<br><br>has anyone seen that video?<br><br><div class="gmail_quote">---------- Forwarded message ----------<br>From: <b class="gmail_sendername">Dante-Gabryell Monson</b> <span dir="ltr"><<a href="mailto:dante.monson@gmail.com">dante.monson@gmail.com</a>></span><br>
Date: Wed, Jul 13, 2011 at 3:32 PM<br>Subject: Fwd: <nettime> Nancy Messieh: Why Egypt wasn’t waiting for WikiLeaks to ignite a revolution (Next Web)<br>To: <a href="mailto:econowmix@googlegroups.com">econowmix@googlegroups.com</a><br>
<br><br>excerpt :<div><br></div><div><< <span style="border-collapse: collapse; font-family: arial,sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">The reality of the uprising in Tunisia is that it was sparked by a<br>
young man, Mohamed Bouazizi, who lit himself on fire, because that<br>was the only form of protest he had left to use. The reality of the<br>uprising in Egypt is that it was sparked by a young man, Khaled Said,<br>who was brutally beaten to death in an alleyway, while people watched,<br>
helpless as he begged for his life.<br><br>So with that in mind, it’s no surprise that <i><b>the Wikileaks parody ad<br>that seemed to be taking a bit of credit for the Egyptian revolution<br>has sparked outrage among Egyptian activists.</b></i><br>
<br>Mosa’ab El Shamy, an Egyptian activist and photographer who spent the<br>18 days of the uprising in Tahrir, told The Next Web, “I thought we<br>would only have to counter all the local corporates here, which were<br>
trying to claim credit for the revolution and share a ride on the<br>
bandwagon, but Wikileaks, is to me, the worst of them all.” >></span><br><br><div class="gmail_quote">---------- Forwarded message ----------<br>From: <b class="gmail_sendername">Patrice Riemens</b> <span dir="ltr"><<a href="mailto:patrice@xs4all.nl" target="_blank">patrice@xs4all.nl</a>></span><br>
Date: Tue, Jul 12, 2011 at 10:42 PM<br>Subject: <nettime> Nancy Messieh: Why Egypt wasn’t waiting for WikiLeaks to ignite a revolution (Next Web)<br>To: <a href="mailto:nettime-l@kein.org" target="_blank">nettime-l@kein.org</a><br>
<br><br><br>
bwo BytesforAll & iac2009 lists/ Fred Noronha & Pranesh Prakash<br>
<br>
<br>
====<br>
>From The Next Web: <a href="http://goo.gl/pMYJ9" target="_blank">http://goo.gl/pMYJ9</a><br>
<br>
July 10, 2011, Nancy Messieh<br>
Why Egypt wasn’t waiting for WikiLeaks to ignite a revolution<br>
<br>
Ask any Egyptian how much of an influence the Internet was in the<br>
nation’s uprising, the first thing they’ll probably do is roll<br>
their eyes at you. I’ve certainly mentioned it countless times –<br>
International media found the perfectly convenient package of the<br>
Facebook revolution fueled by a Google executive. A better lede<br>
couldn’t have been written if they had made it up themselves.<br>
<br>
But the thing is, there is as much fiction in that phrase as there<br>
is fact. Yes the Facebook page We Are All Khaled Said, created by<br>
the Google executive Wael Ghonim, was instrumental in mobilizing<br>
a certain demographic in Egypt. But long after Hosny Mubarak was<br>
toppled, figures have emerged to prove that calling the uprising in<br>
Egypt in any way, shape or form, a Facebook Revolution, is almost as<br>
ridiculous as the short-lived name, the Lotus Revolution, a name which<br>
had absolutely nothing to do with the movement.<br>
<br>
In case you’re curious, the Lotus Revolution was a name that followed<br>
the just as ill-thought out name for the Tunisian uprising, the<br>
Jasmine Revolution. Both names were no doubt dreamed up by journalists<br>
who had visited the countries once upon a time, and were enamoured<br>
with the exotic, oriental, incense-filled alleyways of Cairo and<br>
Tunis. The reality of these uprisings couldn’t be further from the<br>
Orientalist postcard snapshot that is continually forced down our<br>
throats.<br>
<br>
The reality of the uprising in Tunisia is that it was sparked by a<br>
young man, Mohamed Bouazizi, who lit himself on fire, because that<br>
was the only form of protest he had left to use. The reality of the<br>
uprising in Egypt is that it was sparked by a young man, Khaled Said,<br>
who was brutally beaten to death in an alleyway, while people watched,<br>
helpless as he begged for his life.<br>
<br>
So with that in mind, it’s no surprise that the Wikileaks parody ad<br>
that seemed to be taking a bit of credit for the Egyptian revolution<br>
has sparked outrage among Egyptian activists.<br>
<br>
Mosa’ab El Shamy, an Egyptian activist and photographer who spent the<br>
18 days of the uprising in Tahrir, told The Next Web, “I thought we<br>
would only have to counter all the local corporates here, which were<br>
trying to claim credit for the revolution and share a ride on the<br>
bandwagon, but Wikileaks, is to me, the worst of them all.”<br>
<br>
Many local companies have been accused of playing both sides in<br>
Egypt, bowing to the regime before the uprising, and in a lightening<br>
quick chameleon change, their colours were suddenly an entirely red,<br>
white and black display of supposed patriotism and pride in Egypt’s<br>
revolution.<br>
<br>
El Shamy goes on to explain his views on Wikileaks conceding, “I<br>
believe it’s changing the world in its own way and their effort is a<br>
prime and noble one, but it’s ludicrous to hear Mr. Assange in the ad<br>
declare with a cheeky grin as he watches the imagery of protesters<br>
pushing police forces back from Kasr el Nil Bridge that ‘the world<br>
changing as a result of his work is priceless.’”<br>
<br>
In fact, as Egyptian blogger Zeinobia pointed out in her response to<br>
the parody ad, most of the Wikileaks cables relating to Egypt were<br>
never translated or published in local media for a variety of reasons,<br>
ranging from a fear of retribution to simply a matter of bad timing,<br>
with more important issues taking the attention of the Egyptian media<br>
and its audience.<br>
<br>
Ironically, much of the information that the Wikileaks cables revealed<br>
about the Egyptian authorities was already common knowledge. Egypt is<br>
a country that saw bloggers and journalists imprisoned for voicing<br>
their opinion. Egypt is a country where questioning the president’s<br>
health was punishable with imprisonment. It is not a country which was<br>
waiting for Wikileaks cables to spark a movement that was years in the<br>
making.<br>
<br>
El Shamy points to another ad that saw an even bigger backlash from<br>
Egyptian activists, bloggers and tweeters. A Vodafone ad which had<br>
originally been released a few weeks before the January 25 protests,<br>
was re-released online, with a newly added introduction, in which the<br>
telecom company seemed to be attempting to take a bit of the credit<br>
for mobilizing the masses.<br>
<br>
Comparing the two, El Shamy says of the Wikieaks ad, “I find it more<br>
dangerous, and ‘under-attacked.’ Assange is an international, popular<br>
figure and millions are ready to follow his steps and take his word;<br>
and here lies the danger of ‘brainwashing’ more masses than the ones<br>
who believe that it was all his work.”<br>
<br>
Wikileaks parody ads aside, no matter how many times the theory<br>
is debunked with statistics and personal stories, the Internet<br>
revolution keeps rearing its ugly head. El Shamy comments, “It’s<br>
always entertaining to see the media to rinse and repeat stories<br>
about how tech savvy our revolution was, how Facebooked, YouTubed and<br>
Twittereized it is, but I believe it is taken out of context this<br>
way, and is an insistence on showing a small, rather unrepresentative<br>
aspect of the Egyptian revolution. The huge majority of Egyptians who<br>
took to the streets weren’t on Facebook or didn’t mind on missing on<br>
the Twitter fad, the impoverished and underfed and ragged clothed<br>
certainly weren’t motivated by a Facebook event or some videos they<br>
saw on YouTube. That should be acknowledged sooner or later or else I<br>
think it’s a huge injustice to them, and an elitist perspective.”<br>
<br>
The Egyptian revolution was an incredible coming together of men and<br>
women, from different backgrounds, different religions, different<br>
cities, and throughout the country, they stood side by side and called<br>
for one thing. To even attempt to credit that to the Internet, to<br>
Wikileaks, or to anything else other than the perseverance of the<br>
Egyptian people is to ignore the facts.<br>
<br>
The role that the Internet did play was to get the story out. El<br>
Shamy was one of many who tweeted his way through the revolution.<br>
Asking him how he personally used the Internet during the 18 day<br>
uprising, he says, “I used it to tweet, tweet, tweet and tweet. I<br>
reported everything as I saw and answered people’s questions and<br>
tried chronicling what it felt to be in Tahrir for over two weeks.<br>
I interacted with fellow activists who were away from the square or<br>
other parts of Cairo and tried convincing as much people who supported<br>
and followed our news through the internet but feared for their<br>
safety. It was an amazing experience.”<br>
<br>
El Shamy does give credit to the Internet where credit is due. “I<br>
think the Internet played a fine role during those 18 days, but did<br>
the revolution come to a halt or lose mobilization when the service<br>
was cut off the whole country? Definitely not. It was useful that we<br>
let the world know, and gradually increase pressure on the regime from<br>
outside, and it acted as an anti-propaganda tool when the media was<br>
spreading all kind of lies, and I think we made the best of it. But it<br>
simply shouldn’t be overstated.”<br>
<br>
As Egyptian state TV televised calming images of the Nile, YouTube<br>
and Twitter were witness to brutal violence and tear gas-filled shots<br>
of a struggle for freedom. As Egyptian state TV broadcast stories of<br>
a Tahrir infiltrated by foreign spies from the four corners of the<br>
world, hell bent on bringing Egypt to its knees, YouTube and Twitter<br>
told of men and women who stood against snipers, thugs, and even a<br>
raid of camels and horses, to come out victorious.<br>
<br>
When it comes to the actual figures, Facebook penetration in Egypt in<br>
April 2011 stands at 7%, with Tunisia’s penetration rate far higher at<br>
22%. And let’s not forget that not all Facebook users in the region<br>
were automatically supporters of the uprising. Facebook arguments in<br>
the post-January-25 world were common. The number of photos of Hosny<br>
Mubarak that appeared as profile pictures on Facebook after the former<br>
President stepped down is proof of that. Country-wide protests were<br>
not waiting for Facebook members to take to the street.<br>
<br>
Yes, activists used Facebook and Twitter to coordinate among<br>
themselves, even far before January 25. Yes, Flickr and YouTube were<br>
essential in disseminating information to the wider public. But the<br>
number of people who took the streets because of a call on Twitter<br>
cannot be compared to the number of people who took to the streets<br>
because of the on-the-ground efforts of activists who ventured into<br>
areas of Cairo, and Egypt as a whole where Twitter was virtually<br>
unheard of, and spread awareness. Not in a country where the number<br>
of Twitter accounts didn’t exceed 130,000 in April 2011. In fact,<br>
the number of people who joined the protests as they watched from<br>
their balconies as hundreds and thousands of protesters passed in the<br>
streets, chanting “Come down” probably exceeded the Twitter effect as<br>
well.<br>
<br>
On January 28, I watched minutes before a similar crowd passed beneath<br>
my balcony, as a young man quickly passed out fliers to people in the<br>
street. He handed the sheets of paper to men standing in the street,<br>
threw them at the feet of a crowd of women who were gathered at a<br>
street corner, ducked quickly into shops and ran right back out again.<br>
I never saw what the flyer said, because by the time I ran down into<br>
the street, his fliers were nowhere to be seen, as he disappeared into<br>
a crowd of protesters who had fast approached, accompanied by a large<br>
crowd of helmeted riot police and police cars, pacing alongside them,<br>
peaceful for the moment.<br>
<br>
It is men like him who are truly to be credited with mobilizing the<br>
Egyptian people. It is men like him who made the Egyptian people take<br>
to the streets, knowing there was a possibility they would not be<br>
coming home. To say that Facebook can be equated with each and every<br>
person’s effort on the ground is to take a little bit of credit away<br>
from men like him.<br>
<br>
## About the Author Lesotho-born and raised, Nancy Messieh is an<br>
Egyptian writer and photographer based in Cairo, Egypt.<br>
<br>
--<br>
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