Egypt marks 2011 uprising anniv amid crackdown on Brotherhood

Egypt is marking the fifth anniversary of the 2011 popular uprising that led to the overthrow of former dictator Hosni Mubarak amid beefed up security measures and a fresh spate of arrests and checks in the capital, Cairo.

“From the youth of Egypt to the police”, was written on the balloons.

A woman walks past an Egyptian policeman, a day ahead of the fifth anniversary of the Jan. 25, 2011 uprising in Tahrir Square, Cairo, Egypt, Sunday, Jan. 24, 2016.

“Continue Mr President”, said a placard held by one demonstrator, while others handed flowers to police, who have arrested thousands of government opponents under Sisi’s rule.

In the footage, the two men in their early 20s laugh as they unwrap and inflate condoms, later handing them to police in Tahrir Square, the focal point of the 2011 uprising.

Many say the continued deterioration of the country’s economy, a security crisis particularly in the Sinai Peninsula that many attribute to the rising threat of the Daesh group (also known as Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant), and Sisi’s policy to crush any dissent have all contributed to a climate far more repressive than the conditions that sparked the 2011 uprising.

“Democratic experiences don’t mature overnight, but rather through a continuing and accumulative process”, he said, adding “we are building together a modern, developed and civilian state that upholds the values of democracy and freedom”. An IS affiliate claimed the blast.

“The human rights situation is worse than what it was under the Muslim Brotherhood or Mubarak or SCAF”, he said, referring to the military junta that ruled Egypt in the aftermath of Mubarak’s ouster.

Activist hangouts including cafes, cultural centres and a publishing house near Tahrir square were also raided or shut down. “But after the revolution, everything changed and there was no work, so I came to Cairo to find work”, said boat owner Mazid Mohamed. And in mid-2012, the Brotherhood’s candidate, Mohammed Morsi, narrowly beat out a candidate from the previous regime.

In a televised speech on the eve of this 25th anniversary, President al-Sisi warned against demonstrations which might defy security.

“We have no political space by way of having a party, a syndicate or a civil society”.

The Interior Ministry stated last week that it was ready to confront “any contingency” that might occur on the uprising’s anniversary.

They then copied supporters of current President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi, who attended the officially approved demonstration around the square, by waving Egyptian flags, kissing the ground and yelling over and over “Long live Egypt!”

The spirit of the 2011 revolution could be rekindled, however, said Bitar.