Region | Egypt
Flip-flops help vent Egyptians' frustration
Egyptians have found out that for less than two US dollars, they can safely vent their resentment at perceived lop-sided US policy in the Middle East.
- By Ramadan Al Sherbini, Correspondent
- Published: 23:43 August 26, 2008
Cairo: Egyptians have found out that for less than two US dollars, they can safely vent their resentment at perceived lop-sided US policy in the Middle East.
In recent months, local vendors have been in good business, selling flip-flops decorated with the stars and stripes.
"These slippers are in high demand apparently because they provide the chance to express dissatisfaction with the American policies without running the risk of being arrested or beaten up in street protests against America," Atta Fadl, a footwear vendor in the Islamic Cairo district of Al Sayeda Zainab, told Gulf News.
Fadl sells the footwear for 10 pounds ($1.8) per pair and says they are in high demand.
Egypt, a major US ally in the region, is the second biggest recipient of the American aid after Israel. American sentiment runs especially high in Egypt because the US is widely perceived as pro-Israeli.
The flip-flops are actually manufactured in China, which is capitalising by the large anti-US market in Egypt, a local street vendor told Gulf News.
As of yet, there has been no comment from Egyptian trade officials or the US embassy in Cairo.
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