Saudi Gazette Egyptians are supposed to be preoccupied with elections, but instead they are crying their hearts out. What happened? Why does it appear that Egypt, with its ancient history and considerable experience, cannot manage its own affairs? What Egypt is going through now is a natural and logical conclusion of the ramifications and repercussions of what took place subsequent to the collapse of the oppressive regime which had been in power for 30 years. Anyone who benefited from — and had links with— the former regime will, sooner or later, come out to defend not only their threatened interests, but also their own survival. I remember having told Dr. Abdul Aziz Hejzai — then prime minister of Egypt — in 2005, when the results of presidential elections were rigged, that “The problem of this regime is that those in power know they have only two options: cling to power or go to jail”. This is the only logical explanation as to why the regime fiercely defended the dynastic system, despite insinuations by some senior officials that the heir did not have what it took to be president. Dr. Ali Adeen Hilal, media secretary of the dissolved ruling party, told me when I visited him at the party's headquarters in Cairo that “The only way the son can become president is if special arrangements are made before his father's death”. Eight months after the fall of Mubarak's regime the struggle for power has moved to the streets. It seems predestined that each group has chosen its own place to stay. The revolutionaries are stationed at Tahrir Square while the supporters of the former regime are stationed at Mustafa Mahmoud Square in Al-Muhandiseen. The advocates of “stability” or the team of “We're sorry Mr. President”, on the other hand, are stationed at Roxie Square, whereas the Copts are in front of the Egyptian TV building at Maspero. This indicates that the protesters have acknowledged that the revolution is not yet over. It also indicates that the state organs have decided to remain “neutral” and leave the rival groups to go on fighting until they die or become exhausted and desperate. As soon as the trial of the former president began, new confrontational lines cropped up between the group whose members wear white shirts with the slogan “We love you, Mr. President” and the common people whose sons died as martyrs during the January 25th events. Security forces remain neutral, unsure of which side to take or what to do. The confrontation between those who oppose the revolution — the group who has the money and some degree of power as well as motives to even kill at the expense of the country's interests — and the revolutionaries who splintered into groups was the catalyst of the Sunday protests that led to the massacre of the Coptic protesters at Maspero. The disastrous impasse puts the security and stability of the oldest democracy in the world in peril and the country's unity at stake. The first thing that should be done to protect Egypt and the gains of the revolution is to break the impasse between the revolutionaries who want change and the counter-revolutiontionaries who are unwittingly killing the dreams and hopes of all Egyptians. The Maspero massacre might be a good opportunity to get the revolution back on the right track with the supporters of the revolution in the lead. It is not a time to grieve; it is a time to rescue Egypt. __
