Egypt's Spring Revolution (2011-2013)

[jmm99]

Has anyone else noticed that the Egyptian armed forces seem to have been following along with much of the advice given by Frank Kitson in Chap. 5 "The Non-Violent Phase" of his Low Intensity Operations, Subversion, Insurgency, and Peacekeeping (reprint from Hailer Publishing; and original in pdf) ?

See also this piece by Eric Margolis, Egypt's Faux Revolution: Bait and Switch on the Nile, which doesn't cite Kitson; but which suggests that the counter-insurgency strategy has been a "bait and switch" (which is what Kitson's Chap. 5 boils down to).

The "new" government seems to have gained something of a grace period, from Google Inc. executive Wael Ghonim:

“If you get paid 70 dollars, this is not the time to ask for 100 dollars,” Ghonim said in an interview with Bloomberg Television yesterday. “If you really care about this country, it is not about you anymore. This is about restoring you know, that stability. This is about sending signals to everyone that Egypt is becoming stable and we are working on that.”

Ghonim, 30, who was released on Feb. 8 after being held by the government in secret detention for more than a week, said he met military leaders over the weekend and he believes they are “really sincere” about bringing about the change demanded by the Egyptian people.

“They realize the value of business and creating jobs,” the activist said. “We had a half an hour discussion about the challenges of how to get people back to work and how to create jobs. They are aware of the problems.”

And, although unrest still exists, the focus has shifted to the economy generally and to specific sectors:

Egypt's Transitional Government Struggles to Retain StabilityBy Leland Vittert, Published February 14, 2011, FoxNews.com

CAIRO, Egypt – As Egypt struggles to return to normal just three days after former president Hosni Mubarak resigned, hundreds of government workers went on strike Monday over wages and corruption.

The Egyptian transition government, led by the army, tried to contain a wave of protesters who defied orders not to strike. Bus drivers and ambulance workers walked off the job and a group of police protesters marched through the streets.

The instability comes as the Egyptian people are demanding to know what the next government will look like and how it will begin an economic recovery. .....

Regards

Mike