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Egypt: Can Egypt Blend Democracy and Islam? 8/1/07
Key Lecture Points:
• Egypt has since the 1970s, under President Anwar Sadat and Hosni Mubarak, been moving cautiously toward democratic politics. As an ally and critical partner on Middle Eastern issues, the US would very much like to see Egypt establish a functioning democratic system.
• Since ancient times Egypt has been ruled centrally without democratic participation, and after the reign of the Pharaohs ended, rule was mostly foreign. Egypt was conquered and ruled by the Greeks, Romans, Persians, Byzantines, Muslim Caliphs, Ottomans, French, Mameluks, and finally the British. Thus for many centuries Islam was an imperial religion, practiced by Egypt’s conquerors (Persians, Muslim Caliphs, Byzantines, Mameluks, Ottomans).
• British rule formally ended after WWI, but the empire continued to exert substantial control over Egyptian politics and economics until 1952. Islamic groups, beginning in the late 19th century, became one of the strongest anti-imperial, pro-independence forces in Egypt—the role of Islam in politics was thus transformed.
• In 1922, following formal independence from the British, a parliamentary system was introduced which in theory would have had the King share power with the legislature. Islamic groups, like the Muslim Brotherhood and the more liberal Wafd Party, strongly supported this democratic turn. It was the King and also the British that quashed democratic practice in this early period, for example suspending the legislature over ten different times.
• In 1952, the Free Officers Movement, led by General Gamal Abdul Nasser, overthrew the King in a coup, ending the era of British control. Nasser, fearing for his own power in the face of now-radicalized groups like the Muslim Brotherhood, actively purged the opposition from Egypt and routinely violated civil liberties. Such undemocratic practices undermined Egypt’s new ‘republican’ constitution.
• After Nasser died of a heart attack in 1970, Anwar Sadat came to power. By the mid-1970s, Sadat had made great strides in politically opening Egyptian society, calling for respect of civil liberties and popular participation in politics. However, as Egypt was thrown into turmoil in the late 1970s, due to Sadat’s outreach to Israel, he, like Nasser, began to clamp down on opposition groups. Sadat was assassinated by a member of Egyptian Islamic Jihad in 1981.
• Hosni Mubarak came to power in 1981 and remains Egypt’s President today. While some suggest that Mubarak is making great strides in democratically reforming the country’s politics, others suggest that he is actively excluding other groups from political participation. A 2005 Presidential hopeful, Ayman Nour, has been imprisoned on what most think are politically motivated charges. Further, the Muslim Brotherhood (MB) is one of the most popular political groups in Egypt and would likely have a shot at winning the Presidency—the MB already holds 88 seats in parliament. However, some regard the MB as a terrorist organization, supporting Mubarak’s decision to ban them from political participation.
Exploration Questions:
• How does the history of outside rule and influence over Egypt influence the story of Egypt today?
• What steps (if any) can the US take to help Mubarak promote democracy without legitimizing the rise of radical Islam in Egypt?
Reflective Question:
• Have you ever traveled to Egypt? If so, what do you recall about the experience?
For More Information:
• BBC Country Profile, Egypt: http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/middle_east/country_profiles/737642.stm
• Egypt’s new constitutional amendments: http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/6481909.stm
Books For Further Reading:
• Marsot, Al-Sayyid and Lufti, Afaf. A History of Egypt: From the Arab Conquest to the Present. Cambridge University Press, 2007. 196 pages.
Description: Marsot and Lufti explore the paradoxes of Egypt's history. Charting the years from the Arab conquest, through the age of the Mamluks, Egypt's incorporation into the Ottoman Empire, the liberal experiment in constitutional government in the early twentieth century, followed by the Nasser and Sadat years, the new edition takes the story up to the present day.
Click here to order.
• Ibrahim, Saad Eddin. Egypt, Islam and Democracy: Critical Essays. American University in Cairo Press, 2002. 278 pages.
Description: These essays by one of Egypt's most influential intellectuals provide a fascinating perspective on the political, religious, economic, and social issues of contemporary Egypt. A number of essays address different aspects of Islamic activism in Egypt: the formation, membership, and activities of activist groups and their philosophies, political and social roles, and ideological relations with the West.
Click here to order.
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