[P2P-F] local community development in Egypt

Mon Feb 21 18:39:00 CET 2011

Michel,

I just emailed with Omar.  I asked him if he would be interested in contributing a diary/blog of the efforts in Egypt.  Would P2P be interested in letting him post, for an English speaking audience?  

James, it could then be cross-posted to black crescent (I think Omar doesn't want to affiliate as LL or anarchist, so he would not want to post directly, yknow)?

Anyway, here is Omar's last communique from today...

>>>>Keith !  Thank you for pointing out those resources.

I started contacting several people and got some positive feedback. I updated the info document a bit, especially the "next steps" section to be able to translate it into concrete action. 

A friend of mine is an expert in mapping areas and dividing them into sectors, so we might start together on Step 1: defining the area for the pilot committee.

Yesterday there was a large meeting for a forum called "Gessoor" (which is Bridges in Arabic). The idea is to get enthusiastic individuals, groups and various initiatives together in one place to connect, interact and learn. I estimate there were more than 200 people there. There was an interesting panel discussion on how to move things forward.

I proposed the committees idea and it was well received. Some people came up to me later and told me they were interested. We'll see how it goes !

Omar<<<<<<

Keith Taylor
Doctoral Student 
Human and Community Development 
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign	
ph: (217) 689-4021

On Feb 20, 2011, at 7:59 PM, Michel Bauwens wrote:

> Thanks for pointing Omar to the resource-base, and of course, it's not per se about the resources but the people behind it and who could be put in touch with Omar,
> 
> Michel
> 
> (for example, for urban and peri-urban agri-food communities, see http://p2pfoundation.net/Category:Agrifood, complemented with http://delicious.com/mbauwens/P2P-Food and P2P-Agriculture)
> 
> 
> see:
> 
> P2P Foundation: http://p2pfoundation.net  - http://blog.p2pfoundation.net 
> 
> Connect: http://p2pfoundation.ning.com; Discuss: http://lists.ourproject.org/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/p2p-foundation
> 
> Updates: http://del.icio.us/mbauwens; http://friendfeed.com/mbauwens; http://twitter.com/mbauwens; http://www.facebook.com/mbauwens
> 
> On Mon, Feb 21, 2011 at 1:58 AM, Keith Taylor <taylorkeith at gmail.com> wrote:
> Kevin,
> 
> It would be great if folks from P2P want to be in touch with Omar as things develop.  What he and others are doing reminds me very much of Hayek's concept of spontaneous action... they want to create ad hoc neighborhood groups that each take on unique characteristics for their neighborhood.  From there, they hope to be connected in a loosely confederated system that trickles upward into a larger social order of some kind.  As they do so, the hope is the ea. council will learn from the successes and failures of other councils.
> 
> This is all very initial, but they are doing it!  And they have space to do so!  I mean, it MIGHT not happen, but what's most important is that the current military government is on its heels and letting folks attempt innovative governing solutions.
> 
> Keith Taylor
> Doctoral Student
> Human and Community Development
> University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
> ph: (217) 689-4021
> 
> 
> On Feb 20, 2011, at 12:52 PM, Kevin Carson wrote:
> 
> > I'm cc'ing this to the P2P Foundation's list.
> > Kevin
> >
> > On Fri, Feb 18, 2011 at 2:12 PM, Keith Taylor <taylorkeith at gmail.com> wrote:
> >> My friend Omar in Egypt and I are talking about this... who knows where it
> >> will go, but I am excited! Omar is a force :)
> >> Keith Taylor
> >> Doctoral Student
> >> Human and Community Development
> >> University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
> >> ph: (217) 689-4021
> >>
> >>
> >> Begin forwarded message:
> >>
> >> From: Keith Taylor <taylorkeith at gmail.com>
> >> Date: February 18, 2011 2:11:30 PM CST
> >> To: Omar El Bassiouny <omarelbassiouny at gmail.com>
> >> Cc: Tahreer Araj <tahreer.uiuc at gmail.com>
> >> Subject: Re: local community development in Egypt
> >>
> >> Omar,
> >> AMAZING idea!
> >> Personally, I think as much as possible, services should stem from the
> >> community level and be collectively owned and democratically governed
> >> (cooperatives!).  We know that in Egypt, there is a tendency to capture
> >> resources for individualistic purposes through the government.  I think to
> >> keep these services community-oriented is one approach to prevent capture by
> >> special interests, and create diverse, democratic institutions throughout
> >> Egypt (imagine if democracy was in the workplace AND government?!).
> >> I am excited about this, Omar!
> >> Keith Taylor
> >> Doctoral Student
> >> Human and Community Development
> >> University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
> >> ph: (217) 689-4021
> >>
> >>
> >> On Feb 18, 2011, at 2:01 PM, Omar El Bassiouny wrote:
> >>
> >> Sounds good. Below is a small intro I quickly put together on the subject:
> >>
> >> People’s Committees
> >>
> >>
> >>
> >> Introduction:
> >>
> >> Starting Friday night, January 28, Egypt witnessed a systematic withdrawal
> >> of any police presence from all streets countrywide. This opened the door
> >> for thugs and thieves – often armed – to roam the streets to vandalize and
> >> rob stores and office buildings, and to terrorize, harm and in some cases
> >> kill the local residents.
> >>
> >> The dangerous situation stimulated an immediate reaction from citizens all
> >> over the country to take their security in their own hands. Every street
> >> organized road blocks, widely known as ‘People’s Committees’ which were
> >> guarded overnight by several shifts. Creative systems were developed to
> >> enable communication between neighboring road blocks.
> >>
> >> In a relatively short time this efficient scheme significantly improved the
> >> security situation and lead to the capture of hundreds of thieves which were
> >> handed over to the army. A similar scenario, although less organized, was
> >> witnessed with respect to garbage collection.
> >>
> >> In general, government capabilities are limited and there is a lot of room
> >> for civic participation that would enable the achievement of important
> >> goals. This Egyptian experience – while somewhat extreme – highlights that
> >> citizens can efficiently solve their problems when they take their matters
> >> in their own hands without relying too much on the government.
> >>
> >> This initiative aims to build on the ‘People’s Committees’ experience and to
> >> create a sustainable local organizational scheme to empower citizens in
> >> shaping their future.
> >>
> >> Objectives:
> >>
> >> Create a grassroots organizational structure composed of local units to
> >> empower citizens and encourage activism.
> >> Create a local forum for discussion and awareness
> >> Community problem solving: trash, recycling, parking, utilities, etc.
> >>
> >>
> >> On Fri, Feb 18, 2011 at 9:31 PM, Keith Taylor <taylorkeith at gmail.com> wrote:
> >>>
> >>> Ill be on Skype at 5pm my time.  I look forward to it, Omar "Revolution"
> >>> Bassiouny
> >>>
> >>> Keith Taylor
> >>> Doctoral Student
> >>> Human and Community Development
> >>> University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
> >>> ph: (217) 689-4021
> >>>
> >>>
> >>> On Feb 18, 2011, at 1:00 PM, Omar El Bassiouny wrote:
> >>>
> >>>> Hey guys,
> >>>>
> >>>> I have a community development idea that I would like to discuss with
> >>>> you. Let's set up a Skype conference sometime soon. Tonight would be perfect
> >>>> 5-6 pm your time, but I'm also flexible otherwise.
> >>>>
> >>>> Best,
> >>>> Omar
> >>>
> >>
> >>
> >>
> >>
> >
> >
> >
> > --
> > Kevin Carson
> > Center for a Stateless Society http://c4ss.org
> > Mutualist Blog:  Free Market Anti-Capitalism
> > http://mutualist.blogspot.com
> > The Homebrew Industrial Revolution:  A Low-Overhead Manifesto
> > http://homebrewindustrialrevolution.wordpress.com
> > Organization Theory:  A Libertarian Perspective
> > http://mutualist.blogspot.com/2005/12/studies-in-anarchist-theory-of.html
> 
> 
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