Egyptian President Mubarak's Speech Fails to Satisfy Rioters

A day after Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak announced that he will not seek re-election in Egypt's upcoming September election, Egypt is still rioting, and the clashes are intensifying. In his speech Tuesday, Mubarak stated that his "primary responsibility now is security and independence of the nation to ensure a peaceful transfer of power in circumstances that protect Egypt and the Egyptians and allow handing over responsibility to whoever the people choose in the coming presidential election" and that he did not intend to nominate himself for another term, according to The Guardian.

Mubarak called for economic and social reform and the amending of Egypt's constitution to place term limits on the presidency. Points within his speech indicated his approach would be a limited transition of power away from the presidency, and that he would step down after the September election. He went on to say that he "will entrust the new government to perform in ways that will achieve the legitimate rights of the people and that its performance should express the people and their aspirations of political, social and economic reform and to allow job opportunities and combating poverty, realizing social justice."

Rather than meeting his speech with approval, the opposition of more than 250,000 people, according to Coker, Levinson, and Weisman of the Wall Street Journal, rejected his peaceful transition approach and have continued their protest. However, in a country in which he has ruled for nearly 30 years, Mubarak has supporters, and they haven't been blind to the turmoil. Today, according to MSNBC, several thousand supporters of Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak clashed with anti-Mubarak protesters in a violent scene of hurled rocks and stampeding horses. The violence continues to escalate, and threatens the stability of neighbors in the Middle East.

Barring a quick resolution, Egypt's economy will continue to falter, as the frequent shutdown of Internet and communications systems will hamper business and market trading. Priceless ancient Egyptian artifacts have been looted from Egypt's museums, and more of its heritage may be destroyed or looted. Continued protests and counter-protests could potentially lead to civil war in Egypt, with little chance for a peaceful resolution.

The solution to Egypt's current crisis isn't obvious, particularly when viewed through the different lenses of what is best for the Egyptian people, what is best for the Middle East, and what is best for Western interests. The opposition to Mubarak is a loosely knit group of secularists, the Muslim Brotherhood, and young adults who have grown up under the regime of Mubarak. They all demand change. The last thing the Western world wants is for Egypt, a longtime source of stability in the region, to become a fundamentalist Islamic state akin to Iran, or to begin to provoke Israel again. However, it is apparent to everyone that reforms are needed to insure that the rights of Egyptians are respected; that poverty is eradicated, or at least minimized; and that there is social justice in Egypt. The Middle East doesn't want a brewing civil war in Egypt that threatens regimes in other countries such as Jordan or Saudi Arabia.

Among the opposition members is the Muslim Brotherhood, which has a moderate arm that supports Nobel Peace Prize winner and secularist Mohamed ElBaradei for President, who would be a welcome choice among Western countries. But an injection of Islamic fundamentalism into future elections could be a troublesome development for the West. Such is the chance that the world takes when encouraging countries to hold free elections.

It is now obvious that if Mubarak truly wishes security and independence of his peoples, more will be necessary to bring this situation to a peaceful resolution. Merely stating his intent on not running, without providing numerous concrete steps that will be taken over the next eight months, and not giving a firm statement that he discourage his son from running in a continuation of the Mubarak dynasty, isn't enough. The tightrope that Mubarak is walking is fraying rapidly.

Sources:
Coker, Levinson, and Weisman. (2011). Mubarak Promises to Step Down.
The Guardian. (2011). Hosni Mubarak's Speech: Full Text.
MSNBC. (2011). Mubarak Supporters, Protesters Clash in Egypt.