Resist Rise Revive ~ RESPECT

The essential four 'R's in Egypt today, with the fourth 'R'~Respect~ being one that dominates the positive and the negative in the 'Resisting, Rising' and 'Reviving'

 "Resist Rise Revive

lest you be erased"

"قاومي وإنهضي،قبل أن تنقرضي ..."

With bare backs exposed, a stronger statement is made than the actual painted on words would seem to make~ Artistic expression faces one of two choices every time it steps out of current cultural comfort zones: Should it risk being criticised or snuff itself out?
Presentation form, even though seemingly aesthetic, appears to divide opinion.There are those who feel conformity sets the highest standards for a society and that any deviation from that, even the slightest, will inevitably  lead to lewdness and moral decadence~ with bare backs on display signifying only inevitable further nudity to come. Content is thus overshadowed. 
Others however believe that breaking through commonly perceived boundaries has the power to free the spirit.   

With FGM (female genital mutilation) being openly promoted by one or two high profile candidate figures, the presiding emphasis among enlightened minds lies upon asserting the rights of the female form. When the above image is perceived to be inexcusably indecent its very message of respecting 'woman' is unfortunately entirely lost.

"An insult to revolutionary Egypt"by Mona Eltahawy  

The paucity of decent candidates in presidential elections highlights the lack of choice facing Egyptians

Read more:  http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/2012/apr/19/insult-revolutionary-egypt-elections

Mia Grondahl

Guns appear to have taken on yet another attribute in today's climate.  Now it appears as a symbol of might through notions of determination and resistance interwoven with respect.

The gun in the mural above appears to 'shoot out' doves rather than shoot them down; it may be seen as the very antithesis of what it would normally represent.  

A very strong statement of peace and freedom is being made

Return to Palestine

At the heart lies the key~

This image evokes a yearning for a solution to a problem ~ to all intents and purposes~ dismissed for so long.

                                                                                                                                      

وليد إدريس 

                                                                                                                                                            Waleed Idrees
http://www.palestineposterproject.org/artist/waleed-idrees

Posters submitted by SariEn and SaraH 

Article link submitted by Belle

Top image through misc / facebook
 https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=284742874940252&set=a.242713865809820.58678.100002136261217&type=1&theater

Old rule. (Words of Women videos)

From Facebook, 

Sh.elS posted :

  Shadows of Light

 The bird thought it was free but it is still caught up in the cage: 

Egyptian revolution?! 

(N.Elkouni)

The struggle is on.

A resonating thought:

A people divided. 

So many choices and yet so little to choose from.

~It is with great pain that we find ourselves in times of dissent upon all levels. Damned if we do and damned if we don't~ 

Egyptians feel duped left right and centre. Any candidate arising from the spirit of the revolution is hardly considered to be in with a chance. The routes remaining are fraught with dangers and vexations of one kind or another.

People have different perspectives: High aspirations once relished are either quashed or severely constrained through one general consensus overriding all others; a longing for security, stability and order. 

Representatives of the old regime now appear as saviours, the only option to Islamist extremism. They have in fact adopted the Islamic charitable stance in order to remove any trace of competition among the poorer folk. They promise the general public relief from the shortages recently witnessed, orchestrated in the first place by their own woven scenarios linked to the economy: Withhold and proffer so as to appear magnanimously benevolent.

If the aim since the uprising was to divide a nation in order to conquer it once again, with maximum control, then the aim has all but been achieved. The old rule of divide and conquer appears to be precisely tailored by the presence of growing fears of religious extremism, serving to spook people into submission. With aspirations all but snuffed out, patriotism appears little more than a quest to salvage whatever inkling of security envisaged possible to achieve were one political party or other to achieve ruling power. 

Tolerance levels appear to have crumbled; with one economic crisis following another, a general search for security appears to supersede all else. Confusion is tangible, set about by multi-layered political strategies for control. Result: A society dysfunctional on almost every level. Issue of concern: Aggression, a common everyday phenomenon. Should dishing out judgemental axioms fail then common denigration steps right in. The transition from a united force to a community suffering from social impairment would appear almost complete.

There is heat in the air. The country seems to be facing a 'Hobson's choice': take it or leave it. Take what or leave what is the question that divides the country.

Before the revolution people who favoured neither the government nor the Muslim Brotherhood had no voice, they were referred to as the silent majority. The voice that people found with the onset of rebellion appeared to have no definitive goal and therefore ventured forth compromised from the offset, attached to an imminent threat of evaporation.

With a once upon a time pride of determination, former exhilaration is replaced with attempts to find safety in numbers through the maze of twisted power games.  

With hopes for visualised reform practically dashed and the onset of old regime candidacy, a strong feeling of betrayal prevails. With remembrance of so many young and innocent lives lost for having dared protest~ the phrase adding insult to injury can only be comprised as an understatement.

But there will always be minds, eyes, ears and above all beating hearts that will continue to address and battle on through the murky jungles of subjugation and control. Bloodshed is a terrifying prospect but remains one that many appear undaunted by if the alternative is yet another, more accentuated form of slavery due to manipulated oppression. 

The really poor await their blankets, their bread and their shelter and together with rebelling liberated minds struggle to find a way forward. All the while, 'the forces that be' play their power games and appear at least one step ahead, mapping out their targets with tactical mind games through their evident hold upon the country's economy and assets. 

All indictments, all trials, all penalties are swept effortlessly under the carpet of a blameless autocracy upheld by an army, considerable in strength and after all part of the country's defense mechanism and therefore indispensable. Whoever does make it to the ruling seat will undoubtedly need the army's well-backed approval or drop out at the first hurdle.

Here, subtitled, are very different, interesting perspectives from:

Words of Women from the Egyptian Revolution

a group of independent film-makers and activists who are working to document the participation of women in the Egyptian Revolution.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=exStflgfBDY&feature=youtu.be 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NamUZHWJem0

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M9aXkZCr5hE&feature=youtu.be 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iuiefMITEtI&feature=youtu.be 

more to come soon.

Links submitted by SaraH

Group chats continue to contribute.

Blog Note/ Watch this space ~ to be ctd

A note to kind readers, with many thanks.

The situation in Egypt today is so multi-faceted that finding the need to edit and re-edit may sometimes appear quite endless. August post 'Egypt, a nation determined' was written as a homage to my home-land upon a short return visit after experiencing the uprising that shook the world shake my somewhat quiescent existence in the UK.

I feel the only truly positive thing coming out of such a movement is affirmation of how creative the spirit can be. I am particularly thrilled to witness how some TV presenters such as Yosri Fouda conduct interviews and commentaries. They have truly raised the bar. I also feel very drawn to the music scene, the art and drama world that seems to be budding all over the place and receiving most justified recognition but perhaps deserving quite a lot more. Universal appreciation in days to come will hopefully raise morale and allow the visible talent to flourish and reflect the nation's tangible flair of spirit. These fresh aspects of a country in genuine strife, politically speaking, are nothing if not comforting since they allow hope to survive and optimism to find its own little licence for existence.    

Comments appreciated
'Please share your thoughts with us. Your feedback is not only valued but stands as a contributory factor to the spirit of the blog. Thank you.'

http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=rGc4iUhxWjQ

 


The above link is in Arabic. Just viewing the cross sampled faces emits a feel-good factor. Loosely it translates:  
an outline for a serious venture is currently being set up by the youth and people of the revolution hoping to gather feedback from the Egyptian people from all walks of life, enough to draw up a constitution which is not so much politically motivated as culturally ~ It aims at charting people's hopes, dreams and expectations and their expression of such through art in all its forms.

Into that we may read that come what may~ all is not lost. 

For interesting videos (with subtitles) about current perspectives please visit 'Old Rule' posted 9th April 2012

 

Through presence of significant political lampoonery despondency has spread; reform has become increasingly difficult to address except through satire; an ever growing art among a people whose sense of humour has always ranked high among its attributes.

This is how many see the revolution crash and the old regime triumph. 

An army employed as a controling tool by a duplicitous power with tentacles reaching deep.

"The people has been divided into contradicting factions and the true meaning and spirit of our revolution is lost."
Read and listen to more:
  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9jq0FBVxH2U&feature=share 

Opinions are divided and fervour is rife. Ironically, views opposing the aspirations of the revolutionary protestors appear less flexible and more constraining than ever before with less and less tolerance towards a confused community at large. The original movement spurring on the revolution finds itself compelled to relinquish hold of its former adamant determination to succeed in lieu of clinging on to the little it can positively salvage from the wreckage of trust and devastation of despair.

Among those who endeavour to hold on to unadulterated aspirations there seeps a subliminal message; it reads: 

 .. an army without flexibility never wins a battle.

A tree that is unbending is easily broken.

The hard and strong will fall.

The soft and weak will overcome

(Tao Te Ching. 1.XXV1)

When all looks bleak, sitting back while endgames are being played out is simply a push of the 'pause' button. The venture herein linked will keep us motivated, grounded and help us free our spirits, therefore please do continue to watch this space.

Appended on the 27th March '12

"Certain narratives, such as the narrative that credits writer on non-violence Gene Sharp with the strategy leading to the toppling of Mubarak, and that which credits social media with being a major force, were also seen as a kind of stealing of revolution. With regard to social media, most participants, while critical of the Twitter/Facebook revolution hype, also refused the opposite position of denying that social media had any role to play. "

photo by Naira Antoun

'“Narrating the Arab Spring” took place over three days, 18-20 February, at Cairo University. Several threads wove through the tens of papers given over a number of parallel sessions, covering a range of issues and questions—some analytical, others more of a descriptive and documentary bent. Here I bring together a few threads that I think are particularly pertinent.'

Read more:  http://www.jadaliyya.com/pages/index/4820/threads-of-narrating-the-arab-spring

Caricature submitted by N.Elkouni, links by SaraH and Sh.elS

Thoughts following group chat (Nadia, A.Nowaira, Sh.elS and amiT)

photos:amiT