Egypt - A Year Later

Today marks the first anniversary of the "Arab Spring" uprising in Tahrir Square in Cairo. You will remember images of young people marching for democracy. Pressure was applied upon President Mubarak to step down and to turn the reigns of Egyptian government over to the people. Let's see what has happened over the course of this past year?

President Mubarak was forced to resign and went into exile at his home near Sharm-el-Shiek, along the Red Sea. His cancer became worse and eventually he and his sons were arrested. Presently they stand trial for crimes against the government. Mubarak is in such a weakened condition that he attends the court proceedings lying upon a cot. Of course the crowds roar for their execution. Let's see - is this democracy at work? Rather reminds me of the actions of the people during the French Revolution: heads must roll.

So, when Mubarak stepped down, did the people get a voice? No! The Egyptian military, which has controlled Egypt since the days of General Nassar, remained in power. This Council is now known as the SCAF (Supreme Council of the Armed Forces). Often they brutalized the people. A year later, General Tantawi and the SCAF still hold the reigns of power in Egypt.

But, you will ask, what about the elections that the Egyptians have just completed? Yes, what about those elections? The big winners were the religious Islamists. When the new Egyptian parliament convened earlier this week, 72% of the seats were held by either members of the Muslim Brotherhood or the Salafist parties (360 out of 498 seats). And, according to reports published on January 10 in the newspaper "El-Badil" election fraud was very high. According to that paper, only 40 million Egyptians were eligible to vote, yet over 52 million votes were cast. Some people voted at least 32 times. (Sort of reminds me of the quote we heard while living in Chicago in the early 1980's - "Vote early and vote often.") Now there are calls to annul the elections and to conduct them once again.

It is very interesting, of course, that the winning Islamists were excited about the outcome of the elections. In fact, one of the leaders of the Salafi party - Tal'at Zahran, said unapologetically that it was their Islamic duty to be dishonest - "It is our duty to forge elections; God will reward us for this."

Of course now come speculations about the type of government Egypt will have. Will those members of the Parliament, now in the majority, be able to swing Egypt into the Sharia Law camp? What will be the response of the military leadership? Will generals step down and relinquish control to the "people?" These are some very interesting questions.

We know that members of the Muslim Brotherhood have been meeting with General Tantawi . Although no definitive results have been published, speculation abounds that a deal has been struck that will allow the Muslim Brotherhood to push a certain portion of their agenda, but at the same time have the SCAF in control of the government. According to Daniel Pipes in an article titled, "Don't Ignore Electoral Fraud in Egypt," General Tantawi will continue to hold the reigns of power; the generals desired an Islamic victory. He closed his article with this statement: "We are witnessing not an ideological revolution but a military officer corps staying dominant to enjoy the sweet fruits of tyranny."

What do I believe is going to happen in Egypt? Let me relate two things near term and one far term. First the near term events. I believe that the days of relative freedom of expression for Egyptian women is nearing an end. Egyptian women have benefited from a secular Islamic control. They could dress how they pleased. They could become educated and express themselves. I believe that will soon change. The hagib will soon be the garb for all women. Secondly, I believe that persecution of Egyptian Jews and Christians will increase. I see the day coming when Christians will be rare in Egypt. How we need to pray for those believers that God will prepare them for what is to come.

Now for the long term. In Isaiah 19, the prophet tells us that a day will come when Egypt will be united with both Israel and Iraq (the ancient nation of Assyria) and will come to worship the living God in Jerusalem. One can only imagine what that will be like. But, God said it and I will believe that it will happen. God is not finished with the Egyptian people just yet. God still has a role for them to play in the great symphony that will crescendo when the King arrives. What a day that will be! The orchestra is tuning up...it is not long until the concert will begin!