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Marco Longari / AFP - Getty Images
A supporter of Mohammed Mursi, the Muslim Brotherhood's candidate in Egypt's presidential election, at the party's last campaign rally for the presidential election in Cairo on May 20, 2012, the final day of campaigning.
Reuters reports — Egypt's Muslim Brotherhood showed off its ability to rally support with choreographed campaign events throughout the nation on Sunday in a final push to clinch victory for its candidate in this week's presidential election.
Egypt's first televised presidential debate thrills viewers
With official campaigning ending on Sunday, fireworks cracked in the night air and flames flared from the front of the stage as Brotherhood candidate Mohamed Mursi arrived to address the audience of several thousand gathered in central Cairo, outside Abdeen palace.
Analysis by NBC News correspondent Ayman Mohyeldin: Chaos is pinned on military's incompetence
Fredrik Persson / AP
Several hundred imams listen to Mohammed Mursi at a rally in Cairo on May 20, 2012. The May 23-24 presidential election is the first since last year's ouster of longtime authoritarian ruler Hosni Mubarak.
Mahmud Hams / AFP - Getty Images
Supporters of Mohammed Mursi attend the party's last campaign rally in Cairo on May 20, 2012.
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First they lied about NOT fielding a candidate. Now they are promising Sharia law, meaning little or no rights for girls or women and no rights for other religions. Unless they are wiser than they look or sound, they are taking Egypt the same place all the other wise, religious and secular leaders have take the middle arab countries for the last one hundred years: backwards. If that's what they are all about, and we'll see, they have already forgoten it was the young people who started and maintained the Arab Spring that toppled so many of the dictators and corrupt regimes, including US allies. IF they have already broken major promises, and have already pushed aside the youth who got them there, THEN they have little respect for anything EXCEPT their own power and glory, AND that sounds just like every other regime that has been in power for the last 100 years.
I live in Cairo , since 2009 the sense i am getting here is no Way Islamist to wine this election , Islamist means to a lot of people here is 1000 years back the average Joe on the street will tell you that
It'll be interesting to see if they take a loss as the "will of the people" or respond with violence. That'll show their true colors.
Hopefully THEY will bring stability to the country and region.
Most likely it will mean a lot of persecution for all the non-Muslims in Egypt. There have already been A LOT of Christians that have fled fearing for their safety.
Thes bro and their feminine arm Islamic fascists have no problem mass murdering in the name of Allah and Mohammed.Like Al quida hamas ,hezbollah and others -they no have program except getting rid of all non Muslims .putting the boot back on the head of women. and using terrorism when necessary.They belong in prison like they were before.If they get near power they will abolish all kinds of freedom and civil rights. Their first act will be to abolish democracy.And if they mess with the treaty with Israel which is binding and international,they might be digging their own grave. We shall see !!
Uggh....religious governments are not very appealing....glad I live in america!
Because we don't have a Christian Taliban hard at work here....
Uh a militant group with nukes is no o.k. Is it just me or is anyone paying attention?
I live in Heliopolis, a suburb of Cairo and I agree with Alan-772557....the people will not allow an extreme regime to gain Presidential power. Further, the first Amendment of the Egyptian Constitution gurantees the separation of church and state.
let us not under estimate the power of the brotherhood's financial reach. they are one of (if not "the") wealthiest and oldest Muslim organizations in the Middle East.
There has been a split in the philosophy of the Muslim Brotherhood between the older generations and the younger generations. From what we can tell, the younger members want to maintain Sharia Law within their homes but not in the government. They want to go beyond the dogma and be unified with the country. The older generation is what is being reported and stereotyped in the news media. The younger generation is against (and are actually tired of) the violence. For example, they are in Rotary International and serve on Interfaith committees.
Also, just an FYI the military and police forces in Egypt are ineligible to vote. So the military regime will not happen. While Egypt has the largest military forces on record, the police, EMT's, Ambulance Drivers, and Fire fighters all fall under the military umbrella. So the stats regarding military influence are greatly exaggerated.
The real problem is with the core doctrine of Islam. The brotherhood may be well meaning, but the ancient codes of sharia are based on beligerent and bigoted ideologies. The erosion of human rights will follow as the Imams compete to see who can be more Islamic and who is "unislamic". Educational madrassas are the ultimate result when the power structure is oriented on religious heirerarchy. Religious pursecution of minority religions will follow as mandated in the Koran.
I see no allure to Egypt any more. The rise of the "brotherhood" is as if Muhammad Atta were to take the reigns of power. He was also a brotherhood member.
I am not sure where you are getting your information from. (a) There are many books and translations to the Koran (PBUI). For example, the Sunni's interpret the Koran differently than the Shia's do. General and blanket statements are misleading and inappropriate. Further you use the term madrassa (Actually you use the term as a plural) A Madrassa is simply the Arabic term for "school" I teach in a Madressa (St. Fatima's International School) Therefore I hope to goodness the educational community grows. In Egypt, education is free through the tertiary (College & post-grad) level. I have had the wonderful opportunity not only to live and teach in Egypt, but sit in (observe) their writing of the new constitution. The discussions of demorcracy are simply fascinating and offer a great deal of hope for they are trying to institute (as much as possible) Jeffersonian democracy.
Finally, again, I am not sure why you are intermingling Sharia Law with the doctrine of Islam. These are two (2) completely separate tennents/doctrines. The term Islam means Peace and the core tennents are based on that idea. (The Surah and Furquah) As with any religious doctrine it is how a person interprets the said doctrine. The patterns and argument you are using can be said for Christianity/the Bible, and the Judaism/Torah. The important thing is to look beyond the doctrines to the culture and as Alan-772557 said....go to the people on the street. They are the ones who are voting, want the economy to get better, welcome the tourists in the same wonderful Egyptian hospitality that has always been part of the culture, and educate their children. They are the ones who greet me in kindness and gracious. As someone else said...time will tell.
If you no longer see the allure of Egypt than I recommend you remain at home or where you are. For me I will remain in Egypt, stand with her people, and watch as demcracy emerges. It is a wonderful and exciting time here now. Egyptians are openly discussing things (issues, etc) in the coffee shops and on the streets. Even though the heat/weather is HORRIBLE right now, I love every minute of it. My students are both Muslim and Coptic, enjoying their inter-religious friendships, are a little nervous about the future, but in an excited way. As I watch them I am excited for I see Egypt's future in their eyes. And....it is a good one.
Sorry for all the comments, but I would truly enjoy educating people on Egypt and her culture. So here is the last one for you....many people believe Egypt is somehow part of the Middle East. This is a misnomer. Geographically, Egypt is in North Africa. If a person studies Egypt at the University level, they study it either in Egyptology, Archeology, or Oriental Studies. (Maybe History as well) A person does not study Egypt in the Middle Eastern Studies dept. That is a separate genre. :)
Had a friend from Egypt and she called herself Middle Eastern and would say she wasn't African so apparently some people view them as middle eastern if she would call herself that.
You and your friend are correct ekbry. It depends on what culture she identifies herself with and what area she came from in Egypt. If she feels she is from the Arab background (Ottomans) then she would consider herself Middle Eastern. The Copts come from a different tribe of the 12 Ancient tribes and consider themselves the Sons and Daughters of the Pharoahs. For the most part they consider themselves the pure Egyptians ~~ not sure if that is accurate or not at the academic level. The Nubians of Upper (Southern) Egypt consider themselves more African and even have a totally different language. The Egyptians from Alexandria have more of the Mediterrean influence ~~ especially with the Greek background and influence. I think these aspects are why colleges/universities bracket the study of Egypt in the different genres. It is also one of the most wonderful things about Egypt for it is truly where East meets West. (Turkey falls into that same category too) Give your friend a hug and tell her I admire and respect her rich heritage and culture. She comes from an amazing background.