I går var jeg på Cuba, jeg bare nevner det:P

Catching up with Emadh

Months have gone since I last saw the first Egyptian that I ever had an extended conversation with. I have been prevented from seeing him partly because we always miss each other’s calls and partly because life has been busy, at least for me. Emadh has not been so busy. He lost his job at the bakery during the revolution, and the tourists, his main income source, have been gone for quite a while now. For two months he has been hanging out in Tahrir square, protesting and engaging in the activities there. Although one might think that all the people in Tahrir have high hopes for a better future Emadh has turned very pessimistic. He always had a pessimistic way of seeing things, but his mood now was more depressing than ever.

At the same time Tahrir and the movement there has changed his world view. I believe he is still profoundly religious. Still he seems to be pro secular government, and thinks that the strong religiousness in Egypt poses big challenges for the country. His mind was opened now, he said. He felt freer, but believed that he somehow had exchanged his economic “freedom” for a newfound political freedom. He had no belief in a rapid transition to democracy, and also thought that the scheduled elections will be postponed several times, maybe even never held. He had a profound mistrust in the current military government, and said that that the few people of the old regime that has been detained is a mere tip of a bigger iceberg that will stay put at the center of Egyptian politics. The economic downturn and absence of tourists that has followed the riots seems everlasting too Emadh. He has little hopes for a rapid recovery.

I would have suspected Emadh of being more taken up in his own grievances, but his concern seemed more to be about the future of his country. I found that his newfound political preferences are left-leaning (in a socio economic sense) rather than religious conservative. He told me that he identified strongly with the leftist/nasserist Hamdeen Sabahi, the founder of the Karama (dignity) party.

Emadhs (negative) thoughts reflect the more suspicious analyses by critical commentators on the changes in Egypt. (See for example Ellis Goldberg, professor of mine: http://www.foreignaffairs.com/articles/67416/ellis-goldberg/mubarakism-without-mubarak ). His suspicion of the military is also relieving. Seeing the collective embrace of the people in uniform has been disturbing to many of the foreign observers here. There has been a filling of the power vacuum by the generals. At the same time seeing crowds cheering at the sight of military helicopters and tanks has caused many to worry. I hope, and I think Emadh hopes too, that he is wrong in his negativism. I think the very observance by Emadh and other Egyptians that there is reason to worry about the army’s tightened grip on things, is a positive sign and that as long as the people will continue to check power by turning to the streets, they will have a say in their country’s future.

When it comes down to it, the future of Egypt will depend on the will and action of the people. That the crowds on the streets can no longer be ignored is a remarkable change in itself, but only if the people use their newly achieved space for assembly and expression will Emadhs negativism be proven wrong.

Lars

Cairo

Spring Break, Cars and Beauty of Beirut

Written on Apr 16th

So what to do? I realized that the cord from my computer charger to the wire extension from the power outlet had tangled around my foot, and that this was what caused me to trip over. In frustration over the internet connection not working properly, not being able to send the overdue application that I had spent far too much time on, I had too quickly and with a clumsy movement raised up from the table. I now found myself lying on the floor on the terrace of this Italian restaurant, having partly wet pants because of the fancy fountain flowing over on the floor right next to me. I was alone on the terrace, as Ragna and Simon had left an hour earlier to let me work on my application. The inside of the restaurant was filling up though, and I could feel eyes glaring at me through the large windows. “Are you alright?” As expected the waitress had come out to check on me. She unplugged the charger cable tangled around my foot. “Mumkin al Hasaab?”

I figured Beirut could only get better from then on. Short on sleep, after a disastrous week of late homework turnins, class skippings and not showing up for mid-terms, I could not be more ready for a few days of indulging in the pleassures of modern city life. After leaving the Italian place in a hurry, I found a Costa Coffee in Hamra street, and sent my intern-application after (again!) some hassle with their wireless connection. Time to party, finally.

The bars in Beirut have females in them. Also enjoyable liquor and music. Good service too. I didn’t miss Cairo.

Downtown Beirut. Really something. Today we went around in its posh side alleys, discussing politics and gender equality, business opportunities and fantasizing about our features.

There is a fancy car for every purpose in Downtown Beirut. The upper middle classes cruise around in huge BMW X6s and Audi Q8s. The even richer ones have Corvettes and Ferraris. I knew that there was money in Lebanon, but really? The police drive some pretty mean looking Chevys, and the army has specialized Gelenderwagens with mounted machine guns. Then there are the VIPs. GMCs with dark windows, driving around in columns.

And the women. A hot babe, climbing her Harley Davidson. Tight leather west, Ray Bans and a hands free microphone. Probably aware but still naturally ignorant of the attention she was getting, she roared out of sight down the Beirut avenue. I say no more.

Tomorrow, or maybe the day after, we’ll go to Shatilla refugee camp. Insh Allah we’ll see contrasts. Maybe if we’re lucky, we’ll have time for a glimpse of Hezbollah too before we leave this place.

Lars, Beirut

I morgen drar jeg til Cuba. Jeg bare nevner det.

Hilde.