Today, we are all the Muslim Brotherhood

I criticised a group of Sudanese who reported that Egypt’s President Mohammed Morsi collapsed in front of investigators.

They also said that Khairat Al-Shater, the deputy leader of the Muslim Brotherhood, responded to Morsi’s boast that he is the president of the Republic of Egypt by screaming, “Egypt is bigger than Morsi and the Brotherhood”.

Let us assume for the sake of argument that these things did happen. What is worse than Morsi collapsing in front of an investigator full of hate is to report news from a single source as unquestionable fact. That’s shameful propaganda. Reporting the actions of Egyptian security forces as “heroic” when they are destroying a man’s reputation is the ultimate disgrace.

The authorities claim that they are interrogating Morsi over his escape from prison during the January 25 Revolution, supposedly with the help of Hamas. I was amazed by this allegation. It took me back to 1964 and 1965 when the Muslim Brotherhood clashed with the Nasser regime which arrested the martyr Sayyid Qutb. The regime then started to broadcast propaganda that the Brotherhood was conspiring to destabilise the country. They showed copies of Qur’ans with cavities in which they alleged the Brotherhood hid guns used for illegal acts. We believed the regime because of our support for Nasser’s Movement. They hanged Qutb. We in the progressive movements launched demonstrations in support of the progressive regime in Egypt, against the plots of the Muslim Brotherhood. I remember that day with shame. We split from the Brotherhood movement in Sudan at that time. Yet, nobody should bear the burden of another. It is neither ethical nor progressive to celebrate the assassination of a thinker, worshipper and an eminent interpreter of the Qur’an.

I listened to a speech by Ahmed Shafiq in support of Sisi’s appeal to counter the Muslim Brotherhood. I regret that it has been portrayed as reflecting the “alliance of the masses” in the worst possible form. He called the Muslim Brothers traitors and rogues; traitors to what and to whom? He said that they were wrong to believe that their Islamic rule began when they ruled Egypt. He also said that he might understand their rogue nature. How would he understand this but not understand their “betrayal” of Egypt, a betrayal for which they can only blame themselves? He said that they will unite against the armed forces, which have always been ready to defend the nation by sacrificing their souls and blood.

The Sudanese will commit an unforgivable sin if they do not condemn strongly what is happening to the Muslim Brotherhood in Adawiya, Giza, and Alqaed Ibrahim. The killers who are murdering the Muslim Brotherhood during their peaceful protests and demonstrations are extremely organised. The day of liberation will come.

I hope that we do not repeat the mistake of 1952. The Brotherhood and the communists agreed to combat the coup of 1952 together. The regime decided to confront the Brotherhood and fabricated a rumour that the movement had attempted to kill Nasser. At the same time, the regime also confronted the communists by murdering Khamis and Baqri, two leaders who were calling for fulfilling the demands of trade unions. The Brotherhood and the communists joined forces by launching campaigns to attack the military dictatorship in Egypt. On that day, the Midan newspaper named the events “The July Revolution”. The communists eventually joined forces with the regime and the rest is well-known.

The charge against President Morsi is that he escaped from prison and joined the revolution. Why don’t Shafiq, El Baradei, Amr Moussa and Rifat Alsaed tell us which luxurious places they came from to join the revolution?

The bloodshed against the Muslim Brotherhood cannot be stopped without forming a broad coalition, including those who stood in opposition to the Islamic movement on June 30. This needs to be done in order to prevent fabricated political motives against peaceful political gatherings in Adawiyya and Alqaed Ibrahim. Fabricated politics are the end of politics. Today, we are all the Muslim Brotherhood.

The author is a Sudanese Marxist academic. This article is a translation of the original text which appeared in SudanNile Newspaper, 30th July 2013.

The views expressed in this article belong to the author and do not necessarily reflect the editorial policy of Middle East Monitor.