In his article titled ‘The Tower of Babel’ published last Monday in al-Shorouk, Mr Salama Ahmed Salama, editor-in-chief of the same newspaper, criticised the national dialogue and its management. He then shifted to praising the role of young people in the current phase.
However, in a peculiar manner, as if slipping poison into honey, he adopted the tone of a wise, advising elder who knows better. He added: ‘Yes, holding the symbols of corruption accountable is a matter that cannot be ignored. But we cannot undermine the authority of the judiciary, nor can we carry out quick, exceptional trials or issue arbitrary decisions. The revolutionaries must ensure that the revolution does not undermine justice and the rule of law simply out of a desire for revenge.’
He then exaggerated further, predicting chaos if young people succeeded in achieving some of their listed demands—demands that, ironically, were the very basis for the revolution and for which blood was shed. These include removing university presidents and governors, dissolving local councils, and dismissing media leaders—all figures widely recognised as remnants of the old regime and instigators of counter-revolutionary activity. If Mr Salama is unaware of the danger these individuals pose, it is a grave oversight.
I am truly baffled by those timid pens that feared change both before and after the revolution. I am bewildered by their unwavering support for the Supreme Council of the Armed Forces (SCAF), which has governed Egypt post-revolution—a revolution not instigated by the military but by the very youth that Mr Salama now warns could usher in chaos. He implicitly accuses them of lacking wisdom and harbouring a disregard for the rule of law.
This same military council appears to view the sins of the fallen regime solely through the lens of financial corruption—how they exploited their positions and Mubarak’s authority to profit and squander public funds. While this is undoubtedly a major crime, the council remains silent on election fraud, the brutal and criminal assaults on peaceful protesters, and the killing of innocents. There is no mention of investigating the systematic torture practised within Egypt’s security institutions or those who, inspired by the devil, drafted oppressive laws restricting citizens’ freedoms. Instead, the council expects figures from Mubarak down to the smallest thief in his regime to have armies of skilled lawyers exploiting the very legal loopholes they crafted over the past thirty years. Do you, Mr Salama, still believe that the people, who sacrificed so much, will calm down and let the storm of change subside while this farcical play continues?
Yes, we are the naive, inexperienced, unruly youth you accuse us of being. But we belong to the generation that accomplished what you, with your lofty detachment and prominent names in the world of political culture, always discouraged. We have no ties to the old regime, unlike some of you. We are advocates for genuine change legitimised by the revolution, and we will not settle for the crumbs of a false stability meant to placate us into complacency.
As for SCAF members and the clique of politicians and intellectuals who fear change and resist the inevitable purging that follows revolutions, they have known the pre-revolutionary regime’s figures as friends, colleagues, and perhaps even in-laws. Naturally, this personal history makes punishing former allies a painful prospect for them.
Dear Mr Salama, it is a fundamental tenet of politics to respond to the awareness of the people, not an elite that contributed nothing to change. It is all the more critical to expedite the revolution’s demands, given the overwhelming legitimacy they derive from collective insistence. A ruler here gains no legitimacy unless they heed the collective will of the people who created the revolution. Once this principle is adhered to, we can finally discuss what you call stability.
Thus, SCAF, which was at one point entrusted with authority by the revolutionaries, must take decisive and resolute steps to regain the trust of the revolutionary public. These steps, which Mr Salama fears, have never been demanded for actions beyond the authority of law and justice—the very principles for which the martyrs sacrificed their lives. Rather, they are calls for urgency, a necessity to bridge the growing gap of mistrust between the council and those who granted it the legitimacy to govern.
This article is originally published by AlBorsa in Arabic and later AI-translated by South Push.