Egypt 2013: The people are pining for Mubarak

Egypt 2013: The people pining for Mubarak

 

Egypt’s story of the last three years is one of a tiny baby becoming a petulant toddler. It is now at a climatic point– will it enter its bildungsroman, its arduous but worthwhile journey on the way to maturity and greatness; or is it about to enter the dark years of adolescence and finish up in the gutter?

            Remember the optimism? Remember the unbridled, unquashable joy of eighty-million souls when their oppressive, half-a-century dictator had finally been toppled, as if somehow analogizing the situation to knocking down a statue would make everything alright? But we’re too cynical in the West. For the first time, the Arab Spring represented the world’s most turbulent region coming together – not in extremism or oil production but in what seemed to be a force for good. What a let-down. Twice the country has been placed under martial law. Where Mubarak lasted for 30 years, Morsi couldn’t even manage one. Perhaps Dan Mazer’s comedy ‘I Give it A Year’, released in 2013, would have been more apt in predicting the fortunes of future leaders in Egypt.

But why has the Egyptian dream gone so wrong? What should be made of this corruptible form of democracy that seems to be the new norm in this ancient and beautiful country? These are questions which the world is now struggling to comprehend. Rightly so, because there is no simple answer. The country is a complete mess; it threatens to dissolve into War-of-the-Roses-esque chaos as factions of even the same Islamic faith, political, extremist and conventional, fight for the right to be…elected?

Perhaps there is an alternative, radical solution. One which would permanently bring about a future of power, peace and prosperity. The Egyptians are crying out for a leader, to silence the ubiquitous voices of discontent. Someone like Hosni Mubarak. It may prima facie appear to be the last thing Egypt and its people want to return to; decades of poverty, nepotism and human rights abuses. But absolute power doesn’t always have to be that way. The 17^th century philosopher Thomas Hobbes, himself seeking for his deeply divided England a better future, argued that a social contract was necessary between the state and the people; protection of rights, economic support and the ability to thrive – in exchange for absolute submission to the leader’s authority. One who is able to grow and develop the country, to change its trajectory forever. Would this really be such a terrible step to return to? What would Egyptians truly prefer, under the surface of their rightful protests; the majestic serenity and prosperity of a ‘nice’ Mubarak; or five Mohammed Morsis dragging the economy a little further down an inevitable hill, their brief reigns juxtaposed by military interregnum which rolls Egypt’s outlook into the valley below? The crowds filling Tahrir Square and every corner of this once-great nation have been praised, eulogized and criticized in equal measure; for their noble sacrifices in the name of democracy and their incompetence in upholding it. Yet the unspoken elephant in the room, the toy that has been thrown out of the pram in haste, is that complete power may be the only way to unite Egypt. The greatest ancient power of them all can become great again. The questions for Egypt are now thus: is it willing to sacrifice individual power and freedom for the greater good? And will another Mubarak have the bravery to seize power, the brutality to enforce it, and the dignity to use it wisely?

Thucydides - out.
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