Monday, February 14, 2011

I woke up, wishing I was in Egypt



Egypt's Vice President Omar Suleiman announced on February 11, 2011 that Hosni Mubarak has officially stepped down as president and that the Egyptian Military will take over temporarily until the next elections in September.
I want everyone to realize something realize the beauty of this revolution. It is because the youth of Egypt took a stand for what they believe in! These are people who are my age, your age, parents, sisters, brothers, aunts uncles, cousins.. They all came together to change Egypt to make a better Egypt. This means that every single one of us can make a difference and that's what its about.. its about our generation making a difference in the world. Don't ever let anyone tell you you can't change the world because believe me, you can. Don't ever stop dreaming because dreams do come true!


The Beauty that is Egypt
As a child, I noticed every part of Egypt. You don't have to be a genius to realize the beauty that is Egypt
I remember pointing out the Pyramids and think that there is no greater beauty in the world
I would think of the History of Egypt and think if I ever have a daughter, her name would be Cleopatra
I would go to the Pharaonic Village millions of times and still be fascinated by history every single time 
I went to Luxor and Aswan and decided, I want to be a tour guide to let everyone know what history is about
I was so young, and so clueless, yet I was fully aware of the beauty that is Egypt
I was aware of the history and the culture that made Egypt what it is and I loved Egypt because of it
I remember the heart of the Egyptian people
I have never in my life met a group of people who were so willing to pay for my meal
So willing to literally give me their last drop of water 
I have never met anyone who will continue to smile even though their day was not worth smiling about
I will never forget looking at the Nile and thinking there is no greater moment than this
I have never felt so secure in my life than this very moment
I remember visiting Alexandria and carving my name on the shore of the Mediterranean 
I would drive by the Baron castle and stare at it in amazement even though I live five minutes away from it
The most memorable memory I have in Egypt, would be when I volunteered at the Awladi Orphanage
I would go daily after school to visit this orphanage to see the kids there
I was only in grade 6 but, I guess my kindness comes from the Egyptian heart that I have
These kids didn't have money, clothes, homes, parents, yet these kids would smile over the smallest things.
This is what Egypt is. Egypt is happiness. Egypt is kindness. Egypt is generous. Egypt is love. 
And it is because of all this Mother, that I truly believe that there is a heaven on Earth
It is right by the Nile and the pyramids and in your heart. 

And it is because of you Mother That I am who I am today 
You are the beauty that is within me. 




Wednesday, February 9, 2011

The truth behind the lies



1. Who voted for Mubarak anyways? 

The reason why I singled out the word "president" is because he is nothing more than a selfish, ruthless dictator. He is far from a president and I personally would be scared if this guy was to manage a coffee shop let alone manage an entire country.
Hosni Mubarak was appointed as the Vice President of Egypt in 1975 and became president of Egypt in 1981 after the assassination of Anwar El Sadat. He has now been the ruling president of Egypt for almost 30 years. Mubarak did not rightfully earn his peoples votes as president, he was appointed president because he was a vice president. Ever since he became president, many people have been uncomfortable to vote due to the thugs that threaten the Egyptian people by being present where the voting takes place as well as watch closely who you are voting for. The elections are rigged anyways so it's pointless to even consider voting because your voice is not heard.

2. The Case of Ayman Nour

Ayman Nour wanted to run against Mubarak as well as make running for government open to all candidates and has a strong interest in human rights. Nour was a threat to Mubarak because Nour used his political party (Liberal Democratic Perspective) as a platform to call for constitutional reform therefore limiting the presidents power. Ayman Nour was arrested on January 29, 2005 for "forging Powers of Attorney" on which happens to be the same year as elections. While in prison, Nour denied the charges and was believed to be innocent by most of the Egyptian people as well as by some political leaders. The White House released this statement shortly after Ayman Nour's arrest:

"The United States is deeply troubled by the conviction today of Egyptian politician Ayman Nour by an Egyptian court. The conviction of Mr. Nour, the runner-up in Egypt's 2005 presidential elections, calls into question Egypt's commitment to democracy, freedom, and the rule of law. We are also disturbed by reports that Mr. Nour's health has seriously declined due to the hunger strike on which he has embarked in protest of the conditions of his trial and detention. The United States calls upon the Egyptian government to act under the laws of Egypt in the spirit of its professed desire for increased political openness and dialogue within Egyptian society, and out of humanitarian concern, to release Mr. Nour from detention."
Ayman Nour was released from prison due to health issues and joined the Protest on January 25, 2011. While praying in the mosque, he was hit in the head with a stone or a rock that was thrown at him. He was in the hospital where he is now in stable condition. 


3. Theifs


The British Guardian newspaper reported that Mubarak and his family might be worth anywhere between $40 - $70 billion due to corruption, kickbacks and business activities. Mubarak shares this wealth with his family, they have houses in London, Paris, Madrid, Dubai, Washington, New York, Frankfurt and several houses in Egypt. Mubarak's sons Alaa and Gamal both have Hyundai dealerships and own a few Chili's restaurants as well. Now for all those who think that they can seize Mubarak's assets and fortune when he leaves office are sadly mistaken because Mubarak has his billions stacked in Swiss and British bank accounts. 
Mr. Mubarak, what have you done for 30 years? Robbed your people of their freedom, their democracy? Their life? Where did you get the billions of dollars that you have? Why are people literally searching the garbage trying to find food Mr. Mubarak? Where has our tax money gone? Where is the 1.3 billion dollars that is suppose to be given to Egypt annually? Mubarak, all you have done in your 30 years of power is stacked billions and starved millions.
A few people have told me that I don't give him enough credit because he was a soldier in the October 6th war and fought for Egypt and risked his life for Egypt. Mubarak, you were not the only soldier on the 6th of October so don't call yourself a war hero. Mubarak, you are a criminal, you are a loser and you do not deserve Egypt.

4. Omar Suleiman
I won't get into too much detail about Omar Suleiman as the next sentence pretty much sums what kind of person he really is. Suleiman was appointed as vice president of Egypt on January 29, 2011. That's right.. it took Mubarak 30 years to finally appoint a vice president. Mubarak appointed Suleiman whose career is marked by widespread abuses. Reporters, victims of torture and human rights groups charge that as head of Egypt's main intelligence agency, Suleiman had overseen the systematic use of torture on detainees, sometimes under the United States command and in one instance he personally tortured a detainee. He recently threatened and warned the street demonstrators of a potential martial law. Egyptians refer to him as Mubarak II. This is our vice president, the head of the CIA who is known for the torturing of detainees. Can you imagine what he would do to anti-government activists that have been in the media spotlight?

5. Emergency State Law

The Egyptian emergency law rule states that by law, police powers are extended, constitutional rights are suspended and censorship is legalized. The law also states that any non-governmental political activities such as street demonstrations, non-approved political organizations, unregistered financial donations are formally banned. Under the emergency state law, the government has the right to imprison an individual for any period of time and for virtually no reason therfore keeping them as a prisoner without trials for any period.
Again for those who are in denial lets take a look at the protest that happened on January 25 2011. How many people were killed during this protest which was intended to be a peaceful protest? Mubarak gathered his thugs along with police to do whatever needs to be done to get people off the streets. These martyrs were killed simply because they were asking for their rights as human beings. Others severely injured simply because they want to be treated like human beings they want their God given rights in which they deserve. Ayman Nour is a great example of how and when an innocent person can get locked up for virtually no reason. Censorship is legalized in Egypt, during this revolution the Egyptian State television broadcasts inaccurate information showing PRO Mubarak peaceful protests and fails to show the main protest in Tahrir (Liberation) Square where the PRO Mubarak protesters are on camels and horses, with weapons and tear gases trying to beat all the anti-Mubarak protesters.

I can go on and on with the corrupt government, the police brutality, the dictatorship, the lies, the stealing and crimes, people such as Habib El Adly and Ahmed Ezz who are involved in these crimes and so forth but I believe that these things speak for themselves when you see stations such as BBC and CNN. All I can say is that these people are professional liars and no matter what they say, we demand democracy.

Here is a personal message I would like to send to all the PRO-Mubaraks, the Mubarak Regime, and anyone else who has the smallest ounce of respect for Hosni Mubarak :

I would personally like to thank Mr. Mubarak for his amazing leadership. Thank you for ruining Egypt for the last 30 years. Thank you for making sure that Egyptians do not have any rights or freedom. I would also like to thank him for allowing each Egyptian civilian to live freely and equally. After all, Christians and Muslims in Egypt are treated equally right? I mean, I am a Muslim and I can build a mosque anywhere I want without a license or permit but for my good friend who happens to be a Coptic Christian, she has to take permission to build a church. Thank you Hosni! Now I would also like to take time to thank Mr. Mubarak for taking five days to respond to the Egyptian protesters on the streets. I would like to thank him for choosing a vice president from the same regime as him. This is his way of making 'change'. He sure does care about Egypt doesn't he? Where was Hosni when the museum was getting broken into and our history was getting stolen? Sun bathing in Sharm El Sheikh. Where was Hosni when Tahrir (Liberation) Square was on fire and the thugs are firing gun shots and killing the protesters? What rights do the protesters have? God forbid they ask to be treated like human beings. Stop blaming everything on the Islamic brotherhood, they will not gain power as the people of Egypt will not allow it and will continue to protest until someone who is not from a military force or a religious sector is chosen. 
It is pretty ridiculous that you don't mind Mubarak staying in power until September. Of course, let him stay in power until September its no big deal. Never mind the martyrs that got killed because they wanted freedom. Nevermind the fact that they died trying to defend you and fight for your rights. They died so that Egypt can live. Nevermind the thugs that were bribed by the Mubarak regime to get rid of the anti-government protesters. You will probably agree with Mubarak about the fact that these PRO Mubarak's are just regular people protesting. Regular people don't have weapons, they don't have batons or tear gases and they certainly don't have horses and camels. But it's okay, let him stay until September so that he can continue to steal our tax money and continue to steal the funds coming from the United States. Do you know that Egypt is the second highest country to be funded by the United States? Egypt alone gets 1.2 billion dollars from The U.S. Obviously neither you nor I nor will any Egyptians actually see that money. I wonder where that money went because it's clearly not going to the people. Clearly it's not going to the country -- it is going into someone's pocket. We struggle for food, we struggle for water, we struggle for bread and for the simple necessities of life. We have low income and can barely afford the over priced food the economy continues to sink in Egypt but it doesn't matter because poor people don't have a voice in Egypt. They are poor, they don't deserve to be heard. This is the type of garbage you are trying to tell me. I don't care if you are Muslim, Christian, Black, White, Straight or Gay we are all humans and should be treated as such. But it's okay, we should let Hosni Mubarak stay in power to continue to starve the people who work incredibly hard for to get $100 or $200 a month. We should let Hosni Mubarak stay in office until September to ensure that he steals as much money as he could to make a nice account outside of Egypt. Under Mubarak's power, he has the right to arrest people without charge, detain prisoners indefinitely, limit freedom of expression and assembly and maintain a special security court. This is our emergency law! 
So when Mubarak is in office until September and for the next 8 months when Egyptian's don't have any rights as human beings no one should complain because apparently it's okay not to have human rights. 
One way of the other we are going to have our voices heard. Our dreams will come true no matter what. Kill us, burn us, torture us, abduct us, do whatever you want to do to us but our dreams will come true. No longer will we sit back and watch you destroy our home, our history, our lives. Do you hear me Mubarak? Our voices will be heard and your days are numbered. You are an embarassement to Egypt and you should be ashamed of yourself for allowing one drop of blood to drip on our soil while you grip onto power. 
I have never seen so many people wear their hearts in their sleeves hope for hope and live for their dreams. We stood silent for years while shedding tears over you. Mother we love you and we will always take care of you. 

                                                  
        Mubarak, get the hell out of our country!