Rabaa massacre in Ramadan

IN the holy month of Ramadan, just before sehri, anti-Morsi activists attacked pro-democracy sit-in protesters. They cast fear into the heart of the Arab world's cultural capital with a bloody, clear message: "Power lies in the gun, not in the ballot box."
The Egyptian army and police allegedly killed more than 140 supporters of deposed Egyptian President Mohamed Morsi on Friday and early Saturday. Most of the casualties (70 deaths according to medical sources) occurred in Nasr City where Morsi's supporters have maintained a mass vigil since the military coup on July 3. The Saturday shootings started before dawn when Muslims were preparing for the morning prayer. According to reports, the police first fired tear gas shells covering the entire area with thick smoke before the army started shooting that went on for many hours. At least 4,500 people have been injured.
If this is what independence means then why not go back to the days of imperialism and European colonialism? At least the imperialists ruled by the imperial law. The Arab world in the post-colonial era seems to be unable to understand the importance of respecting laws that safeguard human rights and freedoms of individuals. The list of countries in this category runs beyond the Middle East and into North Africa, Asia Pacific, South and Central Asia. In many former colonies army generals wield significant power and influence in the state. The international community has also frequently backed the junta to keep stability in a country, when needed. At other times, army generals were necessary to squash the rise of Soviet-backed communists overthrowing western-friendly governments.
Egypt enjoys a unique position in history having embraced all the political cliques in the last 6 decades. It was an Ottoman province, a British ally, a US ally, which switched to the Soviet camp, only to come back to the US camp and, finally, thanks to Sadat it became a US-Israeli tool for regional Israeli domination.
Complex as it is, politics in the Arab world is dominating headlines globally. The current world ruling system faces its most potent challenge from the deserts of the Arabic speaking world more than anywhere else. The world order can't trust itself to have won over the emotions, sympathies and loyalties of the world's most volatile region. Western political systems are usually ridiculed as the butt of Arab jokes on the Arab street. This may also be because talking about Arab domestic policies can be less humorous with secret police spying in public places.
Middle Eastern political parties should have realised by now that they can't expect to assume power through the democratic process unless they are staunchly allied to the interest of the army. It is perfectly alright to have leaders like Gaddafi, whose weirdness is enough to ridicule Arabs and Muslims in general. They were the "pin up" characters who made western intervention look normal as well as necessary.
Muslim Brotherhood was always feared by the Arab monarchs. The rise of the Brotherhood as a democratically elected political party became more of an issue for the monarchs than for Israelis. A conspiracy was hatched to save the monarchs and the world order from Muslim Brotherhood's serious threat of rising popularity, says Azzam Tamimi of the Islamic Political Thought. He says billions of dollars were spent by the monarchs for the overthrow of Morsi.
Democracy will not work in the Middle East, not because democracy does not work, nor because Arabs can't appreciate democracy. Rather, it is because the region is not in need of democracy at the moment. The region has been at war since the occupation of Palestinian lands began in 1948. Unless something can be done about ending illegal occupation peace talks will be a wasted effort. I wish there was a sincere army general who would rise up and say: "Both sides stop your madness. Let's hold a referendum."
Sisi has accused his old boss Morsi of spying for Hamas. An allegation that seems at first sight to be hummus cooked in the kitchens of Tel Aviv. Accusation against an elected Brotherhood leader of spying for a Palestinian party is yet another important message for ambitious Egyptian politicians. Israel is a friend, Palestine is a problem and Hamas is a threat. This is the unwritten equation which seeks more recognition than before.
Sisi's 48 hour ultimatum to the Brotherhood to leave Morsi and join him was a near declaration of civil war. Meanwhile, delivery of F-16 fighter jets was suspended by the US, exposing the international pressure piling up. A perfect move from Tel Aviv, some say, to achieve its strategic objective as both Egypt and Syria look likely to face civil war.
The military seems to have no intention of leaving power. General Abdel Fattah al-Sisi may discard the civilian puppets and assume direct powers soon. This is how militaries in almost all third world societies operate. In the process, they may end up radicalising many more youths compared to the last 3 decades.
Bloodshed of innocent people will not go in vain. The movement for truth and justice has not ended. In fact, it has just started. Those who are assisting evil will soon regret what they have committed.

The writer is a Director, Financial Excellence Limited.
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