Five cheerful stories from Egypt

He is a 17 year old young man who was detained by the police because he was wearing a T-shirt inscribed with the phrase “a homeland without torture”. Mahmoud spent two years inside prison without trial in a case where not a single shred of evidence existed against him. His incarceration kept being renewed for two years.

Mahmoud Muhammad

He is a 17 year old young man who was detained by the police because he was wearing a T-shirt inscribed with the phrase “a homeland without torture”. Mahmoud spent two years inside prison without trial in a case where not a single shred of evidence existed against him. His incarceration kept being renewed for two years.

Throughout the two years, Mahmoud Muhammad remained in the eyes of many people a child who was being punished by the regime for the crime of dreaming of a homeland without torture. But recently Mahmoud appeared in a court session to renew his term of imprisonment. This time he was a young adult, already 19 years of age. Instead of showing signs of sadness, and instead of being overwhelmed by a sense of grievance on his face, he came out smiling, cheerful and showing the victory sign.

This is how the revolution works. Whenever they think they have managed to kill it in its infancy, they soon realise that it is only growing bigger and is crossing from one phase to the other, amazingly insisting on continuing and showing absolute confidence in victory.

Incidentally, on 25 January 2011, Mahmoud Muhammad was in preparatory school. He knew nothing at the time about the causes of the revolution, its slogans or its objectives. Yet, today he is one of its victims being held behind bars. So, do not ever think that the revolution dies when those who triggered it are killed or are incarcerated or are frustrated. It will simply be bequeathed from one generation to another until victory is achieved.

Muhammad Nabil

He is a political bureau member of 6 April Movement. He was arrested by the policy several days ago and was accused of calling for a protest in Dokki. A few weeks before his arrest, we sat talking about the initiative launched by the movement calling for national dialogue. We discussed its viability and the chances of its success or failure.

I paused for a bit to think of this casual remark. I was amazed to learn that these young men knew they were likely to be detained at any time. Yet, they were prepared for it and continued to lead their lives with the same enthusiasm, never considering making concessions in order to escape this destiny as some other have done.

Muhammad did not escape or run away. The police arrested him from his home and they took him away; depriving his two kids of his greatly needed presence among them. Now, he pays the price of his stances with complete satisfaction. He languishes behind bars in his prison cell self-assured and satisfied because he never conceded or compromised. He trusts that there are others who will carry the flag until he is free again.

Hamdin Sabbahi

Many people looked up to him hoping that he would lead the movement against hijacking the revolution. But he let them down and went ahead to justify the massacres that could not be justified. He went silent when it was mandatory to speak up. He took part in sham elections in which he was happy to play the role of the décor at the back of the stage.

Hamdin defended his position quite forcefully at the time when he adopted it and when it turned out to be wrong. And now, he recently appeared in a television programme to reiterate something we have tried to convince him of for years. He said that the current authorities are following in the footsteps of Mubarak; that its popularity is eroding; that the policies against which the people rose up were still in place; that we were still living in a state of corruption and repression; and that the anti-protests law was unconstitutional.

Of course, the revolution’s youth would not perceive Sabbahi today as they did five years ago. They would never include his name in any future arrangements as they did four years ago. They would not express happiness over his return as they would have done years ago. However, his testimony and his statements remain important in that they reassure those who are painfully holding fast to the revolution that they were right when they refused to accept the view that what is built upon falsehood can somehow be right.

Hazim Abd -Al-Azim

He is the head of the youth committee within Sisi’s election campaign. He is one of those who turned against the revolution and changed his position from one side to its opposite. He cast doubt on the revolution and poured scorn on its youth. He defended the military rule and considered it the only way forward in order to confront the internal and the external plots. He went into battle against whoever believed that the current regime only wanted a parliament that would endorse all their decisions, but no more.

Several months ago, Hazim Abd Al-Azim tried to bring out of the closet and wear the opposition garb that had been covered in dust. He put it on and started to talk about the mistakes and the sins of the regime and about its steps in the direction of destroying 25 January. A few days ago who wrote a lengthy article in which he exposed the preparation of the “In Love of Egypt” list and how its members were named inside the offices of the Intelligence Services who managed the elections file from A to Z.

His remarks, which offered nothing new, only proved what had already been proved, namely that the last elections were the worst elections ever held in the parliamentary history of Egypt since the era of Khedive Ismail in terms of the intervention of the authorities to decide their course as well as their results. However, his words acquire a decree of importance by virtue of the identity of the person who uttered them, a person who attached himself to the regime in its early stages and was one of the people who promoted it and defended it.

Hilmi Al-Hayatmi

He is a retired Major General who was appointed less than two weeks ago as governor of Suez. His first encounter with the media was a video clip posted by many social media websites in which he stressed that “if the Jews were to fire anything on Egypt, winds would repel it back on them due to the north-western winds and thanks to Egypt’s geographic location.”

The statement is so pathetic that it would be silly to try and comment on it. However, it shows the manner in which the current regime appoints its top officials. This just proves the validity of the slogan “down with the military rule” hoisted years ago by the revolutionaries who continue to raise it until this very day.

This was first published on Arabi21 on Thursday 7^th January 2016.

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