Yesterday’s result of the Egyptian referendum for constitutional changes is a classic example of a successful Amber’s Alert.
The Egyptians’ will has been kidnapped by the masses of the Tahrir square for a few weeks now. Despite the legitimacy of most of the demands expressed in the square, some of the demands were not necessarily representing the entire population.
There were several achievements along the way that were totally acceptable by the majority of the 85+ million people. However, the vocal minority in the square was able to voice their contradicting views and was the fortunate cast for the media, local and international, on a very dramatic stage. The Tahrir square was not always in line with the people convictions.
The first major milestone that reflects my theory (the missed opportunity as viewed by some) is the announcement of Mubarak, among a list of other concessions, to delegate his authorities to the VP till September. I would debate for this missed opportunity but this is not what I am trying to communicate here.
The second milestone was going overboard to ask for the removal of the freshly appointed Prime Minister Ahmed Shafiq. For most Egyptians, he was worth supporting. But the Tahrir square could not see that. Again, I would debate against this irrational move but this is not what I am trying to communicate here neither.
The main difference between the two view points (the masses’ and the square’s) was the level of trust. The square was not willing to show any level of trust in the process. It was calling for distrust all the way. And it could have stayed like that forever (and maybe some people will) and they do have their reasons for it, they also have their willing and (theoretically) able supporters.
But reason imposes the need to establish trust at some point. And the magic formula is actually trust, vigilance, and accountability rather than distrust and paranoia.
After all, a revolution is to replace ideologies through the elimination of “some” people and driving powers. A revolution should not be based on replacing everyone that had a function in a system. To some extent, every Egyptian had a function in the old system and had to “accept” and adopt some of its ideologies in order to survive.
Once we understand that, it is obvious that if you shift focus from eliminating the ideologies to eliminating people, you run the risk of eliminating:
a) All Egyptians
b) Every one with a political, logistical, or economical value
c) The “state” rather than the “regime”
d) All of the above…
And who exactly wins then?
Back to the Amber’s Alert and the successful freeing of a nation from a hostage situation, I salute the Egyptians who were capable of performing this recovery through the ballot box. I salute their ability to be trustful, vigilant, and to hold everyone accountable for their actions; government and all.
I trust the collective will of this people and hope it is always the driver of things. I salute the army and the current government for trusting the people as well. And I thank them for giving us the Amber’s Alert in Egypt ;)
