, optimism was beaten out when the protestors were, and once again the Egyptian people are calling for the end of yet another government.

As Egyptians gather in Tahrir square once again, many rally around cries for Egyptian Field Marshal Mohamed Hussein Tantawi to step down from power, and for the Egyptian military to relinquish it's stranglehold on the country's politics. As shown with the Maspero Massacre in October, Egyptians once again have to fear a government who is willing to use deadly force against peaceful protestors. When Coptic Christians protested in front of Maspero, the national radio and television building, they had no idea that by the end of their protest more than two dozen would be killed by the hands of police and military forces. This brutal turn of events was made even more gruesome when military tanks refused to stop and subsequently ran over protestors, killing them in a despicable fashion. The military showed its strength and willingness to use force, but to what end I do not know. I don't understand why they think using force against protestors would win them any support; maybe they are still afraid of the power and popular opinion of the movement. Whatever it is, the Egyptian army has taken control of the country once again.