Egypt's protest groups make a mark

Cairo: Protest groups are all the rage in Egypt. Four years ago, the anti-government group Kefaya ("Enough") broke political taboos in this Middle Eastern country of nearly 79 million by vociferously criticising the policies of long-serving President Hosni Mubarak.

Soon more protest movements emerged in virtually all categories. They include Intellectuals for Change, Artists for Change, Youth for Change, Citizens against Price Hikes, and most recently Citizens against Stupidity.

"Ours is a group presenting a new brand of opposition to all ill-conceived and mistaken decisions," said Khalid Abdul Fateh, the founder of Citizens against Stupidity. "We are keen to draw the attention of everybody, the government, politicians and even the average citizen, to the wrong decisions they make and encourage them to correct them," Abdul Fateh, 44, told Gulf News.

According to him, the nascent movement has drawn members from political activists and ordinary people. "We assume that the wrong decisions made by the government are based on good intentions, not the result of a conspiracy. Therefore, we just call them stupid decisions."

In Abdul Fateh's opinion, one of the "dumbest" decisions taken by the Egyptian government was the recent increases in prices of fuel and vehicle license fees. "These outrageous increases were declared a few days after President [Hosni] Mubarak ordered a 30 per cent pay rise for public sector employees to help them cope with the mad price increases," he said.

"These new, stupid price hikes have not only gobbled up the pay rise, but also dented the credibility of the whole regime."

Over recent years, Egyptians have been hit by a successive spate of rising prices, which have triggered protests against price hikes and low wages. The most violent protests erupted on April 6 and 7 in the industrial Nile Delta of Al Mahalla Al Kobra where 3 people were killed and more than 100 injured in clashes with police.

Around 40 per cent of Egypt's population of nearly 79 million is believed to live below the poverty line.

"Street democracy is at work in Egypt and has brought about some changes," said Abdul Fateh, who had earlier campaigned against "stupid" decisions at the international level such as "the disastrous invasion of Iraq" in 2003.

He recalls that his shift of focus to the home scene was prompted by a problem he had as a member of the parent-teacher association at his children's school.

"We, the parents, had joined hands to give the school a face-lift and make it greener, without costing the public treasury a penny," he said.

"But much to our surprise, we found the education authorities unleashing a bulldozer on a fountain and other amenities we had built inside the school. They claimed that we should have got a permit from the Education Directorate before embarking on this effort. How stupid!"

Enough: Kefaya at a glance

Created in late 2004, Kefaya ("Enough"), credited with opening the door to non-traditional opposition in Egypt, is a loose umbrella movement of liberals, leftists, secularists and Islamists.

Since its emergence, Kefaya has staged protests against the policies of President Hosni Mubarak, who has been in power for almost 27 years. The group is also vehemently opposed to the notion of handing over power from the 79-year-old Mubarak to his 44-year-old son Jamal.

The Mubaraks have repeatedly denied claims of hereditary succession.

The influence of Kefaya has, however, dwindled after Mubarak made a clean sweep in Egypt's first competitive presidential election in September 2005. The group's founders say they plan to rejuvenate Kefaya and rebuild its street clout.