The president attempted to pass a bill that would give him absolute power. Feel free to expand on what happened this week and/or the events leading up to the week. What was the response of the public? What are they asking for? What is the president's plan for that country?
On November 22, 2012 Egyptian President Mohamed Morsi (the fifth and current President of Egypt, having assumed office on 30 June 2012)signed a constitutional declaration granting himself absolute power (1). He also declared himself as the new Egyptian pharaoh.This has created many issues for the protesters in Cairo, who want a change in Egypt's ruling regime, as well as the Muslim brotherhood, which supports Mohamed Morsi. These protesters don't believe Morsi should be able to grant himself absolute power, and they're protesting against a referendum, which Morsi said they would be having on December 15th.
ReplyDeleteThe referendum over a disputed draft constitution has polarized Egypt and sparked some of the bloodiest clashes between Morsi supporters and opponents since he came to power in June (2). These two difference sides have different beliefs, and want different things for their country. It is a difficult situation for both sides, as well as the president because one side supports him and the other side doesn't. As a result of this, hundreds f thousands of protesters were sent into the streets. This brought about protests by Morsi supporters and created multiple street battles that left six people dead and hundreds wounded. Several offices of the Muslim Brotherhood have been burnt down and damaged by protesters that were able to get to the government buildings before they were physically stopped.
(1)http://m.youtube.com/watch?v=wHWYDd2LX44
(2)http://m.denverpost.com/denverpost/pm_119194/contentdetail.htm?contentguid=53ri7EDg
As a note, I believe it's one hundred percent acceptable for him to attempt complete control.
DeleteNot as an instance of his selfishness and self-preservation, but rather as a catalyst of such a decision. When you think about it, the country (undeniably) is completely unstable. Time states:
"Early on Friday, Jan. 28, as Cairo plummeted into chaos, I saw a tank at the headquarters of Egypt's ruling party." [1]
A tank at their equivalent of Ottawa's parliament? Chaos indeed. His attempt, whether or not it was selfish, to become dictator, can be seen as a good thing, for had it succeeded, the country would have had some stability. revolutions are bloody and deadly, and many of the modern world condemn them as fruitless.
His attempt at gaining dictatorship was called for, and justifiable, for it had beneficial ramifications.
As a super-side note, I find Mr. Forsyth likes it more when you add a bias or moral to your posts, Malik. Just a tip.
1: http://www.time.com/time/world/article/0,8599,2045017,00.html
I don't believe that it's one hundred percent acceptable for him to attempt complete control. However, I do agree Egypt is completely unstable. But, do I believe attempting to gain complete control would fix this on-going problem? No. I believe attempting to gain complete control actually made Egypt even more unstable.
DeleteYou cannot have a dictatorship where a big proportion of a population doesn't want it. We are talking about two different groups that don't share the same religious beliefs. This already creates conflict between the two, and you know what's worse about it? Morsi the president, is apart of one side, which is the Muslim Brotherhood. I believe it is unfair because, him being the president gives him so much more power, which he is attempting to use against others in Egypt.
He is obviously not succeeding for a reason. Yes, there are pros of a dictatorship, but there are also cons, which I believe outweigh the pros. Like Forsyth said, we create new technologies but don't know the affects that they have. If Morsi was successful in gaining complete control, it would be a good thing right? Maybe, but for how long? It would have an affect on the people who didn't want it, I can guarantee not everyone will. I think we would see a lot worse than we are today with the protests in Cairo. Maybe people would decide to overthrow the government, like we have seen in the past. For every action there's a reaction.
Thanks for the tip.
In my opinion, the people of Egypt have every right to feel suppressed and outraged by this event. Being governed by an absolute monarchy seems to be moving politically backwards and in doing so, it infringes on the democratic rights of the people. I personally hope that this bill is not passed, we have already seen countless deaths in Egypt and the surrounding countries over political disputes. However, to cause a divide within the people of one's own country when at times like this the focus should be on presenting a united front, will only prove to be detrimental to Egypt's prosperity in the future.
ReplyDeleteThis is post #2 of 4. It will be regarding the Egyptian president. Now, when I first heard that he had tried to pass a bill to give him extreme power, I thought of communism and war erupting. I automatically assumed that the President was some power-hungry fool, like a lot of other political leaders have turned out to be. His general had more power than he did so he felt he had to put him in his place. I don’t think giving anyone absolute power is a good idea, but I can see his reason for trying. If I lived in Egypt I’d be in with all the other protesters that don’t want to be oppressed again.
ReplyDeletehttp://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-middle-east-18779934