Wednesday, February 9, 2011

Revolt in Egypt: Mubarak's opponents start new wave of protest

Evaporates the revolt in Egypt? The regime tried to play down the protests - but the opposition is to aggressively: To new demonstrations they expected this Tuesday again more than a million people. Dictator Mubarak would be selling at. The pictures from Tahrir Square on Monday annoy Monem Shalaby, 24 The photos that publish some international newspapers and TV stations this Tuesday, show a thinned crowds in the central scene of the Egyptian protest movement.

The protests to leave, is the message. Shalaby is one of the thousands of protesters camped on the place now for 15 days. He sits under a tarp, wrapped in a thick fleece jacket, cap on his head, put him in Cairo to 17 degrees apparent. But he remains combative. "It can not even demonstrate every day more than a million people," he grumbles.

"But that does not mean that we are weakened." This impression will he and his colleagues avoided. For this Tuesday and Friday they have again called for mass protests. Ahmed Salah, a political activist in Cairo and has been an opponent of Mubarak, is optimistic: "We expect that more than one million people will gather at the Tahrir Square." were just as last week, when hundreds of thousands to the streets.

"Now that the situation must be normalized to work most of us do again. Therefore we can not demonstrate every day," says Salah. But who believe that people in Egypt would tolerate a further stay in office Mubarak's mistaken, of course. "We now have enough really, it's time for a change." About the tent city in downtown Cairo on a banner hanging that says: "The people demand the resignation of the regime." But President Hosni Mubarak denied a speedy withdrawal.

And the protesters do not yield more before he leaves. Cottages stand before tough negotiations to a speedy turnaround believe only a few. "Against the state spread lies" President Mubarak is obvious that the protests lose momentum. Who can hold out longer? Observers believe that the rally is this Tuesday, a test of how strong the protests are still.

In the afternoon, young people have also called on to demonstrate in front of the building of state broadcasting, it is on the banks of the Nile, not far from Tahrir Square. The demonstration was directed against the state media, "would tell lies to protect the president," said a spokeswoman for the activists.

One thing is already certain that with their protests, the people in Cairo, Suez and Alexandria already forced the government to make major concessions. Several political prisoners, including the Google manager Wael Ghonim, on 28 January at the Tahrir Square had been arrested were released.

Egyptian newspapers report on Tuesday were more demonstrators arrested was released from prison. It had "instability" is given, because had "some groups" held people without government approval, the newspaper quoted "Egyptian Mail" cumbersome a government spokesman. 300 killed in the riots, the violence against protesters is now to be investigated, it is said of the state news agency Mena.

The images of the street battles last week in the Tahrir Square gone around the world: Bleeding demonstrators, attacks with Molotov cocktails and stones, attacks with camels. Overall, in the riots, according to UN about 300 people were killed. Several demonstrators on Tahrir Square on Tuesday repeated its accusation that security forces had arrested people arbitrarily and beaten.

A commission of inquiry should now "be transparent, independent and impartial" and "out" there are Egyptian personalities who are known for their honesty and credibility, "was announced over Mena. At least the honesty and credibility of the head of state question on the number of Tahrir Square.

"If the government now does so, as a move back normalcy in daily life in Cairo, they will suggest to people abroad that the protests were now almost over," says Mahmoud Kader, a young man on the Tahrir Square leaflets with information on the next protest rallies spread. A step towards normality would be 'the will of the government and that the roads can be at the Tahrir Square reopened to traffic.

That is the reason that the army try to use their tanks one by one to advance and push back the protesters. "It is enough if the protests are limited to the Tahrir Square," says a policeman who controls one of the entrances to the square. On Tuesday, the state apparatus, however, be intensified action against journalists: since noon the reporter may not enter Tahrir Square and will be referred to the access routes.

At least the business people want to back a little normality. On Monday, many shops and banks opened, after several days were necessarily closed. The Stock Exchange of Cairo on Sunday to resume their operations.

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