four years ago, Tunisia’s corrupt autocracy pushed Mohamed Bouazizi, a street vendor, too far. After local inspectors seized his produce for failing to pay yet another bribe, he went to a provincial governor’s office, doused himself with paint thinner, and set himself on fire. His fury inspired uprisings inspired across the Arab world.
In Egypt Arab world’s most populous country has gone through two military coups that included the ouster of the autocratic Hosni Mubarak as well as Mohammed Morsi, the first democratically elected president in Egypt’s long history. The judiciary dissolved the first democratically elected parliament.
The military, which has dominated politics since the 1952 revolution against the monarchy, is back in power under President Abdel Fattah Al Sisi, a former field marshal. Mr. Mubarak was acquitted last month of many of the charges of corruption and culpability in the murder of 800 people during the 2011 uprising. Autocratic rule is back. More than 20,000 have been detained and about 1,400 sentenced to death this year.
Since mid-2013, Egypt has acknowledged detaining at least 22,000 of its citizens, according to Human Rights Watch. The Egyptian Center for Economic and Social Rights, which documents every arrest, puts the total at 41,000. Egypt has also sentenced more than 1,400 people to death this year, although some cases are under review, Human Rights Watch has reported.
alexmanhatten 