CAIRO (AP) —
Criticism of Egypt's president has gathered momentum in recent weeks as
Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi's honeymoon in power appears to be ending.
The boldness of the
criticism suggests that el-Sissi's aura as the man who "saved the
nation" from Muslim Brotherhood rule and the chaos of revolution has
faded. Replacing it now is the image of a leader struggling to fix the
economy, stop police abuses or suppress an insurgency by Islamic
militants.
A recent speech in which el-Sissi seemed angry
and frustrated was widely derided not only by social media mockery but
also by powerful voices in the media who had backed el-Sissi's rise to
power.
"Mr. President and you gentlemen running the
security agencies, you are wrong, and what you are doing will lead to
the return of the Brotherhood. That will be hell for you and the
people," veteran politician Mohammed Abu el-Ghar wrote. "Read history
and think a little, so we can all save Egypt."
For nearly two years, the media commentariat,
politicians, officials and religious leaders have pushed a message that
any criticism of el-Sissi, his government or security agencies was
tantamount to treason, undermining security.
El-Sissi vaulted to heroic status in the media
when, as military chief, he led the army's July 2013 ouster of Islamist
President Mohammed Morsi amid massive protests against political
dominance by the Brotherhood. He then won the presidency in a landslide
election victory.
Since then, he has waged a fierce crackdown,
arresting thousands of Islamists and killing hundreds more and
suppressing pro-democracy activists who fueled the 2011 uprising against
autocrat Hosni Mubarak. Public protests have been effectively banned.
Rights activists have raised alarm over widespread torture and secret
detentions by police.
For nearly two years there was little outcry from
the public as many supported any measures to restore stability. But a
string of recent troubles has pointed to problems that are harder to
explain away as caused by "enemies of Egypt."
The downing of a Russian passenger jet — widely
blamed on Islamic militants — highlighted security failures, and the
government's reluctance to acknowledge it as a terror attack raised
criticism. The attack was a devastating blow to Egypt's tourism
industry, which further gutted the economy.
The culture of abuse inside security forces,
meanwhile, may have landed el-Sissi's government in an international
scandal. An Italian graduate student, Giulio Regeni, disappeared on Jan.
25 and he was later found tortured to death.
Last week, the European Parliament passed a
resolution that stopped just short of accusing Egyptian authorities of
killing Regeni. Egyptian officials deny police were behind his death,
but even some supporters in the media have cast doubt on the denials.
The government's image was dented by a series of
court rulings seen as outrageous. Among them, a young author was
sentenced to two years in prison for the publication of sexually
explicit excerpts from his novel — a step not taken under Mubarak or the
Islamist Morsi. The sentence angered artists and intelligentsia who
long cheered el-Sissi out of fear of Islamists.
"Your state is a theocracy, Mr. President,"
columnist Ibrahim Eissa wrote. "Your state and its agencies, just like
those of your predecessor, hate intellectuals, thought and creativity."
El-Sissi has also appeared vulnerable in his
government's struggles to repair an economy deeply damaged by five years
of turmoil.
The government has been forced to let the
Egyptian pound's official value slide to record lows. That has prompted
public fears of price increases, given Egypt's dependence on imports.
Another difficult question is how to deal with
subsidies that eat up billions of dollars but are vital for millions of
impoverished Egyptians. El-Sissi partially lifted fuel subsides last
year without unrest, a tribute to his popularity. But another envisaged
round of reductions may not go down so well as Egyptians cope with
higher prices and unemployment.
Abdullah el-Sennawy, a prominent pro-el-Sissi columnist, warned that further cuts would be "political suicide."
"To recklessly deal with the lives of ordinary
people who can barely secure basic life requirements is a recipe for
social unrest that security agencies won't be able to contain," he wrote
in the Al-Shorouk newspaper.
El-Sissi's own ranting, televised speech on Feb. 24 damaged his image of being in control.
He demanded Egyptians listen to no one but him
and stop criticizing the government, vowing to "remove from the face of
the Earth" anyone who tries to "bring down" the state.
On the economy, he called on Egyptians to work
harder and donate to the government. In a melodramatic gesture, he said
he was prepared to sell himself if that would benefit Egypt — opening a
rich vein of mockery on social media. Someone quickly posted an ad on
the auction website eBay for a "slightly used" general, with el-Sissi's
picture.
The speech went over terribly.
"Don't tell us we must listen to you alone," said
Youssef el-Husseini, a TV anchorman and firm el-Sissi supporter. "No,
we want to do a great deal of talking, discussions and speaking about
democracy. Is it democratic to tell us to only listen to you?"
Azza el-Hennawy, an outspoken state TV host, blasted el-Sissi's call for Egyptians to work harder.
"Egyptians do work," she said, "but most, perhaps
even all, government leaders don't work. You too, your excellency,
don't work. You have not resolved a single issue since you took office."
With the bolder criticism, budding dissent emerged last week within long silent political circles.
A group of politicians and public figures led by
leftist Hamdeen Sabahi, who ran for president against el-Sissi in 2014,
announced a coalition to create a "political alternative" toward a
democratic Egypt.
The group avoided directly challenging el-Sissi, but
the open talk of an "alternative" was startling.
Also, members of the 50-seat assembly that
drafted the 2014 constitution and several prominent figures announced
they would work to "protect" the document, opening up a new front of
political pressure.
That constitution — perhaps Egypt's most liberal
ever — set strong civil rights guarantees and liberties that have been
widely ignored since, particularly by the security agencies and the
judiciary.
*Artwork courtesy of Carlos Latuff
