By Ambassador Ahmed Abu Zeid
As we, Egyptians, commemorate the 10th anniversary of the June 30th Revolution this year, we hail a landmark moment in our modern history. It was an epic moment, demonstrating massive popular will across all segments of the Egyptian society…a moment where millions of Egyptians stormed the streets calling for an imminent change from the destination to which Egypt was heading under the Muslim Brotherhood regime. It is a moment that ought to be remembered and cherished because it remains as a vivid symbol of the power and worthiness of Egyptian’s popular will.
“The New Republic”:Ten years on…
The decade following the Revolution was a testament to many achievements of our “New Republic”. In this era, a comprehensive plan to restructure the Egyptian economy was put into place and unprecedented social programs were implemented to deliver on the promise for a better and dignified life – to all Egyptians.
International Financial Institutions, like the World Bank, have hailed Egypt’s success for implementing its ambitious National Program for Economic Reform since 2016, achieving economic stability and restoring confidence in the Egyptian economy. In fact, the IMF cited Egypt as one of the few emerging market economies that experienced positive growth rates in 2020, despite the Covid-19 pandemic, owing to the government’s swift and prudent policy response. Moreover, a recently published World Bank Report praised Egypt’s pioneering experience in providing social protection programs, being one of the few MENA countries to build a shock-responsive system that delivers income support to the poor. These reports, and many more, were issued by credible and reputable institutions that neither over state an achievement, nor have vested interest in doing so.
The unfolding events following the June 30th Revolution has only proven the merit of all the underlying causes which constituted its very essence. Despite falling victim to the scourge of terrorism that the Muslim Brotherhood instigated and the global economic crisis resulting from the Pandemic and the following Russian/Ukrainian War, Egypt continued to steadily march forward towards its path of transformation and development.
In tandem with these challenges, and as we commemorate the 10th anniversary of our achievements, we note with deep regret some voices which have taken advantage of the current global crises – to which Egypt cannot be immune – to question the popular will of Egyptians and their loyalty for the regime they have willingly chosen. Paradoxically, it so happens that many of these voices were the first to hail Egypt’s pioneering experience in economic transformation and development in the past few years.
Some dissenting voices have gone as far as calling into question the decision of Egypt’s strategic partners to support the June 30th Revolution, and even call for a revisit of their position if “another Arab Spring is to unfold one day in the future.” An example of these mounting critiques is found in Shadi Hamid’s recently published Foreign Policy essay titled “Lessons for the Next Arab Spring” (July 2). In his argument, Hamid presented a distorted reading of historical events, which shaped the future of the country, claiming that Obama gave the Egyptian Military a green light to overthrow the country’s “first democratically elected president”.
On the contrary, we believe that our partners have stood on the right side of history by supporting the popular will of millions of Egyptians, who demonstrated the resilience and power to preserve their country, identity and nationhood at all costs.
Hamid rightly acknowledged in his article that the events of June 30th were “a popular impeachment with the largest crowds in modern world history out in the streets saying we are done with this guy”. What we, Egyptians, witnessed on this day is the rise of popular will against the path for which our country was heading. Yet, in his article, Hamid criticised the United States’ Administration, arguing that it had contributed to the toppling of the Muslim Brotherhood regime. From our perspective, we believe that the United States took the right decision by recognising the June 30th events as a popular uprising. In the years following the uprising, we might even argue that the United States could have done more to support Egypt, amid the growing instabilities that continue to cast their shadows on our troubled region and the entire world.
Prior to the outbreak of the June 30th uprisings, Egyptians had come to the conclusion that the Muslim Brotherhood regime had failed to deliver on its promise. Hamid refers to “Egypt’s first democratically elected government” under Morsi’s rule. This government abused the power bestowed upon it by the Egyptian people, was party to severe constitutional breaches and turned Egypt into a polarised and divided society. Contrary to what is advocated by Hamid, democratisation in the Arab World has not been hobbled by an “Islamist Dilemma”. In Egypt, the Muslim Brotherhood came to power through the ballot box. The problem is that they failed to deliver and that the Egyptian people were adamant not to repeat this ordeal.
One thing we have learnt from the history of the 2011 revolution in Egypt, is that the Egyptian people have the power and will to call for change, as and when they deem fit. They have done it before and they were ready to do it again in 2013. As such, the article’s reasoning behind the reluctance of the United States to support the Morsi regime has failed to provide a near accurate account on how the events had unfolded. The fact that the article calls into question the position of the United States’ Administration vis-à-vis the unfolding of the June 30th events, ten years later, merits, in and of itself, further scrutiny.
From our side, we believe that by supporting the will of the Egyptian people, the United States has stood on the right side of history. First, and foremost, because it is the history written by Egyptians themselves to restore their democracy, a principle that is enshrined in the American constitution. Second, this landmark event ended the polarisation and segmentation of the Egyptian society, a phenomenon that we had only known with the advent of the Muslim Brotherhood regime. Third, an un-biased reading of history would illustrate that the Egyptian society had witnessed a major shift towards modernisation and transformation. In the years subsequent to the June 30th revolution, Egypt embarked on ambitious development plans that put the Egyptian citizen at the forefront of national priorities, delivering on its promise for a better future.
Thus, by supporting the will of the Egyptian people, the United States’ Administration has ensured that the will of the Egyptian people would ultimately prevail.
Still standing
It is not a coincidence that the publication of the article concurs with our commemoration of the 10th year anniversary of the June 30th Revolution. During the past years, Egypt endured a plethora of political, economic and security challenges, yet we still stand and we will continue to stand.
For several years, we faced, unequivocally, the internal challenges of terrorism instigated by the Muslim Brotherhood in the aftermath of the revolution.
We have survived an enduringly challenging geo-political landscape, in a region that has become increasingly unstable over recent years. We have endured the scourge of the Covid-19 pandemic and the challenges of a global economic and energy crisis, all of which proved to be arduous to manage – even for the more developed economies. Despite these challenges, and many more, the Egyptian Government managed to continue delivering on its promise. Ten years on, we continue with the same determination, will and hope to make a better future for all Egyptians.
A strategic and longstanding partnership
Indeed, the partnership between Egypt and the United States is a longstanding one. We view the United States as a key partner and a reliable ally. This goes beyond rhetoric, rather a genuine solidarity to support one another as key allies and strategic partners. Aside from Egypt’s regional and global influence, the latter’s development project, both politically and economically, merited the support of the United States to create a success story amid a region where such stories are seldom to find.
Going back to Hamid’s initial argument, did the United States make the right decision by supporting the June 30th uprisings? Very much so.
In our view, it is not that the United States had failed to support the Egyptian people’s right to protest against what they perceived to be an unjustifiable abuse of political authority. Rather, that the United States has taken an astute decision by backing our endeavours in creating a better future for the very same people who had stormed the streets to demand the ousting of the Muslim Brotherhood regime.
The way forward
The reading of history cannot be done through a one-sided lens that turns its back on the narrative of the people whose history is being told.
The political regime which is being criticised is a democratically elected regime that was chosen by the will of the Egyptian people. Following several years of political turbulence, economic hardship and uncertainty, this regime restored order, embarked on massive political and economic reforms and provided social protection to millions of Egyptians living below the poverty line. As we continue to embark on our development journey, the support of the United States, as a partner and strategic ally, remains crucial to our endeavours to ensure a better future to all Egyptians. The “Lesson Learnt” is not that the United States had failed to act, rather that key historical moments necessitate astute decisions. Retrospectively, we can attest that it was not only owing to the strategic nature of bilateral co-operation between Egypt and the United States that prompted the latter to act in the way that it did. In so doing, the United States has also supported the will of the Egyptian people and the ambitious democratic and development trajectory for which we have set sail.
An article by Ambassador Ahmed Abu Zeid, the Spokesperson for the Egyptian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, in response to an article in the online edition of Foreign Policy dated July 2. Foreign Policy Magazine refused to publish the Egyptian response, despite repeated attempts to do so.
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