The Fight for Democracy in Egypt

Egyptians have a history of popular outcry during political failure on the part of their

leaders. Hundreds of thousands of people have been protesting against the authoritarian regime

of President Hosni Mubarak all around Egypt. Men, women, and children are equally

participating in protests against injustice, unemployment, and corruption. The status quo of

Egypt is not sustainable; hence people in Egypt are demanding removal of the regime led by

Hosni Mubarak who has been ruling the country for thirty years. The moving democratic process

in Egypt will bring a lot of changes in the Middle East and in the world politically and

economically as Egyptians continue to fight for democracy and call for an immediate end to

thirty year reign of President Mubarak.

After days of protests in Egypt against the autocratic regime of Mubarak seeking his

immediate resignation, instead of stepping down Mubarak offered the people that he will not run

for elections in September. He did not show any regret for the people who were killed over the

past few days and instead promised to not run for office and bring changes to the constitution

related to presidency. Since his statement there has been an increase in violence and a battle

between Pro-Mubarak and Anti-Mubarak has started in Cairo. At least five people have been

killed and eight hundred people got injured overnight in Tahriri Square on Wednesday night.

Anti-Mubarak protestors insist they will not leave until Mubarak resigns and they are asking for

international support to stop the violence. Mubarak maintained a healthy relationship with the

West and therefore there has been a lack of support coming in from the West especially when the
idea of end of Mubarak’s regime proves to be problematic for the West in the future. Mubarak

should step down before Egypt turns into a war zone and stop the situation to deteriorate further.

Egyptians are taking a stand for democracy by expressing their views in form of protests

and their voices show that it is time for transformation in Egypt. Democratic Egypt will give

everyone a right to participate where all the people will have equal and effective opportunities

for making their views known to the government as to what the policy should be. It will also give

them an equal and effective opportunity to vote and there will be freedom of speech if at any

time there is a need of a change. Egyptians will have a power to challenge the decisions of the

government if there are any disagreements. Democratic Egyptian government will ensure that all

citizens have access to social justice and agreement among the Egyptian citizenry. Even though

the people of Egypt will be able to enjoy more rights with a democratic Egypt, a lot of concerns

regarding the future government and its relationship with the rest of the world are on stake.

The U.S. has always promoted democracy in the Middle East but there hasn’t been

enough support for the Arabs when they are finally rising up against their leaders. The U.S. is in

a very difficult position in countless ways regarding the upheaval in Egypt, mostly regarding the

threat to Israeli-Egyptian alliance for thirty years. The U.S. has maintained a close relationship

with Mubarak for strategic reasons as he managed to keep peace in the region which has made

the exercise of U.S. power in the Middle East easy. There is a lot of stress from Israelis to the

U.S. to keep Mubarak in power to keep peace in the region. Even though the Egyptians are

following the example of the U.S. by fighting for their freedom, there is a lack of support from

the U.S. Instead of advising Mubarak to step down, President Obama advised him not to run for
elections in September. It is very important that the Obama Administration work with the pro-

democracy movement in Egypt because the unwillingness to work with the Egyptians gives the

impression that the U.S. supports Mubarak. Less pressure from the U.S. will not be forgotten by

the Egyptians and they will hold the U.S. partly responsible for not putting enough pressure on

Mubarak and the violence and loss of lives that is stopping them from future revolution in Egypt.

Mubarak maintained a close relationship with Israel for decades. Whether his successor

regime will continue to honor the peace commitments to Israel remains in question. For Israelis

maintaining the status quo of largest neighbor is a key strategic interest. It means the

continuation of a three decade peace agreement, a quiet border with the Gaza Strip and a friend

in the Middle East. Israel is asking its allies to curb Mubarak for its own strategic interest as it

fears the future regime may end three decade long. There is a concern that Muslim Brotherhood

will take over Egypt who are more conservative in their views and will directly affect Israel-

Egypt relationship. Majority of Egyptians do not support Israel and the lack of support for

Palestinians by Mubarak has been problematic for many Egyptians. With the fall of Mubarak’s

dictatorship there might be an to Israeli-Egyptian relationship.

Iran has always criticized Mubarak’s support for Israel and the U.S., if a conservative

Egyptian regime took over after Mubarak there are higher chances that the new government will

not support the U.S. and Israel. Iran is the only country in the Middle East to have no diplomatic

ties to Egypt and with the changes in Egypt; Iran can hope to have a friendlier relationship with

Egypt. During the Egyptian transition Iran might move forward and help the people of Egypt

financially to advance its interests which will strengthen the relationship with Iran.
 The economy of Egypt is another factor that may suffer after the resignation of President

Mubarak. Suez Canal is very crucial to the Egyptian economy. It connects the Mediterranean Sea

to the Red Sea and is a main pipeline and a vital mean of transportation to Europe. Even though

the Suez Canal remains open for business despite the turmoil in Egypt there are higher concerns

over global trade as protests continue throughout Egypt. Egyptian isolation will have an

immediate economic impact on the whole world because everything is very integrated. The Suez

Canal itself is very crucial to the Egyptian economy if the future regime is against the West it

may block the passage of goods through the Canal which will have a damaging effect on

Egyptian economy because the Egyptian economy relies on the Canal for a major chunk of

foreign currency.

The demonstrations in Egypt are heading towards violence and it is important to get the

situation under control before it gets worst. The Tahrir Square has turned into a battlefield where

Anti-Mubarak and Pro-Mubarak demonstrators are using Molotov cocktail and guns to fight each

other. The army is not intervening to control the situation and not stopping the violence which is

causing more injuries and deaths. Anti-Mubarak demonstrators are not ready to give up until

Mubarak steps down because they know there is no turning back for them. International support

for Egyptians is very limited and it is very important to pressurize Mubarak to quit before

casualties continue to take place in Egypt. The Obama Administration has talked about the

“support for the aspirations of Egyptian people” but there has not been enough pressure on

Mubarak to dismiss even though the U.S. promotes democracy. There should be international

sanctions on Egypt if Mubarak continues to remain in power and continued human rights
violations in Egypt. To avoid future negative impacts of Egyptian crisis locally, regionally or

internationally, it is important to have orderly and peaceful shift towards democracy in Egypt.

The situation in Egypt will not get any better if Mubarak stayed in power. Mubarak should step

down and hold free and fair elections and end the demonstrations peacefully in Egypt. Successful

transition to democratic Egypt will not only stabilize Egypt, it will also avoid political and

economic crisis regionally and internationally as democracy promotes freedom and peace. Also,

there will be fewer chances of Islamists to take over Egypt if the demonstrations are solved in a

timely and non violent manner.