Travel News: Spring season perfect time to explore new destinations

Interviews
by: el Masry el Youm
Rights group: If complaints not addressed, referendum
voting should be repeated

2012-12-17 19:47:00.0
Local rights groups may appeal to the international
community to apply pressure on the Morsy administration
to repeat the first round of voting in the constitutional
referendum, said Hafez Abu Seada on Monday. Abu
Seada, who is the head of the Egyptian Organization for
Human Rights and the general coordinator of the Egyptian
Alliance to Monitor the Referendum, added that observers
from the alliance noted thousands of violations during the
first voting round across 10 governorates. Preliminary
indications showed that 57 percent voted for the
controversial draft constitution, while 43 percent voted
against it. The second round of voting is scheduled for 22
December in the remaining 17 governorates. Abu Seada
also said the High Elections Committee has not responded

to the hundreds of complaints submitted by the alliance.
"The committee found the irregularities normal," he said. "It
did not bother to investigate the complaints." Committee
President Zaghloul al-Balshy, however, said he did not
receive these complaints. Abu Seada added that members
of the Muslim Brotherhood and the Freedom and Justice
Party were seen inside polling stations influencing voters.
"They prevented citizens from casting their votes in some
Upper Egypt governorates, especially in Christian villages,"
he said. "Also, some claimed [falsely] they were judges
and took the liberty to supervise the polling stations."
Khairat al-Shater, the deputy supreme guide of the
Brotherhood, cast his vote although there is a court ruling
depriving him of exercising his political rights, Abu Seada
alleged. Edited translation from Al-Masry Al-Youm

Travel News

Travel News
by: el Masry el you
3alganoob Festival seeks to help Maras Alma go green

2013-03-31 20:48:00.0
Environmental activists are joining forces to transform a Marsa Alam
camp into the first self-sustainable eco-lodge in the area, complete with
solar panels and solar water heaters built from scratch. The southern
Red Sea town has been suffering from fuel shortages and a drop in
tourism activities for more than a year now. With most of Marsa Alam's
resorts and residential areas relying on fuel generators for electricity,
introducing alternative energy solutions is imperative. The area's
natural landscapes have also been damaged by increasing urban
development as well as environmental pollution, and activists hope to
counter these damages by showcasing easy and practical eco-solutions
to Marsa Alam residents. In April, engineers, designers and volunteers
will work to transform Deep South camp in Tondoba Bay into a self-
sufficient eco-lodge. To showcase the transformation and raise
awareness about eco-tourism and green jobs, Deep South will then host
3alganoob Festival, a three-day festival starting on 3 May featuring live
music by Abo wel Shabab, Like Jelly and other local acts, in addition to
screenings of Egyptian independent films at night. During the day,
educational workshops will be held to showcase practical and easy eco-
solutions to the community to inspire others to replicate the Deep South
model. Diving trips and kite-surfing days will also be organized for the
festival's guests, in addition to road trips, meditation sessions and
trekking through some of the area's pristine desert valleys. In addition
to the camp's chalets and wooden huts, guests can bring their own tents
or rent one out from the camp, while nearby hotels will offer discounts
on accommodation for the festival. Marsa Alam locals will participate in
the live music jamming sessions and tribe representatives will speak
about their communities' greatest problems, including education and
healthcare, to raise awareness and funds to support green jobs for the
tribesmen. "We want to empower the local Marsa Alam community with
a relevant skill set in the green sector," says Mohamed Radwan, space
manager at icecairo, an environmental group that will design and build
the solar panels and water heaters at Deep South. "We want to transfer

these cost-optimization methods to the local Ababda and Bashareya
tribes of Marsa Alam," he says. "They have been suffering from the
haphazard development of Marsa Alam's tourism industry." Radwan
adds that, with once-abundant fish stocks being depleted in the Red Sea,
many residents have turned to the tourism industry for an income,
which is now suffering from an extreme decline. Karim Noor, owner of
Deep South, points out that the human element of the campaign is
equally important to emphasize. "The local community suffers from
poor education and health problems," he says. "There aren't enough
medical services, especially for young mothers and newborns. Drinking
water is scarce, as are fuel supplies." Radwan adds that other target
markets are the remote tourism resorts seeking cost-effective energy
alternatives, as most of Marsa Alam relies on fuel-generated electricity,
despite the abundance of sun and wind spots in the area. "The goal
would be to provide cheaper, cleaner energy while not polluting the
surrounding area with traditional fossil fuels, which have recently been
in short supply," he says. Amr Farouk, managing partner of Oasis
Renewable Energy, says his organization will provide products and
manufacturing know-how for the solar energy prototypes in
collaboration with icecairo. Farouk says Marsa Alam remains
ecologically intact, with limited man-made alterations to the ecosystem
compared to other areas such as Hurghada and Sharm el-Sheikh. "It is
important to help keep Marsa Alam this way and help improve it," he
says. Farouk says 3alganoob Festival will make these solar prototypes
available to the local community to reproduce for their own use and
also to sell to local hotels to generate income. "Marsa Alam depends on
diesel generators to create energy," he says. "Needless to say, this is not
a sustainable solution and it won't be financially feasible within a few
years." Marsa Alam's area in the Eastern Desert, stretching from the city
of Safaga on the Red Sea Coast to Halayeb near the Sudanese border, has
seen significant changes over the past few years and faces severe
environmental as well as developmental challenges. To prevent Marsa
Alam developing in the unsustainable, commercial nature of other Red
Sea cities such as Hurghada, activists believe it is crucial to raise

awareness of its enormous economic potential and show how eco-
tourism could be a sustainable solution for the future. Details of
activities as well as ticket prices can be found at
www.3alganoob.wordpress.com. Volunteers interested in participating
in the festival can contact the organizers on 3alganoob@gmail.com.

Travel News

Travel News
By: el Masry el Youm
Spring fever: This season is a perfect time to explore new horizons

2013-03-26 10:43:00.0
Springs is on the horizon and there's no better season to travel to
nearby destinations for a refreshing break. With Europe and the Middle
East in such close proximity, this is the perfect time to do a little low-key
exploring, or simply lie back, relax and recharge. You can choose to stay
in Egypt or go through the visa process and leave the country for a short
while but either way, hop on a plane and get out of Cairo this spring. Not
only have we picked out some fabulous destinations for you this spring,
but we've also looked up some of the best deals on offer. Barcelona is
Spain's second-largest city, after Madrid, and the capital of Catalonia.
This beautiful city is well-known for its remarkable architectural
Modernism or Art Nouveau landmarks. The unique style is embodied in
the distinctive works of famous Spanish architect Antoni Gaudi - in
particular, the Sagrada Familial church, the Park Gull, and the Casa
Batllo and Casa Vicens buildings. Along with the Catalan National Art

Museum, these are just a few of Barcelona's must-see attractions, If
you're a football fan, visiting Camp Nou - the largest stadium in Europe -
would undoubtedly be an unforgettable experience. But do make time
also to relax on the city's golden, sandy beaches and tuck in to some
paella, Spain's national dish, or sample a few tasty tapas in a local bar...
Thomas Cook travel agency offers a Barcelona package for LE4,525 per
person, including a round-trip economy class plane ticket and
comfortable accommodation at the four-star Hotel Novotel Barcelona
City, located in the heart of the city on Avenido Diagonal street. Venice
and Rome For a gateway to tranquility, there is no better city than
Venice. Known as one of Europe's most romantic cities, Venice is
renowned for its spectacular water views, and rich artistic and cultural
heritage. Paddling along the narrow waterways of the city in a gondola
is the best way to take in the magnificent architecture and stunning
renaissance buildings lining the canal. Kick off your Italian break by
spending three nights in Venice, then head to Rome, where you can stay
for four nights at the three-star Hotel Montecarlo Venice and take in the
city's many charms. From classical and imperial Roman-style buildings
to chic modern architecture, Rome is a hub for enthralling artistic work.
The city is dotted with fountains, museums, churches and other ancient
ruins. When you're tired of sightseeing, take a break and grab a gelato
or stop for some fresh pasta at one of the many local cafes. The
Colosseum, the Arch of Constantine, the Vatican, the Trivia Fountain and
the Spanish Steps are among Rome's top sightseeing attractions.
Thomas Cook offers this package for LE8, 285 per person, including a
round-trip, economy-class airline ticket on Egypt Air. Beirut Flying into
Beirut, Lebanon's capital, in spring is a great way to catch some lovely
spring sunshine, either atop its snow-capped mountains or on the
sunny, golden beaches. Plunge into the crystal-clear waters of the
Mediterranean in the capital or take an hour-long drive up to Foray
Mountain for a varied skiing experience. Even if you're not a skier, delve
into the spectacular snowy landscape under the sun's bright rays by
taking a snowmobile ride, which is much easier to maneuver. Don't
forget to take the enjoyable cable-car ride to visit the underground,

crystallized caverns of Jeita. Wander along the bridges and mazes of
narrow walkways in the upper cave to watch the miraculous shapes of
sharp-tipped stalactites and stalagmites scattered throughout. Then,
enjoy a small boat voyage in the lower cave, navigating through the
shallow waters and spectacular limestone formations. It goes without
saying that the nightlife in Lebanon is pretty much unbeatable, with a
wide array of choices for bars and nightclubs. So get ready to put your
high heels on and dance the night away with the city's beautiful people.
During Sham al-Nessim vacation, ITTA travel agency is offering a five-
day trip to Beirut for LE5,650 per person, including the visa, a roundtrip
flight and five-star accommodation at Crowne Plaza Hotel. Sharm el-
Sheikh There is always something new to experience in Sharm el-
Sheikh, no matter how many times you've been there. At this time of
year, the city offers a much more pleasant experience than during the
stifling heat of the hot summer months. Sharm el-Sheikh is also an
unrivalled destination for water sports lovers, offering a breathtakingly
diverse range of coral reefs for diving and snorkeling enthusiasts. If
you're after a bit of adventure, don't miss the thrill of riding a camel or
buggy safari in the heart of Sinai desert while watching the sun slowly
rise over the mountains. During your trip, you can head to a Bedouin
tent to sample a traditional dinner, sip on a delicious herbal cup of tea,
and watch a folk-dance show under a star-filled sky. Through Trace
travel company, you can book a flight to Sharm el-Sheikh for 141 Euros,
or LE1, 269. The package includes a sea-view twin room at Iberotel Lido
Ain Sokhna Ain Sokhna, just an hour's drive from Cairo, is the perfect
destination for a short break from your daily routine, With its pure
turquoise waters and pristine beaches, it's become increasingly popular
as a year-round, laid-back retreat for stressed out city dwellers.
Additionally, historical sightseeing sites nearby add to the charm. You
can see the country in a new light by visiting St. Anthony's Monastery
and St. Paul Monastery. Book one night at the five-star Jazz Little Venice
Golf Resort for LE720 per twin room. For more great spring vacation
packages,visit: www.thomascookegypt.com www.ittatours.com
www.travcotravel.com

This piece was originally published in Egypt Independent's weekly
print edition.

Waiting for the sun: Sensory overload and a never-ending party in the
Peruvian Andes

2013-03-18 11:35:00.0
It was to be a mind-bending spectacle. The sun would rise, and then
again, and again, so that three fiery orbs would be aligned in the sky
before our very eyes, Or something. Descriptions of the promised
phenomenon varied between the incredible and the impossible,
cumulatively convincing my wife and me to venture up to Tres Cruces
de Oro, a 3,700-meter-high lookout point over where the Peruvian
Andes meet the Amazon. It is a location once deemed sacred by the Inca
for the optical illusions said to accompany the sight of the rising sun.

Further incentive to make the notoriously exhausting trip - 11 hours
including two bus rides and a cliff-side stroll in the pitch-black night -
came from the fact that, along the way, we would be visiting the remote
village of Paucartambo just in time for Virgen del Carmen, a three-day
festival celebrating the village's patron saint, the Virgin Mary. "This is a
religious ceremony," the travel agent had informed us. "In the day,
people are praying, they go to church. This is very serious. But at
night ..." He put his thumb to his lips and threw his head back
repeatedly. "They drink." He swayed from side to side. "They dance." He
flung his flailing hands in the air, and kept them up. "They go crazy."
There was no smile on his face. "This is also very serious." "Watch out,"
he wagged his finger at us. And we did - we kept our eyes wide open, but
it wasn't so much out of caution as sheer sensory overload. A coil of
twisting alleyways and blue balconies, all bisected by a rocky-banked
river, Paucartambo was, when we arrived at dusk, buzzing with layers
of activity, with seemingly its entire population of 1,500 scrambling to
accommodate the 15,000 visitors already arriving in large groups,
despite the village's lack of hotels and, for the most part, basic plumbing.
Known as one of the year's liveliest festivals, the Virgen del Carmen
annually attracts Peruvians from all across the nation, many of whom
attend with their entire families in tow. As such, trucks lined the
outskirts of the village, unloading mattresses to waiting crowds; visitors
packed the miniature squares, pitching tents in piles; signs were posted
outside a few homes and taverns advertising the availability - for 50
cents - of a toilet or, more likely, pit. Lights were strung up and candles
lit, and, on every corner, carts sold plastic swords, saliva-fermented
beer and anticuchos - skewered beef hearts. It took some time for us to
reach the church at the center of the village, where evening mass was
being held. Not wanting to intrude, we stayed by the door, huddled at
the edge of a golden glow in which parishioners lit their candles and
bowed to murmur their prayers at an elaborately designed altar.
Despite the chaos rumbling behind us and as far as the stairs leading up
to the church, mass remained impenetrably serene, even as the building
began to overflow. We killed some time in a hole in a wall, admiring
Cusquena calendar girls from the mid-1990s, wondering when the party
would start, until it did, with all the force and suddenness of a military
raid. Masked men stampeded down our narrow street, hollering and
cracking whips, groping bystanders and pulling them into brief, crazed
dance routines before sending them twirling off. Screams and laughter

erupted in equal measure as, under the flash of fireworks, the men
showed off their (fake) bulging eyes and bulbous noses, their bushy hair
and, most of all, their costumes, which seemed to consist of every color
in the spectrum and some new ones. This was, I later found out, the
Saqra - the dance of the Devil as he flees from the Blessed Virgin. One of
the things that fascinated me most about Peruvian culture was the
extent to which Inca traditions remain integrated with the country's
largely Roman Catholic beliefs. On very few occasions is this more
evident than Virgen del Carmen, during which the Virgin Mary is
celebrated by 19 different dances - each with its own performers, rules
and unreasonably elaborate costumes - including the Misti Qanchi,
which celebrates the corn goddess, who supplies the festivities with
food; the Majeno, which recognizes the area's ties to the liquor trade
(this dance is performed with a beer bottle in hand); and the Chukcho,
inspired by malaria fevers. There are even dances that mock the
conquistadors, who introduced Catholicism to the region, and one that
parodies Spanish bullfighters, all in the name of the Virgin Mary. Most
notorious among the groups are the Qhapaq Qolla dancers, who, with
their white, mustachioed ski masks and stuffed baby llamas tied to their
backs, displayed the sort of "mischief" which non-Peruvians might be
tempted to call sociopathic. Like the rest of the performers, the Qhapaq
Qolla begin preparing - and drinking - for the event days in advance, the
only difference being that, in a festival where glasses are raised at the
Virgin's likeness as it's paraded around the village, they seem to take the
drinking part to an entirely different level, never letting their energetic,
rooftop-skipping dance moves get in the way of a good, long swig. And
the party raged on. Our options were between asking any of the
incredibly hospitable town residents for lodging, or partying through
the night until it was time to meet the crazy sun(s). We chose the second
one. Sometime later, we found ourselves at Tres Cruces and wildly
disoriented. The ground was sludge, refusing to solidify beneath our
feet, and the fog was thick and sporadically pierced by headlights
coming from directions that made no sense. And it was cold beyond
cruelty. There were crowds there, all invisible, until our collective,
confused mumbling gradually drew everyone together, and I was
disappointed to confirm that, yes, someone had actually brought their
guitar. We waited, the lot of us, huddled on a cliff side, as it began to
drizzle, then rain. It remained dark, and the excited whispers faded into
expectant silence, then grew into grumbling. There was some impatient

plucking of guitar strings, but beyond that, nothing, until we faded into
each other's vision and realized that the sun had risen - maybe even
three or five of them - but that it mattered little behind fog this thick. It
should have been disappointing, maybe, but I didn't really know what it
was that we had missed, and part of me found the idea of a bunch of
people waiting in the cold dark for a sun that never shows a little
amusing, especially when one of those guys has a guitar and probably
something written for the occasion. It was still gray skies when we
returned to Paucartambo, and I left my wife passed out on the bus while
I took a stroll around the village to determine the damage caused by the
party, which, as it turned out, was still staggering on. The streets were
soaked with beer and urine, stray dancers stumbled about, singing
inside their masks, and bodies were curled up on steps and under
leafless trees. I trailed some shouting to the main square, where a gang
of Qhapaq Qollas were slapping planks of wood together in an effort to
erect a platform without letting go of their beer bottles. A few carried
their beers between their lips, throwing their heads back every few
minutes. It wasn't even 8 am. I asked an un-costumed man about the
platform, and he slurred a lot of words and pointed to a llama tied to a
nearby tree. So I sat and watched as the Qollas continued to drink and
build, and celebrate their finished building by drinking around, and then
on top of it. And then their attention shifted to the llama. It's hard to say
whether all that alcohol ultimately assisted or hindered their efforts to
get that llama onto the platform. I'd say, all things considered, it
probably helped. By this point a crowd had gathered and after several
rounds of elevated drinking, the Qhapaq Qolla men proceeded to
shower upon them gifts of the sort that you wouldn't expect to be
showered on people with exposed heads - wooden stools and baby
chairs, shelves and racks, kitchen utensils, and fruits forcefully pelted to
compensate for their lack of sharp edges. It was all clearly part of the
fun and bystanders took it on the chin, nose and brow with a smile, as
did my wife when she got an orange on the lips shortly after finding me.
Spirits continued to soar as behind the crowd flowed an endless
procession of masked dancers and honking brass bands while, at the
heart of it, children rattled the platform by its bowed legs, cheering as
the beer and furniture continued to rain down. And riding the storm
was the llama, which impressed me by how unfazed it seemed by it all.
What did faze the creature, though, was having its neck grabbed and
being made to chug an entire 620ml bottle of beer in what must have

been record time for any living thing, anywhere. But despite being
drunk and ten feet off the ground, the llama kept it together-barely,
judging by its eyes-until it was time for it to descend from the platform
via a narrow plank and much drunken jostling. In the end, one of the
Qhapaq Qolla covered its head with his own beer-soaked mask, calming
the creature long enough for them to roll it off the plank and into the
crowd. Maybe I had missed seeing the sun in triplicate but I was there
for the drunken llama drop, which was certainly a once-in-a-lifetime
sight. At least one would hope. The llama descended, the platform was
lit up shortly afterward, in fireworks then flames, and the celebrations
continued and seemed as if they would until the end of time. So, my wife
and I left, choosing to believe that they would.
This piece was originally published in Egypt Independent's weekly print
edition

Come away with me: Seven romantic destinations to rekindle love

2013-02-16 12:23:00.0
With Valentine's Day upon us, love is definitely in the air. Whether or
not you can get away for the weekend, remember that romantic
holidays can be a great way to keep that relationship spark going. 1.
Portofino, Italy This coastal Italian city is the epitome of romance. A
fishing village with one of the world's most picturesque harbors,
Portofino combines cozy village life with neat shops, quaint eateries and
a couple-friendly nightlife. Rent scooters and drive up the Italian Riviera
to Paraggi Beach. You can sip coffee, drink wine, eat pasta and finish the
afternoon with gelato, proper Italian-style. "We went to a number of
different Italian destinations but Portofino was the best part of our

honeymoon," says Mara Sabry, 29, now married for two years.
"Everything is just so beautiful, so you can't help but hold hands and feel
happy." Tickets cost about LE2,600 per person, and stay at the Hotel
Splendido if you want to live it up. Or for beauty on a budget, try the
Domina Home Piccolo. 2. Corsica, France This French island, which
offers a different take on France, is a beautiful getaway. If you go in
summer, coast along the beaches of Bonifacio in a boat and stop at
Fazzio Bay, where clear waters and white sand complete the perfection.
Once home, to both Napoleon Bonaparte and Christopher Columbus, the
mixture of Italian and French influences make this place both beautiful
and delicious. "I sometimes dream of the seafood we devoured at La
Volute," says Judy Hakim, 37, who ordered langoustine and sat in their
much coveted outside seating area on a summer trip a year after getting
married. The Centre Village is a great place for lavish dinners and
evenings out. Fly to Milan for LE2, 600 and take EasyJet to Corsica from
there for 100 Euros, or about LE900. 3. Brooklyn, NY, US With ticket
prices beginning at about LE6, 000, traveling to the US for a vacation is
no easy decision. That said, hotels and food in the US are often much
cheaper than in Europe. Bring your own bottle of wine to Locale’s pizza
parlor for a typical New York evening, or dine with a view at the River
Cafe. "I was on a business trip when my husband and I went to New
York," says Daisy Nader, 39. The couple's favorite part of the trip is The
roller coaster on Coney Island. "The rush was very romantic," says
Nader. Hotel recommendations include the Marriott New York Brooklyn
Bridge for about US$260 a night or the Ritz Carlton Central Park for
about $700. 4. Cordoba, Spain Once known as the peaceful meeting
point of Islam, Judaism and Christianity, Cordoba is intimate and
beautiful. "When my wife suggested Spain for a honeymoon, I never
expected Cordoba to be the highlight," says Samar Ibrahim, 39. Dine at
romantic taverns in the old quarter and stay at the Hotel Pateros to keep
things unpretentious. Fly into Madrid for LE2, 400 and take a high-
speed train for 25 minutes to reach this beautiful city. Tickets for the
AVE train cost about 54 Euros to Cordoba. The province is littered with
museums, cathedrals, temples and mosques, if you are into sightseeing,
and you can even get around by horse and carriage if you wish.
Ibrahim's restaurant recommendations: El Churrasco for excellent
steaks and Regadera for contemporary dining. 5. Masai Mara National
Reserve, Kenya Although safari travel may not sound romantic, you
could be living it up with luxury tents and Victorian baths at the

Governors' IL Moran Camp by the Mara River. A romantic tent for two
here will set you back about $1000 a night. For $700 a night per person,
you can traipse about the Serengeti with Serengeti Under Canvas,
lodgings that move as the animals migrate. These trips are often self-
contained - you eat and sleep at your camp - but the luxury camps can
offer excellent food and "the closeness you derive from being 'out in the
wild' is truly priceless," says Amina Kamal, 35, who spent her
honeymoon in Kenya. Fly down to Nairobi for about LE3,000. 6.
Mnemba, Zanzibar, Tanzania Part of the Zanzibar archipelago, Mnemba
offers whale watching, dolphins and fabulous snorkeling. Stay in your
own cottage at the Mnemba Island Lodge, where dinner is served for
you and your loved one on the beach. Karen and Yasser al-Sayed spent a
part of their African honeymoon on the island. "We loved how beautiful
it was," says Yasser. "But you can't last there long ... there isn't much
else to do but be together!" Karen suggests it as a good spot for writers
or artists - the environment is breathtaking. Island-hop in Zanzibar and
hit the wooden-stilted bungalows of the Fundu Lagoon on Pemba Island
as well. Flights to Tanzania will cost you about LE2,800. 7. Rio de
Janeiro, Brazil If you choose to stay at the Casa Beleza in Santa Teresa,
you're sure to enjoy the romance of Rio without breaking the bank.
Staying in Santa Teresa will give you all the romance of Brazil a step
away from the madness that is Rio. But there's no boredom here - Rio
has a night life that's probably hotter and more fabulous than just about
anywhere else. Beautiful beaches, anyone? Couple Sandra Nagi and
Karim spent their days at Recreio das Bandeirantes, a beach that proved
a little less crowded than the beaches of Ipanema. The northern part of
the city offers Tijuca where there is good local food. The flight out to
Brazil will set you back a steep LE10,000, so if you're heading in that
direction, make sure you enjoy your trip to the max. "Have drinks (or
stay) at the Copacabana Palace and enjoy a romantic sunset from Sugar
Loaf mountain," advises Nagi. The couple also took time to take a boat
down the beautiful Costa Verde.

The world from their backyard: Children in Ard al-Lewa learn about
differences through Safarni

2013-02-28 19:11:00.0
After a sip of a traditional drink from the Ivory Coast, a young Egyptian
child shivers. "This is very, very different," she says. About 20 to 30
excited children from a working-class Cairo neighborhood are taking
part in Safarni, a free interactive cultural experience for children, which
takes them on virtual trips to new countries around the world. The most
important Safarni rule is to "respect difference," so when tempted to use
words like "weird" or "bad," the children must replace them with
"different" or "new for me." It worked well on Ivory Coast day, as it does
every time. Safarni, which takes place every second Friday, creates a
simulated travel experience for children who would normally get little
contact with "the other," and little to no travel experience. "If children
can start seeing difference as something beautiful and rich, which they
feel comfortable around, and not as something scary and suspicious,
we're on our way towards a more tolerant world," says Raphaelle
Ayach, a French-American documentay filmmaker and Safarni's
founder. Ayach, who has a background in facilitating film courses and
dialogue sessions, says that it was in Spain and France, countries where
she lived previously, that she first noticed how prevalent racism was,
though it was often under the radar. When she started learning Arabic
and developing strong relationships with Arab friends, she saw how
pervasive it was. She says that, too often, people are afraid of what is
different. "I'm trying to help these children avoid initial reactions like, 'I
don't know it so it's scary.' I want them to think instead: 'I don't know
that but I want to find more about it.'" Safarni means "take me traveling"
in Arabic. So far, the organization has brought about a dozen countries
to these children. The idea, Ayach says, is not so much to make them
learn about foreign countries, although that is inevitably part of the
process, but to get them curious and excited about differences and
different cultures, ways of life and social habits. Ayach wanted to start
such a project as soon as she arrived in Egypt but never had the
opportunity. When she heard about the Artellewa art space in Ard al-
Lewa, a densely populated informal area located between two large
squatter settlements, Imbaba and Bulaq al-Dakrur, she was impressed
with their activities and wanted to participate. Artellewa facilitates
artists' projects, offering workshops and art exhibitions, and hosting
artists-in-residence. Artellewa agreed to lend Ayach a couple of rooms
on Fridays for Safarni. She soon gathered a few friends and people who

were interested in intercultural dialogue, including Egyptians and non-
Eygptians. As Ayach hoped to bring travel to children from
neighborhoods with little to no opportunity to have contact with "the
other," she was happy to start in Ard al-Lewa. To make it happen, the
group needs many volunteers: adults who act as facilitators, leading
activities and translating them into Arabic for the children, helpers and
foreigners. Not the nameless, non-Arab "foreigners," but a few people
from a specific country who are encouraged to speak to the children and
share their dances, music, cartoons, games, food and drink. "The
children need to see and shake hands with actual people. It is part of the
emotional connection. Once we realize everyone has a story, it becomes
much harder to demonize," Ayach says. On Poland day, children felt
excited about learning the "Polonaise" dance. The Polish women who
hosted for the day had the children watch a clip from a movie to learn
the dance steps. Braided, blonde women in ruffled dresses danced in a
tree-lined alley. The children were slightly wary at first and a few boys
wanted to leave - children are always free to leave or go back to the
street. But when the adults started showing them how the dance
worked, the children held hands and started bending down and turning
right and left, with huge smiles on their faces. One of the girls waved her
headscarf and added a Salome touch to the Polish dance. For the
afternoon, she was Ania, according to the Polish name tag she had
pinned on her dress for the afternoon. Name tags are optional - they do
not prevent the children from being called by their real names if they
wish. A common criticism, Ayach says, is that children don't always
remember what they learned about each country. She says, however,
the aim is not to make the children learn things by heart. "The aim is not
even to make them have fun, although they do." says Ayach. "The aim is
to get them to experience difference and connect. I get these criticisms a
lot - that the children don't retain enough information. But that's not our
primary aim." Ayach says she discovered that one "feels most accepting
and supportive of another culture or way of life when they have
experienced some sort of emotional connection to it." When speaking of
intercultural understanding, Ayach says, it's vital to understand the
power of these emotional connections. "This happens when you open
yourself to experience the 'other' by connecting them with your heart -
friendship, love - and senses - listening, tasting, dancing, swaying - much
like one does when traveling," Ayach explains. "These experiences are
actually felt and that is the key to their power." The Safarni team also

decided to address the criticism about children not retaining
information by having one child keep a notebook of the information
they received. The children were surprised at the ease with which they
could say shawl, or the first name Magda - as it is the same in Arabic and
Polish - but they had more fun trying to repeat words that were hard for
them to pronounce. "What's the capital of Poland?" one of the hosts
asked. "Berlin! Krakow! Moscow! Warsaw!" the children shouted. "Yes,
Warsaw!" the host replied. These unusual names could take some time
to settle in the minds of the children, of whom the oldest are about 13.
But they did not let go of "one, two, three" in Polish and repeated the
numbers enthusiastically, both while dancing and playing a game in
which they had to say, "One, two, three, the witch is watching." Safarni
has also visited Ezbet al-Hagana to reach children from slum areas and
Ayach is keen to spread the Safarni concept to many more places. The
group has now started a fundraising page on the crowd-funding
platform Indiegogo to raise money to make "passports," stamps and
flags, buy food supplies and even organize potential carnivals to
introduce as many children as possible to new worlds, far removed from
their everyday lives. This piece was originally published in Egypt
Independent's weekly print edition. This piece was originally published
in Egypt Independent's weekly print edition. - See more at:
http://www.egyptindependent.com/news/syrians-find-refuge-food-
bringing-cuisine-egypt#sthash.rzUEw737.dpuf

Bakery owners decry new system

2013-03-30 14:31:00.0
Bread shortages are not new to Egypt, with the most
acute crisis of the not-so-distant past occurring in
2008. Since then, shortages of the vital food supply
have been recurring, and, at times, the army has been
deployed to deliver the gap in supply. In January
1977, under President Anwar Sadat, thousands of
Egyptians took to the streets to protest the lifting
of subsidies on vital commodities: oil, sugar and
bread. The bloody protests left dozens dead and
hundreds injured before the army was deployed and the
subsidies were reinstated. Fast forward to 2013 -
President Mohamed Morsy is in power, and the Muslim
Brotherhood's Freedom and Justice Party dominates the
political scene. Anger is vociferously leveled at the
government for an array of political and economic
reasons, most recently by bread bakers protesting the
lifting of flour subsidies and a new subsidization
system for bread production. Subsidized bread is
priced at 5 piasters, and is a staple food item for
the country's lower- and middle-class citizens. At
times of crisis, this segment, which represents 80
percent of the population, suffers endless queues and
fatal fights over bread. Often, the government has
blamed the supply shortages on black market bread
sales, as well as the smuggling of flour and wheat,
blaming bakery owners and accusing them of
profiteering. In what the ministry is selling as a
bid to curb black market sales and ensure that
subsidies reach target beneficiaries, a new policy
has been created, whereby subsidies on key
ingredients have been lifted, thus removing
incentives for bakers to trade them on the black
market. Private bakeries are being asked to sign on
to the new contracts. But it has been a hard sell. On
19 March, hundreds of bakery owners stormed the

Supply and Internal Trade Ministry in downtown Cairo,
protesting the new policy, as well as the rise in
prices of gasoline, diesel and flour. Their most
significant complaint is the raising of the cost of
production of one sack of flour from LE80 to LE120.
They say the government, the sole supplier of wheat
and other ingredients used in bread making, is
looking to lay the burden of lifting subsidies on
bakers, as well as failing to consider the actual
production cost. Weighing different considerations,
each side regards the other with suspicion. From the
government's viewpoint, private bakeries produce a
quota of bread and sell it at the government-
specified price, while the rest is sold for more.
However, sometimes the subsidized wheat and flour
provided by the ministry is sold on the black market
for a considerable profit, leading to shortages on
the market. Bakery owners, on the other hand, say the
government is essentially shifting the burden of
producing bread onto them while failing to compensate
them for the real cost of production and energy
consumed. They say the new policy will tighten the
government's grip on the bread industry through its
continued monopoly over purchasing wheat, both
through imports and from local farmers. They also
fear the FJP will exploit the new policy for
electoral gains, namely after the appointment of
Bassem Ouda, a party leader, as the supply and
internal trade minister in January. The debate
between Ouda and bakery owners has been ongoing since
the government began implementing the new subsidy
system in February. The government says the system
will save LE11 billion annually by making it more
difficult for whole ingredients such as wheat to be
sold on the black market. Bakery owners, however, say
the government is seeking to control the strategic
product to continue hegemonizing a wider base of
Egyptians. When threatening a strike to protest the
new subsidization system, Ouda responded to bakery
owners by warning that all those "reckless" enough to
respond to calls for civil disobedience would be shut
down. "And I will sue all bakers objecting to the new

policy for baking bread," he said. Conflicting
statements have come out from both sides regarding
the number of private bakeries implementing the new
policy. Official statements say 17 of the 27
governorates have begun implementing the new policy,
meaning 9,000 private bakeries in these governorates
of 19,000 nationwide have signed on to the new
contracts. However, the General Division of Bakeries
- a body in the Egyptian Federation of Chambers of
Commerce elected by private bakery owners that is
leading the opposition to the new policy - says the
number does not exceed 1,500. Challenging the system
The General Division of Bakeries says that of the 17
clauses in the new contracts drawn up by the
ministry, 11 put the responsibility of the quality
and quantity of bread supplies on the market wholly
on private bakeries as the last link in the supply
chain. Meanwhile, no fault can be laid on state-run
mills and storage facilities, whose insufficient
infrastructure diminishes the quality of wheat due to
high humidity levels. Hassan al-Mohammady, a member
of the general division and owner of a private bakery
in Sharqiya, says the fourth clause obligates bakers
to ensure that the wheat complies with ministry
standards, which they describe as a punitive
condition. Mohammady asks how bakery owners can
assess whether the quality of wheat is up to
standard. "We are not agriculture experts," he says.
"And the way wheat is stored after it is grinded in
state-run mills frequently contaminates it." State-
run mills grind 70 percent of the wheat used in the
bread-making industry, Mohammady says. He explains
that if two noncompliance complaints are filed
against a bakery, the ministry is allowed to penalize
the owner by cutting the quantity it delivers by half
for one week. The old policy, he says, contains an
inherent flaw that gives bakers a cost allowance of
LE40 per sack from the ministry, which barely covers
production costs. He adds that the new contracts
raised this sum to LE80, which is also insufficient.
"As a bakery owner, I spend on labor as well as
buying diesel fuel to run the bakery, which can cost

LE40 per jerry can on the black market from the
original LE22, given the current diesel shortage," he
says. The General Division of Bakeries thinks a fair
allowance would be LE120. However, Supply and
Internal Trade Ministry spokesperson Nasser al-Farash
described this as opportunistic. Farash says the
decision to raise the allowance to LE80 came after
studies conducted by the Central Agency for Public
Mobilization and Statistics showed this is the real
cost. "Those opposing the new policy are throwing
around empty accusations and attempting to convince
public opinion that the government is acting
arrogantly," Farash says. "The new policy exposes the
hidden flaws of the industry." Under the new system,
the government says it is committed to supplying
bakeries with subsidized wheat, while it has lifted
flour subsidies. The ministry makes bakers pay the
full price for flour upfront, but pays them back the
difference from the subsidized price after bakeries
deliver their quota of bread. At the end of the day,
bakery owners pay for the subsidized cost of flour,
but only after delivery as a measure meant to curb
black market bread sales. Fixing the flaws Abdallah
Ghorab, president of the General Division of
Bakeries, says Egypt's bread policy is essentially
flawed. "From the outset, the government has relied
on two main factors to cover wheat demand in the
Egyptian market. One is importing wheat, namely from
the US and Europe; and second, buying the crop of
local farmers and then mixing it with the imported
wheat, which is then sent to the mills," he says.
"Through this process, the government wastes time and
raises its subsidies bill." Ghorab thinks the real
solution lies in liberalizing the bread industry. "It
is better to let private bakery owners operate
freely, covering 90 percent of demand. If we
encourage Egyptian farmers and if we guarantee that,
as producers, we will buy their entire crop at a
price proportionate to its hefty cost, and if we
decrease wheat imports, the problem of bread
shortages will fade in time," he says. He is
confident that, in this dynamic, the bread produced

would meet the ministry's set standards. "And I am
sure that it will be of high quality because we will
use local wheat, which is better quality than the
imports," Ghorab asserts. Egypt is the largest wheat
importer, purchasing 5.5 million tons annually. Local
production accounted for 3.8 million tons last year,
and Ghorab says this number was reached when the 2007
drought in Europe and the Ukraine impinged on Egypt's
wheat imports, prompting Egyptian farmers to produce
more. "In the context of what we're proposing, we can
sell a loaf of bread at whatever price we want to
match its real cost without subsidies, and the
government can buy it from us, then add the subsidy,"
he explains. Farash, however, rejects this
suggestion, and describes it as placing self-interest
above public good. "The government's budgeted
subsidies reach LE22 billion, and when the new system
is fully implemented, this will reach LE24 billion.
It offers bread for 5 piasters while it costs 32
piasters. After all this work to make sure subsidies
reach those who need it most, Ghorab comes to talk of
auctions for buying wheat that would allow the
private sector to control this commodity," Farash
says. In response, Ghorab retorts that "this means
the government wants to control the commodity." He
says this is especially true "after reports pointed
to Freedom and Justice Party members distributing
bread in many governorates on behalf of the local
municipality," adding that "this is the reason Ouda
was appointed minister." This piece was originally
published in Egypt Independent's weekly print
edition.

2012-10-14 21:48:00.0

Behind the Egypt-Israel October war: Q&A with Craig Daigle - Part 4
Egypt Independent interviews historian Craig Daigle about his seminal work
"The Limits of Detente: The United States, the Soviet Union, and the Arab-
Israeli Conflict, 1969-1973" unpacking the myths surrounding the 1973
October Arab-Israeli war. In this final part of the interview, Daigle discusses
the intricacies of implementing the ceasefire and the American and Soviet
positions on the continuing conflict. Egypt Independent: How did the Israelis
take advantage of the negotiation period before declaring ceasefire? Craig
Daigle: In that turn, they had less concerns about occupying more territories,
than they did to really put a final defeat on the Egyptian army. They really
wanted to make sure that the third army was defeated. So they had stopped.
And then fighting broke out on 23 October. The Israelis say it was the
Egyptians who were trying to get out. That may be the case, but the Israelis
responded aggressively and continued to violate. The Israelis violated the
ceasefire. EI: What was the Israeli response to (Henry) Kissinger's orders to
ceasefire? To what extent were the American and Israeli perspectives in this
critical moment congruous? Daigle: The Israeli military and even most of the
Israeli leadership was very upset with Kissinger for negotiating a ceasefire
without consulting them. There was a breakdown in communications in
Moscow that would have send the Israelis updates, but they didn't consult the
Israelis. So when he got to Israel, he flew right from Moscow to Tel Aviv to
meet with [former Israeli Prime Minister Golda] Meir, and he had three
meetings in Israel. One meeting was a private meeting with Meir, another
meeting was with the Israeli cabinet and a third meeting was with the military
leaders. In all three meetings, the Israeli leadership - both civil and military -
was upset because it didn't make sense to stop where they were. There
weren't clear lines. The ceasefire called for let’s say, the parties need to stop
fighting, as of where the forces where at 12 pm on 22 October. But, nobody
really knew where those lines where. Nobody had a map out and said: "At 12
pm this is where the forces were." So, they looked at Kissinger and said: "this
ceasefire doesn't make sense," it doesn't work for us, it can leave us in a weak
position. And, if you give us two more days, we can defeat the army, we can

come to defensible borders." So they wanted a further delay in the ceasefire.
Kissinger said: "listen, I can't give you two days. Two days is too long. But it's
going to take me 12 hours to fly back to Washington," and he made a stop in
London on the way back. "What you choose to do between now and when I
get back to Washington, that's up to you." Basically, he knew the process. He
knew that the Soviets would protest to him, and they couldn't make that
protest if he was flying in the air, so he knew that the longer he travelled, it
was good for the Israelis. That's one of the reasons he went to Moscow to
meet with (former Russian President) Leonid Brezhnev. He knew that by
travelling to Moscow, that's going to give the Israelis more time on the
battlefield to accomplish what they want. He gives them the green light that
says: "Listen, I can't give you 48 hours, but I can probably give you 12 to 24
hours to advance your positions to a better line, and then you're going to have
to stop fighting. When the fighting continued after that 24-hour period, that's
when Kissinger got upset. EI: So how was the ceasefire imposed? Daigle:
Finally on 24 October, Kissinger calls the Israeli ambassador and says: "Listen,
you can only make Brezhnev look like a fool for so long." Because basically
Brezhnev had worked out this ceasefire and put his neck out on the line, so if
the Israelis continued to violate the ceasefire it's up to Brezhnev in many ways
to uphold it. So what Kissinger is telling the Israelis is Brezhnev is going to have
forces sent to this region if you don't cut this crap out. Stop fighting because
Brezhnev looks weak and you're making him look weak. So Kissinger told this
to the Israelis, who continued to advance. That's what happened on the night
of 24 October. Brezhnev sent a message, basically saying that if the Israelis
don't back off and return to the ceasefire lines of 22 October, the Soviets
would send forces unilaterally. He wanted it as a joint US force, but he said if
the US didn't want to join, they were going unilaterally. And that's when
Kissinger put forces on a military alert on the night of 24 and 25 October and
the crisis by the following morning subsided. EI: We have known later that
(former Egyptian President Anwar) Sadat refused (former Presidential Chief of
Staff Saad) al-Shazly's plan to liquidate the Israeli infiltration between the
Second and Third armies. I wonder what made the Egyptian army abide by the
ceasefire although the Israelis were breaching it and advancing in the Western
bank of Suez Canal. Daigle: That was what happened on 24 October exactly.

On the night of 24 October after the Americans placed their forces on military
alert, they recalled troops that were on leave. And they made it appear that
the US was going to send forces. They started moving carriers and ships to the
Mediterranean, so they're making it appear that they were ready to intervene
if needed. But they really did not want to send troops into the Middle East.
You have to remember that in 1973 this was only nine months after the Paris-
peace accords and this would be a sign of war, and Vietnam just ended, so the
Americans didn't want to get involved in another war in a far away land. So by
pushing to the alert, Kissinger was saying to the Egyptians and to the Soviets
"We are prepared to intervene if necessary." EI: Finally, as a historian, how do
you estimate the conclusion of 18 days of fighting in both military and political
terms? Daigle: Obviously, the balance of power changed completely after
Sadat advanced the attack following 14 October. Militarily, at the end of the
war there was not one Egyptian soldier or one Syrian soldier on Israeli
territory. The Israelis had moved beyond the Suez Canal, to the west side of
the canal, they had moved further into Syria. So, it was a military victory for
the Israelis. However, the war was also a political victory for Sadat, because
his aims were not to defeat Israel militarily. His aims were to get the parties
moved off their frozen positions, to get Kissinger actively involved. If you look
at the documents leading up to 1973, what you see in early 1973 is that
Kissinger doesn't want to get involved. He's fine with the status quo. And
that's what Sadat was trying to change. In (former US President Richard)
Nixon's first term he couldn't do it. In 1973, Muhammad Hafiz Ismail, Sadat's
adviser for national security affairs, came to meet Kissinger in secret
negotiations and he went back and said, "nothing is going to happen. Kissinger
doesn't want to get involved." Kissinger was more interested in Europe and
China; he said in a big speech that 1973 is going to be the year of Europe. The
Middle East for him was a sideshow. So Sadat was trying to change that
attitude. Two weeks after, Kissinger showed up in Egypt and they began the
process of diplomacy and they moved the Middle East to the front of foreign
policy agenda from 1974 to 1976. Sadat shook the myth of the Israelis as
invincible. The Israelis believed that if there was another Middle East war, it
was going to be 1967 all over again and Sadat showed them that the Egyptian
defense and preparations had improved, and that the Israelis could not win

another quick war. And, because they could not win a quick war against the
Arabs, that made Israel weaker and it forced them to understand that they
could not hold on to the territories. That was the other victory for the Arabs.
They demonstrated that Israel holding on to the occupied territories doesn't
make Israel safer, because that's the Israeli argument. But when you end up in
a war and your people are dying, it doesn't make you safer and so they realize
that they had to negotiate.

Interviews
By: el Masry el Youm
A conversation with Salafi political leader Emad Abdel Ghafour

2013-01-10 15:20:00.0
Deputy founder of the nascent Salafi Watan Party and presidential assistant
Emad Abdel Ghafour announced the establishment of the party on 1
December after resigning from the presidency of the Nour Party, the
political arm of the Salafi Dawah. He also announced the formation of the
Free Homeland Alliance, an electoral coalition to be led by former
presidential hopeful Hazem Salah Abu Ismail for the upcoming House of
Representatives elections. Egypt Independent met with Abdel Ghafour to
speak about Islamist politics and its position and potentials in Egypt. Egypt
Independent: Why are you founding the Watan Party now? Emad Abdel
Ghafour: Because even though there are so many parties in Egypt, they
have lost touch with the Egyptian street and the ordinary citizen. There is a
political void that needs to be filled, and we founded the Watan Party to
present a more coherent alternative that feels the pulse of the Egyptian
street and better expresses its hopes and needs. EI: But some say that the
Egyptian people are becoming less interested in politics, and that the
addition of yet another party to the map of existing political parties will be
of no significance. Abdel Ghafour: This is not true. The Egyptian people
cannot find trustworthy representatives to place their confidence in. EI:
What is the difference between the Watan and Nour parties? Abdel
Ghafour: The difference is clear. When we formed the Nour Party, our goal
was to set up a party that reflects the hopes of Egyptians, and we achieved
successes with the Nour Party, much to the surprise of both Egyptian and
international public opinion. But due to factors out of our control, we
became isolated. I thought that the solution was to have another entity
that can satisfy those conditions and live up to those criteria. EI: Is your

vision of Islamic Sharia identical to that of other Islamist parties, such as the
Nour, Freedom and Justice and Construction and Development parties?
Abdel Ghafour: We believe that instead of talking about Islamic Sharia, we
should put it into practice. The same applies to social justice and dignity.
We want them to be a living reality. We believe that Islamic Sharia is about
justice, mercy and wisdom. If we put these values into practice and seek
benefit for the people, then we will be applying Sharia. We will take any
road that we believe leads to the implementation of Sharia and takes the
people out of the darkness to the light. EI: There is confusion regarding the
role of Abu Ismail in the new party. Abdel Ghafour: To be sure, Abu Ismail
represents a considerable scientific and social value in Egyptian society. He
has appeal among hundreds of thousands of Egyptians. When we founded
the party, we were keen to win the support of several leaders of social and
political activism, of whom Abu Ismail is one. At the beginning, we
suggested that we have some sort of cooperation with him. He decided to
be the chief supporter of the party without joining it. He will tour
governorates and do publicity without being an official leader. EI: Some
believe that you are different from Abu Ismail, who has the support of so-
called revolutionary Salafis. How did those two seemingly disparate ways of
thinking meet? Abdel Ghafour: We thought that this alliance or
understanding would be beneficial for all parties. We have gained the
support of one of the leaders of public opinion and this will enrich the
party. At the same time, the membership of several experts in the party will
moderate Abu Ismail's views if the opinions he expresses have not been
carefully studied or are insufficiently developed. The presence of all of
these experts will help with the adoption of moderate views in the future.
Abu Ismail's alliance with us will oblige him to stick to mechanisms of
political work, which does not involve violence or threats to use violence.
The alliance will strike a balance between the dynamism and mobility of
Abu Ismail's supporters and a more sensible political vision. Additionally,
the party's decisions are nonbinding for Abu Ismail, and vice versa.
Cooperation between us will have a positive impact on Abu Ismail, since it
will make his views more realistic and moderate. EI: What is the party's
frame of reference? Are there going to be jurisprudential references,
certain scholars, with whom you work, since the party has an Islamic
approach? Abdel Ghafour: There will be no external guardianship,
intellectual or otherwise, but there will be political mechanisms and

political leaderships. There will also be a religious committee inside the
party concerned with its Islamist dimension. The party will conform to the
opinions of prestigious scientific academies, such as the Islamic Research
Academy. EI: It is said that the foundation of the Watan Party before the
elections will divide Islamists and splinter votes, what do you think? Abdel
Ghafour: On the contrary, in fact, the Egyptian street seems to be losing
trust in political work, particularly in parties that have an Islamist frame of
reference. Corrective movements that emerge from inside Islamist circles
could restore confidence to some degree. EI: Why weren't members from
the Muslim Brotherhood, liberal and leftist powers present at the party
conference? And does that mean that they will not be part of the coming
electoral alliance? Abdel Ghafour: First of all, we have invited the FJP, but it
seems they are busy. Still, our relationship with them is very strong. As for
the other currents, the speed with which we organized the party may have
not enabled us to invite them. Members of the liberal and leftist current
that we invited either declined the invitation or said they would come but
failed to show up. Concerning an alliance with the Brotherhood, let us be
realistic, the Brotherhood and its party see themselves as our "big brother,"
and so if there was an invitation, it is they who should extend it. If a nascent
party sends an invitation to others, it is quite natural that it only gets a
limited response. EI: Has it already been determined which political powers
will ally with the Watan Party? And what percentage of seats does the Free
Homeland Alliance wish to contest in the elections? Abdel Ghafour: There
are several parties that are rich from an intellectual and scientific
perspective but which do not have a wide base of support or sufficient
financial resources. These parties can join us and we will together create a
mix that wins the support of the people. Regarding the percentage of seats
we want to contest, we have the ability to run for 100 percent of the seats.
But coordination with other political powers is what will determine this
issue. EI: Is there a possibility of you allying with non-Islamist parties? Abdel
Ghafour: We can meet with any party that has a national agenda or frame
of reference. We hope the alliance will encompass the biggest number of
patriotic political powers that only work to serve the society. EI: Abu Ismail
talked about a clear legislative agenda, so are members of the alliance
going to have a binding political agenda inside Parliament? Abdel Ghafour:
We have to make a distinction between an electoral and a political alliance.
It is not necessary to have an alliance inside Parliament just because there

was an alliance in the elections. But there aren't any major ideological or
intellectual differences between parties that have an Islamist reference,
and so it is easy for them to agree on a certain legislative agenda. The
Watan Party has a legislative committee and a parliamentary bloc, which
are examining the party's agenda with Abu Ismail, who is a specialist in
legal affairs. The goal is to produce an end product to use in the legislative
session. We have an independent agenda, you can say, but that will not
stop us from reaching agreements with others. EI: How are you going to
handle financing as a nascent party with elections around the corner?
Abdel Ghafour: There are businessmen and university professors who
spoke to me and expressed a desire to support the party. I sat with some of
them, too. This is not the first time we face these challenges. With the Nour
Party, we had several successes with relatively few resources. We are now
going through the same process, which may be slightly harder this time.
However, this time our determination is stronger, experience broader and
steps bigger. EI: What are the priorities for the party in the coming
parliamentary session? Abdel Ghafour: The issue of justice is the most
important issue and requires reforming the Interior and Justice ministries,
for they are of core importance. We will work to reform the body of
legislation that governs their work because the people long for justice and
security. Then we will focus on reforming the economic system. EI: Are you
going to be able to strike a balance between your presidency of the party
and your position as presidential aide? Abdel Ghafour: We do not have a
hegemonizing president, but rather bodies that work on different dossiers
and a "coordinating president." The philosophy on the basis of which the
party was established calls for the division of power centers. This piece was
originally published in Egypt Independent's weekly print edition.

Features
Military denies interest in intervening in presidential affairs, but
remains cautious

2013-04-04 17:27:00.0
A deteriorating political and economic situation has created a tense
situation for the president and the military, muddied with rumors, sly
press statements and decrees. It all began in late January with
Defense Minister Abdel Fattah al-Sisi's statements warning of the
state's collapse and expressing the military's readiness to step in.
This was followed by rumors that President Mohamed Morsy would
sack Sisi altogether, raising flags around the relationship between the
Islamist presidency and the Armed Forces. Moreover, when violence
took over the Suez Canal cities in January, Morsy resorted to the
army to maintain security and imposed a curfew, which was not only
ignored by the cities' residents, but by the Armed Forces themselves,
who passed the time participating in football tournaments with
protesters. Reports of meetings of the Supreme Council of the Armed
Forces without its head, Morsy, to discuss domestic issues have also
heightened the tension between both parties. It was widely believed

that the military and Morsy made deals behind closed doors after the
presidential election, with the Muslim Brotherhood agreeing not to
interfere in the army's interests and to maintain its autonomy. And
indeed, the Constitution, drafted by the Islamist-dominated
Constituent Assembly, guaranteed the military's sovereignty and
protected it from legal and parliamentary oversight. However, various
press statements, followed immediately by their denial, indicate that
the Armed Forces and the president - along with the Muslim
Brotherhood from which he hails - are not necessarily on the same
page, despite statements claiming otherwise. An increasingly
tumultuous political and economic climate leaves many anticipating, if
not calling for, military intervention, as the army continues to keep a
close eye on the scene. H.A. Hellyer, a nonresident fellow of the
Washington-based Brookings Institution think tank, doesn't see the
military working in conjunction with the Muslim Brotherhood "any
more than they have done since last summer, when General Sisi took
over from Field Marshal Hussein Tantawi as the defense minister."
"On the contrary, they appear to be quite content to remain distant
from the presidency, as well as from exercising any governing
authority at all, as long as their own autonomy is assured," he
explains. Sherif Younis, a historian at Helwan University who has
studied the inception of the Egyptian army, sees this distance as a
product of the Hosni Mubarak experience, which was not favorable to
the army. Mubarak's state, Younis explains, was a coherent bloc,
which entailed the police, the army and the political face of it all - the
ruling National Democratic Party. However, this clear coherence is no

longer present under Morsy, he says. As the military preserves its
autonomy, Younis says, there are certain areas where it can set
limitations around the ruling regime's decision-making process in
areas that pertain to its interests, such as development projects in the
Canal cities or security in Sinai, as well as agreements with certain
countries. That said, experts agree the military has no interest in
dipping its feet into the murky waters of politics, as long as its
autonomy remains untouched. Nathan Brown, professor of political
science and international affairs at George Washington University in
the US, says Egypt's generals see the military as the "ultimate
guarantor of the state and of the nation's security, but they get
involved in matters of governance unrelated to that mission only with
reluctance." He explains that the military does not favor a role in
public administration and policy. "Even public order is an area where
they prefer not to be drawn in," he adds. Brown says that the 2011
revolution was the first time the military institution took on a governing
role. He explains that in 1952, the Free Officers group formed the
Revolutionary Command Council to rule the country, rather than the
senior command. The SCAF stepped in as the de facto ruler of Egypt
when Mubarak was ousted, Brown says, with little precedent for such
a role. Michael Hanna, senior fellow at the New York-based Century
Foundation, also maintains that an intervention is not something the
Armed Forces would consider lightly. Hanna says the military does
not perceive it to be in its interest to be directly involved in politics.
With its autonomy preserved in the Constitution, he says, the
experience it had in power after Mubarak stepped down was

damaging for the military's image and is not something it would want
to repeat. An intervention is not something the international
community would encourage either, Hanna explains, adding that it
would be looked upon negatively and would garner no support from
the US, Europe or Turkey. Hanna also adds that an intervention
would put the military at risk of precipitating a violent confrontation
with the country's Islamists. Meanwhile, Younis argues that should
the turbulent political and economic situation continue to deteriorate,
the army's position remains unclear. "In what capacity would the
army's intervention be? How will the equation change?" he asks. He
says an intervention is not a favorable scenario for the military, not
only because of the experience it had after Mubarak was ousted, as
argued by others, but also because "there is no clear method that can
prove effective in solving Egypt's current problems." That said, most
analysts see the situation as disconcerting for the army nevertheless.
Brown says the current political situation must still be a cause for
"tremendous concern." He believes the military is "sending messages
that it does not want to be the guarantor of any particular group and
that it sees the current disorder as deeply troubling." Hanna explains
that the military is nervously keeping a close eye on the situation,
adding that its recent statements are "a warning to civilian politicians
that they're concerned and they're watching." For Younis, the areas
that concern the military in the current moment are not crystal clear,
hence making the grounds for intervention quite shaky. Hellyer
explains that if the country's stability is "seriously threatened, the
military may perceive that as impacting upon their autonomy, and

they would probably, in that situation, change their approach, one
way or the other." Hanna agrees. He explains that the Armed Forces
care about broad-based stability and securing their own interests. If
the violence becomes much more rampant, and "if the country is on
the cusp of a civil war, then the military might be forced to intervene,"
he says. Hanna, however, sees a military intervention as disastrous
for democratic politics in Egypt, and would signal the collapse of the
state. "It would prove that Egypt's experiment in the transition towards
democracy was a complete failure," he says. Brown says that claims
to the state is where differences between the military and the
presidency are unfolding. He says subtle differences between the
presidency and the military, even on symbolic matters, "could have
some importance in a crisis: Which institution - the presidency or the
military - is the ultimate guarantor of the Egyptian state?"

Analysts argue silencing of free voices detrimental to regime

2013-04-03 15:39:00.0
The regime's attempts to silence local satirist Bassem Youssef, often
described as the Egyptian Jon Stewart, landed President Mohamed
Morsy on the original Jon Stewart show, with a reach and popularity
far beyond Youssef's "El-Bernameg." Being mocked on the most
popular political satire show worldwide is one of many ways that the
recent wave of legal persecution by the regime against opposition
and media figures has arguably backfired. "What are you worried
about? You're the president of Egypt," Stewart told Morsy during a
segment of his show dedicated to defending Youssef, who faces
charges of insulting the president and insulting religion. While on the
subject of Egypt, Stewart did not pass up the opportunity to poke fun
at some of the president's offbeat statements, and at his focus on
targeting media and opposition figures instead of dealing with the
political and economic challenges that Egypt is facing "When you are
actually powerful, you don't have to be petty," Stewart advised the
president. An increasingly threatening tone characterized recent
speeches delivered by the president, coinciding with arrest warrants
and summons issued against prominent activists, opposition figures
and media personalities. The move is seen as the state's response to
the deepening crisis that Egypt is plummeting towards on many
fronts, by attempting to put the blame on the opposition and the
media as a means of distraction. But, many describe this response
essentially as self-destructive. "What we're seeing is the violence of
the weak and the oppression of the helpless. It's not an expression of

strength and confidence, it's an expression of real failure, denial and
refusal to admit that there's a true political crisis," says political
commentator Abdallah al-Sennawy. No political process has been put
in place to deal with growing divisions between the Muslim
Brotherhood presidency and the opposition with regard to reforms,
elections and the Constitution. Meanwhile, the economy continues to
plummet and an energy shortage is expected to reach unprecedented
levels throughout the summer, with no Cabinet plan deemed
satisfactory. Some of Morsy's most vocal responses to the crisis have
come in the form of bashing at the opposition and the media for
endangering the security of the nation. Morsy used his speech at a
women's conference in Cairo on 24 March to condemn the media and
the opposition, days before a series of summons and arrest warrants
were issued. "So that no one says later that this is based on political
rivalry, anyone who endangers the security of citizens has to be
punished," he said. "To criminals, inciters and conspirators, mark my
words, no one will escape punishment." In a direct threat, he added,
"If I have to take the necessary measures to protect the security of
the state I will, and I'm afraid to say that I am about to do so." Morsy
also threatened to imprison those he calls "enemies of the nation."
Saying that his threats are specifically aimed at those who incite and
pay thugs and calling the media coverage "destructive cameras,"
Morsy was clear and confident in announcing prosecutors' imminent
blow. "If they aren't careful, I'll do it very soon, very soon, sooner than
they imagine," he said. Days later, the arrest warrants were rolled
out. For the week following Morsy's fiery speech, arrest warrants

against known activists and media personalities led to heightened
local and international condemnation. The move was read by many
as a failed attempt to terrorize and silence opposition voices. In
relation to the violent clashes between Muslim Brotherhood
supporters and their opponents that took place days before around
the Brotherhood headquarters in Moqattam, the arrests of prominent
activists in addition to opposition figure Hamdy al-Fakharany was
ordered. Fakharany was released on a LE50,000 bail, which many
saw as unnecessarily high. In his speech, Morsy said what a
prosecutor would later repeat against Fakharany and other arrested
activists following the Moqattam clashes: that inciting through talk or
presence in the vicinity of violent events constitutes enough proof of
guilt. In the same week, four April 6 Youth Movement members were
arrested while protesting in front of the interior minister's house and
detained for four days. Their detention was then renewed for 15 more
days pending investigations. Additionally, prominent activist Hassan
Mostafa, accused of attacking a prosecutor while he was filing a
complaint in January, was sentenced to two years in prison on 12
March. On the media front, Youssef was then summoned on an
arrest warrant with charges of insulting religion and the president.
Carrying on his comedy routine in court, Youssef defiantly wore an
oversized hat in front of the prosecutor's office, mocking the hat that
Morsy wore when receiving his honorary PhD in philosophy from a
university in Pakistan. Jokes emerged thanking the president and the
prosecutor for the valuable free promotion that they handed to the
show. In addition to local outrage, the US State Department issued a

statement condemning his targeting, much to the chagrin of the
Brotherhood's Freedom and Justice Party, which condemned the
move as interference in the country's affairs. Following the release of
Youssef on LE15,000 bail, comedian Ali Kandeel who was featured
on his show, and the representative of the company producing the
show Tarek al-Razzaz, were also summoned for investigation.
Meanwhile, the Free Zones Investment Affairs Authority issued an
official warning Tuesday to CBC television network, which airs
Youssef's show, requesting that the comedian tone down his
language. Also Tuesday, the Egypt consultant of the Committee to
Protect Journalists, Shaimaa Aboul El Kir, and TV presenter Gaber
al-Armouty were also referred to State Security Prosecution for
endangering security. The referral to State Security Prosecution
reflects the increasing gravity of the charges brought against Armouty
and Aboul El Kir, and has been denounced by human rights
advocates as an exceptional judicial method. The use of the legal
apparatus in legitimizing the taming of freedom of expression is
reminiscent of the tactics of the Hosni Mubarak regime. "They are
trying to impose new red lines relating to the president, portraying
criticism to his person as a danger to the nation," says lawyer Emad
Mubarak, director of the Association for Freedom of Thought and
Expression. "The current regime has no tolerance of criticism or
sarcasm, and is now using the legal apparatus in its oppression." He
adds that the Brotherhood has a definition of freedom of expression
that only protects the opinions approved by the state. All moves have
pointed to increasing scrutiny of the allegiance of the Prosecutor

General Talaat Abdallah to the ruling regime. Controversially
appointed by Morsy in November by presidential decree, Abdallah
has always been accused of bias toward the Brotherhood. He also
faces a court order deeming his appointment illegitimate. "The
president's statements gave the signal to the prosecutor general, who
executed his threats the next day," says Sennawy. "Now any move
by the prosecutor general will be seen as politically motivated," says
Emad Mubarak. Mubarak adds that the fact that the prosecutor
general was quick to proceed with the cases against activists while
cases accusing Brotherhood figures of inciting the violent clashes at
the presidential palace in December remain inactive, is a strong blow
to his credibility. Clashes between Brotherhood supporters and their
opponents near the presidential palace left 10 dead and scores
injured. None of these strategies seem to be working well for Morsy
and his clique, say analysts, who believe silencing voices is an
outdated tactic that can hardly prduce positive results work after the
revolution. "This is supposed to send a message of threat to the rest
of the media to tone down their criticism of the president," says
Sennawy. "It has caused the presidency to be more isolated and has
given the president an international reputation of being against
freedoms." Some argue Morsy is working without sensible advice,
and hence the isolation alluded to by Sennawy. Complaining they
were not listened to, most of the president's advisers quit by the end
of last year. Since then, the president has been accused of listening
only to his supporters. Sekina Fouad, former presidential adviser,
says that the same problems that led most advisers to quit their posts

persist. "The arrogance, absence of sensors of public opinion and
lack of political expertise is what leads to these self-destructive
decisions," she says. "This regime has no enemies more dangerous
than itself." Mubarak agrees, saying that if mockery is what upset the
president, he only brought more of it on himself with his oppressive
response. "These charges led to more sarcasm. People are laughing
at them more. It is these practices that are truly endangering the
prestige of the president," says Mubarak.

Cinema News
Hal Badeel festival showcases 10 shorts by Egypt"s upcoming filmmakers

2013-04-03 15:27:00.0
A number of short films, ten in all, by upcoming Egyptian directors, each
made within the past two years is showing as part of Hal Badeel
(Alternative Solution) Festival for Arts in Downtown Cairo tonight. The
organizers of the festival, supported by the Townhouse Gallery, decided
that rather than show short films tagged onto other evenings, whether
before or after the performance of that evening the program includes
longer films, dance, puppets and theater that they would dedicate a whole
evening to shorts. The 10 shorts altogether amount to about 110 minutes, a
little short of two hours. Although seeing a number of films one after the
other can sometimes feel like a bit of a marathon, watching a bunch of
shorts together does offer something else. It can bring home just how many
different elements doth a good film maker. It brings home the importance
of even the most tedious elements of film such as subtitling. All the films to
be shown have high production values, but for some it is say stiff acting
that holds the film back. Also, in a few films, the subtitling is a piece of the
film; in others a smooth script in Arabic does not read well in English. In one
a young girl, talking on the phone wants to ask a friend about a boy, she
clears her throat somewhat awkwardly. In the subtitling, a note in brackets
explains that she is asking about a boy. Moments like this are disappointing.
For films that push the boundaries a little, that leave you with something,
one can be a little forgiving when a key element of the film is not quite up
to scratch. For those on the more commercial side, they just have to be
really good to leave a mark. The script must be excellent, the acting superb;
the short is not a story as such, but a depiction of a moment or a state, it
should be insightful and it has all got to be smooth. Of the ten films on
show, a few call for attention. Self-portraits of directors can be a little
tiresome and tedious, but Alia Adman’s "Catharsis" is anything but. Not
only is it beautifully shot, Ayman's script is honest and searing, challenging,
to herself as well as to the audience. Her words move between Arabic and
English, "it's bilingual," she says, "because I am." She also states the
obvious, so simply, "Why is it that I feel more comfortable on the streets of

New York than I do in my own country?" She incorporates what she learnt
as a student at the American University in Cairo about cultural imperialism
into her developing understanding of the world around her and of herself,
as the personal and political inform one another intimately and smoothly.
And lest an audience want to take Alia's piece as another indictment of
society's conservatism and oppression of women, a rallying cry to break all
inhibitions and taboos, or a condemnation of the clutches of traditional
families from which we must free ourselves, Alia stops us in our tracks.
Inhibitions are as limiting as fears and desires she says. But her concern for
her conservative family, as she crafts her words, is not inhibition. She says,
it is respect and love. Loosely based on one of the stories or dreams in
Naguib Mahfouz's "The Dreams," "Zakaraia" is a joy to watch. Emad
Maher's 14-minute black and white short is an ode to absurdity. Often
cinematic gestures fail when an actor looks too startled when something
deeply strange befalls him or when the soundtrack draws attention to the
seemingly weird; these moves can suck the absurdity out. Zakaraia does
neither of these. A man sent to the gallows as if to his wedding day, his
mother rejoicing, regretting the father's absence that he cannot share their
joy, the singing smiling tailor, the chickens. The way in which these
elements hang together uninterrupted by any moves pointing to their
strangeness, it does indeed succeed as a dream. But more than that, it
points to the absurdity not just of our dreams and imaginations, but of life,
in an existentialist sense - if the absurd, as Albert Camus famously argued,
"is born out of [the] contradiction between the human need and the
unreasonable silence of the world." Neither longer than two minutes, both
of Okasha's animations are deceptively simple. The drawing style, though
different in each one, is both sort of rough on the edges as well as being
deeply evocative. In "Catharsis," we really do have a sense we are riding the
metro, with the sounds and its jerkiness. And on top of this realistic
rendering, the sorts of objects that we do not expect to see on the metro
are smoothly thrown in. Equally clever, Okasha's "Fishing rod," drawn with
crayon and felt-tip has the simplicity of a child-like style. But this is
undercut, by a storyline that, while clear in terms of what happens, does

not lend itself to one closed reading. The 10 shorts by Ahmed Abd ElAziz,
Nor Abid, Alia Ayman, Walid Badawy, Nesrieen Elzayat, Mohamed
Fathallah, Emad Maher, Maged Nader, Okasha and Wassifi will be screened
tonight at 8pm at the Townhouse Gallery's Factory Space, Hussein al-
Ma'mar Pasha St., off Mahmoud Basiony St., downtown, Cairo.

"Enjoying poverty" in Congo

2013-03-11 14:01:00.0
"I've been watching this film for three days and I haven't been the same,"
said Moukhtar Kocache. "Walking in the streets of Cairo hasn't been the
same." The Contemporary Image Collective is currently running a series of
talks and screenings called "Battles of Images" over four evenings. Curated
by Palestinian artist Shuruq Harb, the series looks at news photography as
one of the region's biggest exports and examines "the visual culture
resulting from shifts in photojournalism towards systems of aid." The first
event was a screening of Dutch artist Renzo Martens' "Enjoy Poverty" and a
discussion between Kocache and Asuncion Molino’s Gordo. Kocache is an
arts consultant and curator who was program officer at the Ford
Foundation's Cairo office from 2004 to 2012, and Molino’s is an artist
whose work considers the politics of global agriculture and involves
incredibly precise duplications of visuals - for example, those of Egyptian
fast-food restaurants for her recent "El Madam El Mish-Masry." Martens'
sort-of-documentary also involves a kind of duplication - not just of visuals
in his case, but of the act of exploiting people in Congo. He plays a
character, Renzo, who goes to Congo to determine whether poverty is its
largest natural resource, and to encourage Congolese to take ownership of
it. The film is angry, unflinching, obnoxious, and certainly not a

comprehensive investigation into the subject. Near the beginning of the
film a World Bank representative retorts that poverty is not a natural
resource, but "a shared defeat for the international community." But as the
story develops incidents and comments build up to show how Congo's
poverty is a massive industry whose beneficiaries are not necessarily
Congo's poor. We see the malnourished children of employees of foreign-
owned plantations. An aid worker is challenged to consider why all the
plastic sheeting in a refugee camp has UNICEF logos. It's mentioned that 70
to 90 percent of some countries' aid flows back to the donor country. An
Italian AFP photographer is forced to explain somewhat ineptly why a
photograph he takes belongs to him and not the people he photographs. As
well as presenting these powerful images and revealing comments,
Martens self-consciously plays the white savior going down the dark river.
Dressed in white, he periodically preens and sings for the camera while
Congolese people carry his stuff. Kocache said afterwards that "his
physique doesn't help him - he has a sort of smart-ass look to him," but it
seems Martens positively utilizes this image - a cross between Marlon
Brando and Klaus Kinski. In this role of "enlightening" the locals he carries
round a generator and huge neon sign and erects it every now and then. It
reads, "ENJOY POVERTY" in blue with a ridiculous small "PLEASE" flashing
next to it in red. "For the audience, it needs to be English," he explains.
Martens meet some Congolese photographers who take photos of
celebrations for about US$1 profit per month. The AFP photographer, he
reckons, gets US$1000 per month taking pictures of misery - or, "let's be
more specific," he says: raped women, corpses, and malnourished children.
"They're only interested in negative stories, its supply and demand," the
photographer had said. "It's a market out there." "The Americans know
what they need," agrees one of the men that Renzo is instructing. Renzo
brings them to dying infants and dead people, encouraging them to see
these subjects aesthetically, using light on jutting ribs to capture the most
iconic, hard-hitting image. The end of what Kocache called this "act of
futility" - did the photographers end up worse off than they were before,
he wondered - the group attempts to enter a Medicines Sans Frontiers

hospital to photograph patients. We see the doctor refusing to let them in,
though he acknowledges that the international press corps are allowed
because they are "here to make news not money." Later, Renzo reads a
letter asking the UN to revoke his press access, due to his "ill-placed"
project that has "caused offence." Poverty attracts money, donors, charity;
Renzo informs the people he meets. You're not the only beneficiaries, but
you have to be endlessly grateful. If you wait to be happy until your salary
goes up you will be unhappy all your lives, because "we in Europe" don't
want cotton, palm oil, cocoa, and so on to be more expensive. One of the
powerful elements of the film was it showing the blazing anger of those
people who are stuck in a situation in which they cannot feed their children
to keep them alive. In the discussion afterwards, Molino’s suggested that
Martens is showing that people's oversimplified ideas of poverty are wrong.
Molino’s said it made her ask herself, as and image-maker, "Who are we
producing images for?" and "What images are we hiding?" She pointed out
that images of Egypt now seem to have one profile - gasmasks, teargas -
and asked if is this a distraction from the other things going on in the
political arena. She suggested we interrogate our motives; ask ourselves if
we just want to be invited to biennales (which she called a "heaven of
glamour"). Harb also said, "It becomes most hard to talk about when we
talk about it as art, the art market." Indeed, it would be easy to just critique
the film's flaws, or its form. But that would be to pretend that its basic
message - that poverty is more profitable for aiders than the aided - is
incorrect, or that if correct, it should stay in the realm of media studies.
Perhaps it would be easier to dismiss it, more easily to just be offended by
its form, if one saw it in a gallery in London, where you don't really have to
deal with poverty and representations of it every day? Kocache pointed out
that the film also comments on "the absurdity of the current art system, its
priorities, and the funding schemes for it." He suggested that the art
establishment now, unlike for example New York in the 1980s, is opposed
to art and activism, is overly concerned with personality, would prefer an
artwork to only have one function. The film exasperated some audience
members in different ways. One was angered by the portrayal of the

doctor, who, he said, is risking his life. Someone else angrily pointed out
that the idea that starting in Congo we go into the heart of darkness to find
out about ourselves is extremely problematic - even though Martens seems
to be confronting head on this tradition of Africa being used as a foil to
Europe. Another criticism put forward during the discussion, which varied
in terms of contributions from trite ("It makes me sad") to more nuanced
and sophisticated, was that there is "no outside" of the artist's vision (he is
of course also hiding certain images), which is totalizing. He creates a moral
landscape that is flat - like a package, as Harb put it. For Kocache, however,
the film helped him "stop pretending to be making a difference" and he
said that the most important thing was that "it leaves the idea of personal
responsibility hanging there." Kocache added that this is a time of
confusion, when democratic social welfare states based on enlightenment
ideas have failed all over the world, and as such is a potential moment for
reformatting power dynamics. "It's been years since I felt that so many
people are willing to kick and scream," he said - and not cares that they
won't be invited to the biennales. "Battles of Images" continues on Tuesday
at 7pm with a session on the current status of documentary imagery
produced about Egypt, and on Wednesday at 7pm with a lecture
performance by Harb titled "In response to the Palestinian Authority." All
events take place at the Contemporary Image Collective, 22 Abdel Chalk
Threat St., downtown, Cairo.

Art News
by: el masry el youm

Acclaimed performance has its Arabic premiere in Assist with little success

2013-04-03 14:51:00.0
After traveling the world when its writer could not, Nessim Soleimapour's much-translated, critically-acclaimed "White Rabbit Red Rabbit"
received its stage - and Arabic language - premiere on Saturday, as part of the second annual Downtown Contemporary Arts Festival (D-CAF).

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