The greatest democratic event in my lifetime

The Egyptian revolution that finally culminated in today’s historic resignation of President Hosni Mubarak’s is the world’s most hopeful event since the fall of the Berlin Wall. Gandhi must be crying tears of joy, right along with Washington, Adams and Jefferson (throw in Jacques Rousseau and John Locke as well).

Egyptians of all stripes (except the top 1% or so who enjoyed the riches and spoils of being a Mubarak crony) followed the lead of young, educated and heretofore hopeless Egyptians to demand a change, to demand a voice in their own governance.
It was righteous, it was peaceful, it was respectful, it was relentless and as a result it was successful.

For the first time EVER, one of the world’s oldest civilizations is on the cusp of democratic self-government. The people have always been lorded over by Pharaohs and foreigners. For over 400 years they were captive to the Ottoman sultanates, then the British from 1914 to 1952, and finally by their own home grown dictators, beginning with Gamal Nassar and ending with Mubarak.

For now, it is time to rejoice. We can forget for the moment whether a real democracy will arise, whether the military will support it and most importantly, whether the people will ultimately see the improvement in actual life prospects that fueled their courageous stand for change.

Let us look at the many reasons for celebration:

1) This was peaceful—the violence only coming when Mubarak’s hired hands tried to derail the protests.

2) This was not a fundamentalist/extremist fueled movement. No, it was instead the cries of a peoples who have lived in a virtual prison ever since Mubarak took power, subject to constant martial law, arrest for no reason, a government totally unresponsive to their needs, with wealth evermore concentrated in the hands of the corrupt few. They had no hope, no future and no justice and wanted only what we enjoy here—which today’s technology makes apparent to them on a 24/7 basis.

3) The movement had nothing to do with Israel. Indeed there were no anti-Israeli protests. There is no reason to believe that continued peaceful relations won’t continue (however, they will certainly be more likely to seek true justice for the Palestinians).

4) The military was superb, letting the demonstrations unfold without instigating violence, without impeding them, and often helping them with overt acts of kindness.

5) President Obama quickly and rightly called for peaceful and meaningful change, surely and squarely siding with the Egyptian democracy seekers, which surely helped make this historic event happen.

You want to know the kicker: This unbelievably Nirvanic event happened 21 years to the day that Nelson Mandela was released from prison. Freedom is our fate.

God (Allah) is great!

Richard F. Dawahare 2/11/11