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EGYPT - "Transition to Freedom"
Written and Posted By Karen Ann Carr
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EGYPT- Angry and diverse crowds of Egyptians pack the streets of Alexandria, Suez, Cairo and on and on throughout Egypt. Pro-democracy campaigners gathered across Egypt, after the Egyptian President, Hosni Mubarak refused to resign the day before. President Mubarak said he would not bow to foreign powers, but the truth was revealed. Mubarak would not bow to the forces within Egypt. 

     Yesterday, Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak transferred power to his Egyptian Vice President, leaves Cairo and goes to the administrative hub of Egypt's resort city Sharm el-Sheikh.

     Sharm el-Sheikh is situated on the southern tip of the Sinai Peninsula on the coastal strip along the Red Sea, after senior military forces went into a rage over his decision to remain the president of Egypt.  

     In the end the senior military council upheld the Egypt, not the Mubarak regime. The Egyptian army said it would guarantee the aspirations of the Egyptian people, and the Egyptian council of senior military officers had expected President Mubarak to step down gracefully. The Egyptian military is sustaining the stability of Egypt; by managing the numerous sectors of society and administrating Egypt’s involvement with the United States of America.  
 
     The more the young citizens of Egypt endeavored to maintain the pressure and momentum of the protest, the more the Egyptian citizens and military supported them. So, the day honoring martyrs, February 11, 2011, transitioned into the "Day of Freedom." Couples got married today to celebrate the independence.  
 
     Protesters had filled Tahrir Square, a major square in downtown Cairo, Egypt and gathered near the State Television building in Cairo.  It was the biggest protests ever, as hundreds of thousands gathered in Cairo's Central Square after Mubarak resigned.  
 
     The Egyptian Military, the United States of America and other nations were blindsided, yesterday, when President Mubarak did not step down. The U.S. relationship with Egypt is complex and deep, but the U.S. would not intervene into the affairs of Egypt.  The nuance of the protest and the Egyptian state of affairs changed on a dime.  
 
     After the Office of Egyptian President aired Mubarak‘s statement, people were euphoric, excited and prayerful. Fireworks were seen in the sky, banners were flying, little children were seen wrapped in the Egyptian flag, and people praised God. One man was heard encouraging tourist to return to Egypt.  
 
     People were heard yelling, “The People and the Army are One!" 

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THE WHITE HOUSE
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February 11, 2011






REMARKS OF U.S. PRESIDENT BARACK OBAMA

IN EGYPT

 

 

White House Grand Foyer

 

3:06 P.M. EST

 

THE U.S. PRESIDENT BARACK OBAMA:

     "Good afternoon, everybody.  There are very few moments in our lives where we have the privilege to witness history taking place.  This is one of those moments.  This is one of those times.  The people of Egypt have spoken, their voices have been heard, and Egypt will never be the same.

     By stepping down, President Mubarak responded to the Egyptian people’s hunger for change.  But this is not the end of Egypt’s transition.  It’s a beginning.  I’m sure there will be difficult days ahead, and many questions remain unanswered.  But I am confident that the people of Egypt can find the answers, and do so peacefully, constructively, and in the spirit of unity that has defined these last few weeks.  For Egyptians have made it clear that nothing less than genuine democracy will carry the day.

     The military has served patriotically and responsibly as a caretaker to the state, and will now have to ensure a transition that is credible in the eyes of the Egyptian people.  That means protecting the rights of Egypt’s citizens, lifting the emergency law, revising the constitution and other laws to make this change irreversible, and laying out a clear path to elections that are fair and free.  Above all, this transition must bring all of Egypt’s voices to the table.  For the spirit of peaceful protest and perseverance that the Egyptian people have shown can serve as a powerful wind at the back of this change.

     The United States will continue to be a friend and partner to Egypt.  We stand ready to provide whatever assistance is necessary -- and asked for -- to pursue a credible transition to a democracy.  I’m also confident that the same ingenuity and entrepreneurial spirit that the young people of Egypt have shown in recent days can be harnessed to create new opportunity -- jobs and businesses that allow the extraordinary potential of this generation to take flight.  And I know that a democratic Egypt can advance its role of responsible leadership not only in the region but around the world.

     Egypt has played a pivotal role in human history for over 6,000 years.  But over the last few weeks, the wheel of history turned at a blinding pace as the Egyptian people demanded their universal rights. 

     We saw mothers and fathers carrying their children on their shoulders to show them what true freedom might look like. 

     We saw a young Egyptian say, “For the first time in my life, I really count.  My voice is heard.  Even though I’m only one person, this is the way real democracy works.”

     We saw protesters chant “Selmiyya, selmiyya” -- “We are peaceful” -- again and again. 

     We saw a military that would not fire bullets at the people they were sworn to protect. 

     And we saw doctors and nurses rushing into the streets to care for those who were wounded, volunteers checking protesters to ensure that they were unarmed.

     We saw people of faith praying together and chanting – “Muslims, Christians, We are one.”  And though we know that the strains between faiths still divide too many in this world and no single event will close that chasm immediately, these scenes remind us that we need not be defined by our differences.  We can be defined by the common humanity that we share.

     And above all, we saw a new generation emerge -- a generation that uses their own creativity and talent and technology to call for a government that represented their hopes and not their fears; a government that is responsive to their boundless aspirations.  One Egyptian put it simply:  Most people have discovered in the last few days…that they are worth something, and this cannot be taken away from them anymore, ever.

     This is the power of human dignity, and it can never be denied.  Egyptians have inspired us, and they’ve done so by putting the lie to the idea that justice is best gained through violence.  For in Egypt, it was the moral force of nonviolence -- not terrorism, not mindless killing -- but nonviolence, moral force that bent the arc of history toward justice once more.    

     And while the sights and sounds that we heard were entirely Egyptian, we can’t help but hear the echoes of history -- echoes from Germans tearing down a wall, Indonesian students taking to the streets, Gandhi leading his people down the path of justice. 

     As Martin Luther King said in celebrating the birth of a new nation in Ghana while trying to perfect his own, “There is something in the soul that cries out for freedom.”  Those were the cries that came from Tahrir Square, and the entire world has taken note.

     Today belongs to the people of Egypt, and the American people are moved by these scenes in Cairo and across Egypt because of who we are as a people and the kind of world that we want our children to grow up in.

     The word Tahrir means liberation.  It is a word that speaks to that something in our souls that cries out for freedom.  And forevermore it will remind us of the Egyptian people -- of what they did, of the things that they stood for, and how they changed their country, and in doing so changed the world.

    

     Thank you."

             

                       END            3:13 P.M. EST 

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 White House Preview

Week of February 14, 2011 - February 18, 2011

 

WASHINGTON- On Monday, February 14, 2011 President Barack Obama will travel to Baltimore County, Maryland to speak to students at Parkville Middle and Center of Technology.   Education Secretary Arne Duncan and OMB Director Jack Lew will join President Obama for the visit. President Obama will lay out key priorities in the 2012 Budget and discuss the importance of responsibly investing in education to prepare our children for competing in the global economy.

 

On Tuesday, February 15, 2011, President Obama will honor recipients of the 2010 Medal of Freedom in a ceremony at the White House.  The Medal of Freedom is America’s highest civilian honor. The Medal of Freedom is awarded to individuals who make an especially meritorious contribution to the security or national interests of the United States, world peace, cultural enterprises or other significant public or private endeavors.

 

On Wednesday, February 16, 2011, President Obama will meet with state legislators at the White House. Later, President Obama will deliver remarks at the White House on the “America’s Great Outdoors Initiative.

On Thursday, February 17, 2011, President Obama will attend meetings at the White House. In the afternoon, President Obama will travel to the West Coast.

 

On Thursday, February 18, 2011, President Obama will visit Intel Corporation in Hillsboro, Oregon. While at Intel President Obama will tour the world’s most advanced semiconductor manufacturing facility as well as learn more about Intel’s STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Math) education programs.