Why Egypt’s economic reforms aren’t enough to win over the street
A new report shows significant progress in Egypt, but demonstrations are placing new pressures on President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi to do more to battle corruption.
While the Turkish invasion of Syria and the protests in Iraq have the attention of the world, a crisis in Egypt is quietly smoldering — a reminder never to take your eyes off Egypt, even when things appear quiet, or at least relatively so, compared to other regional hotspots.
Despite mostly successful economic reforms, turbulent anti-government demonstrations that started Sept. 20 led to the subsequent arrest and detention of an estimated 2,800 protesters, students, activists, journalists and lawyers — the largest crackdown since Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi took power in 2014.
And while not causally linked, the Egyptian case shows some similarities with Iraq, including the daunting challenges of youth unemployment and the need for more dramatic steps to combat corruption, which is becoming the mantra for change in the region.
