By J. Randolph Evans
The Egyptian military has suspended Egypt’s constitution, dissolved its parliament and assumed control of the country. Basically, the Egyptian Armed forces, consisting of approximately 450,000 armed personnel, now control the lives of 85 million Egyptians.
No one should kid themselves about the place in which Egyptians find themselves. This is not the U. S. military where 200 years of history has ingrained the subservient role of the military to elected civilian leaders. Instead, this is a military that supported and defended President Hosni Mubarak’s authoritarian rule for almost three decades.
Undoubtedly, U. S. politicians take some comfort in the fact that the United States provides over one BILLION dollars of yearly military assistance to Egypt. In addition, the U. S. military has been integrally involved in the modernization of the Egyptian military. Yet, absent the recent protests, Egyptian military leaders remained content to support authoritarian rule.
When Egyptian President Mubarak resigned and fled Cairo on February 11, 2011, the military which had been in control for the last three decades was still in control. The most significant difference between the day after and the day before was that the Egyptian military had publicly assumed control of Egypt’s affairs.
Between now and September, the uneasy transition from authoritarian rule to democratic rule rooted in open and free elections begins. Military rulers have trouble with that part. After all, democracy is messy, inefficient and complicated. It is the exact opposite of the order and process of military control.
In addition, democracy involves a fundamental trust in the people. It is an affirmative act of faith to entrust power, indeed military power, to the people. For those in control, it is a scary proposition. As a result, history is full of military regimes that decided to just keep power once they got it.
If that happens, elections and freedom slip indefinitely into the future, with constant unfulfilled promises of reform to come. These temptations only increase for military leaders who already know that the protesters will never challenge the military.
If the move toward freedom is real, then elections will be set; a constitution will be drafted; and the Egyptian people will vote. Hopefully, the baby does not get thrown out with the bathwater as this transition progresses. For example, one of the thirty-four constitutional changes adopted by the Egyptian parliament on March 19, 2007 prohibited its political parties from using religion as a basis for political activity. That would be a good start.
Egypt is at a critical juncture as it decides its path. There will be one simple and clear indicator of whether Egypt moves toward an Iranian Islamic theocratic regime or enduring freedom for all – women’s rights. These include the rights to vote, hold public office, own property, be educated, and enter into contracts.
For Americans, these rights seem so fundamental that raising them as a harbinger of things to come appears ridiculous. Yet, they are not. For example, in Saudi Arabia, all women must have a male guardian, regardless of their age. Not only can women not hold public office in Saudi Arabia, they cannot even drive.
Some of the restrictions are cruel and unimaginable, but all legal under various versions of Sharia law. For example, in 2007, a Saudi father legally killed his daughter for chatting with a man on Facebook.
While talk of riding in the back of the bus is history here, gender segregation continues under absolutist regimes. So, public places like restaurants, banks, and even universities have separate entrances for women and men.
Make no mistake, the mistreatment of women is obvious and accepted and it goes well beyond the deprivation of basic human rights. It extends to the deprivation of human life. For anyone that thinks such risks are mere exaggerations of a different culture, look no further than the cruel and inhumane practice of stoning women to death. (For a detailed description of this continuing practice, readers should go to http://news.nationalpost.com/2010/11/20/graphic-anatomy-of-a-stoning/).
In just the last five years, the reports of stoning continue. In a Somalian football stadium, a girl was buried up to her neck and then stoned to death in front of more than 1,000 people. In Nigeria, dozens more have been stoned. These are but two of the many countries that condone the practice.
Intellectuals and media types will watch for many things as they assess whether Egypt is moving toward freedom. Unfortunately, their focus will be on the window dressings of elections, complete with the bells and whistles of a really good show.
But the real test of whether Egypt has made the turn toward an enduring freedom (or follows the path of Iran in a rapid decline toward a theocratic state) will be how it treats Egyptian women. Make no mistake – that is the thing to watch.