Sunday, January 27, 2013

Now, Morsi's the Target



by Boaz Bismuth


It's reasonable to assume that had the Cairo court president consulted not with his fellow judges but with the judges on the field — soccer referees — he would have ruled differently and would not handed down death sentences to 21 soccer fans involved in the bloody riots during the match between Port Said club Al-Masri and Egyptian club Al-Ahly on Feb. 1, 2012. Seventy-four people died in the game, in the Egyptian port city — a true massacre.

It would not have been completely foolish for the authorities to postpone the sentencing, instead of handing down a ruling in a trial that for two months took place behind closed doors (another factor behind the people's rage), especially in light of the prevailing tension in the country as it marks two years since the revolution that overthrew then President Hosni Mubarak. 

A referee would have perhaps reminded the court president just how much power the soccer fanatics ("Ultras") have in Egypt, especially those from the two teams involved in the riots. We must remember that this was the biggest tragedy in Egyptian soccer history. The fans were also deemed responsible for the outcome, not just the security forces and the governing authorities (then the Supreme Council of the Armed Forces) that were shockingly ineffectual at controlling the incident.

The judge should have remembered that during the riots in Tahrir Square that led to Mubarak's downfall, the Ultras also played an important role, specifically Al-Ahly supporters. The judge must have witnessed the significant influence they wielded in the square. Yet it wasn't only the judge who should have been aware of this, President Mohammed Morsi should have known as well. 

It's rather ironic that the new regime sought to show the Egyptian people that the rule of law triumphs all else, and that it wasn't afraid to convict security personnel or a gang of rioters. The severe sentence — death penalties for 21 people involved in the mayhem — in essence only intensified the already volatile situation. Not only was the timing problematic, but so too were the punishments. 

Soccer fans are being sent to the gallows, while the sentencing of nine members of the security forces has been postponed until a later date.

Egypt, two years after Mubarak's fall, is an extremely fragile and unstable place. The country is on the verge of political, social and mainly economic chaos. The Muslim Brotherhood may have conquered the government almost naturally, but it didn't conquer the streets with quite as much ease. The liberal opposition that toppled the Mubarak regime isn't ready to rule, but it is very experienced when it comes to protests — on its resume, it has even a deposed dictatorship. The Brotherhood is also expected to win the scheduled parliamentary elections, if they are ever held, in April, although it's unclear what price it will pay. 

This isn't what the Brotherhood had in mind when it dismissed the Supreme Council of the Armed Forces from power and decided, like a mature adult, to run the country on its own. The Muslim Brotherhood had waited for its moment since 1928, but lost patience. It wanted everything (the presidency, a majority in parliament, a new constitution), and quickly. The military forgave Morsi for the power grab. In return, however, it requested stability for the sake of its economic interests. 

Those sentenced to death this weekend can appeal, of course. In Egypt a death sentence isn't final until it receives a stamp of approval from the Grand Mufti of Egypt, Ali Gomaa, who is the country's highest religious authority. Such approval is usually a mere formality. It could very well be that this time the Brotherhood will ask the mufti, who isn't a big supporter of fanatics, to intervene. 

Gomaa is against violence and bloodshed. He only supports violence, in his words, when it comes in the form of suicide bombings against Israel — because "Palestine is a special case."

Gomaa needs to understand that Egypt today is several times more violent than "Palestine."


Boaz Bismuth

Source: http://www.israelhayom.com/site/newsletter_opinion.php?id=3326

Copyright - Original materials copyright (c) by the authors.

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