Five years on, why do Egyptian authorities still fear January 25?
Ahead of the fifth anniversary of the January 25 Revolution, Egyptian authorities have taken tight security measures to deter any protests.
CAIRO — Five years after the outbreak of the January 25 Revolution in 2011, Egyptians are still dreaming of achieving the demands they raised during their revolution: bread, freedom and social justice. The successive governments and the current political administration have introduced major development projects aimed at gaining the trust of the people, yet the rates of poverty, unemployment, administrative corruption and the violation of freedoms continue to soar.
Al-Monitor spoke with three young activists who participated in the January 25 Revolution and its subsequent events. Each had his own story about emigration, imprisonment or loss of interest in public life. All three confirmed that the overall situation has become frustrating for the majority of those who took part in the revolution, as the country devolved into cycles of political conflicts that hindered the achievement of the revolution’s objectives.
In a message to Al-Monitor sent through his brother, Dia Abdul Rahman, a 29-year-old activist who has been detained for 2½ years without trial for allegedly using violence against police during the break-up of the Rabia al-Adawiya protests in August 2013, said, “Our only dream is to appear before the court, even if we have not committed any crime, instead of being left in prison without trial.” He added, “We are of no value to the authorities. They do not even know if we are criminals or victims.”
Sameh al-Gabali, 31, a physician who served in field hospitals during the revolution, told Al-Monitor, “I emigrated to one of the African states seeking a job, as I became certain that nothing will ever change in Egypt. I was no longer able to bear the memory of the victims that were seriously injured or died in the field hospital, since I now realize that all this was in vain.”
