Egypt | openDemocracy

“Do not fear to be eccentric in opinion, for every opinion now accepted was once eccentric.”

- Bertrand Russell

Being all things to all men

Dina El Sharnouby 23 September 2012

Naturally, people demonstrate to demand better living conditions, yet the Muslim Brotherhood has acquired the habit of showing their presence in the public space, even when they are the ruling party. And they don’t seem to want to quit.

Freedom to preach

Karim Adel 23 September 2012

To all non-Muslims, please take it easy on Islam and if you want to know about it so much - please read the Quran.

Anti-Islam film protests: a reification of public debate?

Vivienne Matthies-Boon 20 September 2012

Beyond their regrettable cost in terms of human lives, "Innocence of Muslims" and the subsequent protests that spread across the Arab world ultimately entrap the world in a binary entrenchment reminiscent of the civilizational justifications for the War on Terror.

Kate, hate, and “brutal display”

Amyn B. Sajoo 20 September 2012

The idea that any public interest is served by these choices is absurd, no matter which side of the Mediterranean one is perched.

Turning the tide on Egypt’s sinking book reading culture

Amro Ali 16 September 2012

Contrary to what media outlets reported and activists tweeted, the raid was nothing to do with Brotherhood censorship. But we must be vigilant, nevertheless.

Champions on the margins of society

Soha Farouk 16 September 2012

Away from the glare of the Paralympics spotlight, the everyday reality of people with disabilities in Egypt is not that rosy.

Hamas divided, and a political choice

Nathan Thrall 12 September 2012

The Palestinian Islamist movement is uncertain about its strategy in the wake of the Arab spring. This creates an opportunity for much-needed progress in the region, says Nathan Thrall.

Plus ça change: Egypt

Refaat Mohamed 9 September 2012

The way they have reacted on several issues gives the impression that what they are working to achieve is a pre-revolution Egypt, except with Mubarak’s NDP replaced with a new Islamic NDP.

A new bearded face to the Egyptian police?

Dina El Sharnouby 9 September 2012

On Wednesday, September 5, the request some police officers lodged to be allowed to grow a beard, was rejected.

The IMF loan to Egypt, and why we reject it

Karim Malak 8 September 2012

The proposed $4.8bn IMF loan to Egypt sparked a heated controversy. While the Government claims the funds are absolutely necessary to rebuild the country's economy, opponents warn against potentially disastrous, far-reaching consequences. Their arguments are summarised here.

The failure of democracy under Islamism

Samir Yousif 7 September 2012

The fall of autocratic regimes in the Arab world have led to the inevitable rise to power of Islamist groups who have had no real competition. These groups however are ill-equipped to tackle the economic, social and political problems that these countries face today.

Pussy Riot: Russia’s unwitting gift to the women of the Arab Spring

Hasnet Lais 5 September 2012

What if a feminist post-punk collective's action in Moscow could influence the cause of women everywhere, starting with protesters in Arab countries?

Egypt and Iran: it’s complicated

Amro Ali 2 September 2012

For years, Egypt has been frustrated at being sidelined in the regional order. If Iran was surprised at Morsi’s bold statements at the summit, then so were the US and Israel.

Egypt: a new dawn and a lesson for the west

Tim Parsons 30 August 2012

The downfall of Mubarak and the rise of the Muslim Brotherhood might be a sign of democracy finally coming to Egypt, but above all it shows how tragically the west has failed to grasp what is going on in the Middle East.

Is it possible to dissolve the Muslim Brotherhood?

Dina El Sharnouby 26 August 2012

Though you might quarrel with the Muslim Brotherhood and its political arm the FJP, how will dissolving them “protect” the “rest” of the population?

This week's editor

Heather McRobie is a regular contributor to 50.50

Europe from the bottom up

European Union stars in Paris. Flickr/notarim. Some rights reserved.

A new Europe can only come from the bottom up
Etienne Balibar

A social Europe must be a political Europe
Bo Stråth

As Europe is provincialized: a reply to Etienne Balibar
Sandro Mezzadra

European debate

A republican call for a basic income
Daniel Raventos and Julie Wark

Nuclear non-proliferation

Women and the Arab Spring

oDRussia at journalismfestival .com

Mali - the plot thickens

Remote control war

Stay Informed

Sign-up for a free weekly email

Advertising notice

Our Authors

Lis Howell On broadcasting

Dan Hancox Revel, Riot and Rebellion

Martin Rose Bliss Was It in that Dawn to Be Next Door

Vron Ware Up in Arms

Jim Gabour Sunday Comics

James Warner Standing Perpendicular, as books do

Markha Valenta Inter Alia: religion, politics, culture

Paul Rogers on Global security

Mary Kaldor on Human security

openDemocracy Ltd, The Print House, 18 Ashwin Street, London, E8 3DL. Tel: +44 (0) 207 193 0676

openDemocracy

Welcome to openDemocracy! We are a digital commons, publishing high quality news analysis, debates and blogs about the world and the way we govern ourselves. More...

Italian triple whammy

Best of the rest:

Arab Awakening | Can Europe Make it? | Drug and Criminal Justice Policy Forum | OurBeeb

OurKingdom

About us
OurKingdom works to investigate and illuminate the crisis of democracy in Britain and analyse how its failings can be redressed.

We encourage original debate untrammelled by party political loyalties.

We ask how we as citizens can secure liberty, human rights, self-government and real democracy. ...more on OurKingdom

Pick of the debates: Democratic Wealth: building a citizens' economy, edited by Stuart White, uses republican theory to explore ideas around how to democratise the economy. Co-hosted with Politics in Spires, a blog sponsored by the universities of Oxford and Cambridge.

oD Russia

50.50

Recent articles on 50.50

50.50 Dialogues

About 50.50
50.50 is openDemocracy's section dedicated to exploring issues of gender equality and social justice at the global level.

We are committed to promoting human rights and inclusive democracy through dialogue and debate. But a global debate without the female half of humanity is neither global nor democratic. With this in mind, 50.50 publishes women's analysis, insight and views on current affairs.

Can Europe Make It?

Spread the word

Spread the word is a brand new section of openDemocracy's not-for-profit web platform.

This space is for other not-for-profit organisations of all kinds to publicise your activities and spread the exchange of ideas.

You will be able to link to all your publications, and events anywhere in the world. You will have your own openDemocracy page and all new announcements will be ticker-taped to our front page.

This organisation subscription is available for a modest annual fee, dependent on the size of your organisation.

Please contact Jonathan Bowles at supporters@opendemocracy.net if you are interested in joining.

If you're interested in developing editorial projects on openDemocracy, please see our Editorial partnerships page

We are grateful to the following organisations for their support in developing this initiative:

Norwegian Peacebuilding Resource Centre

Rockefeller Brothers Fund

openSecurity

openEconomy

Arab Awakening

In the months following the start of the Arab Revolutions, articles and analysis poured into openDemocracy from contributors across the Middle East and Europe. Gradually, the impact of Tahrir Square began to extend well beyond the Middle East as democratic inspiration travelled from east to west. Arab Awakening tries to capture that inspiration and use it to help us read a rapidly changing world.

"As students of politics is it is vital to study the power of imagination." -Professor Charles Tripp, SOAS

Debates