Where world’s collide
20 December, 2011 in News, Places, Politics
Usky the Tourist
The recent news stories concerning the continued unrest in Egypt fill me with sadness. Just thirteen months ago I was enjoying immersing myself in that country’s most amazing history and culture. The people I met during my visit and the friendships I made gave me but a small insight into the people’s troubles and concerns over the corruption of then leader Hosni Mubarak; the misconception being that all would be well if Mubarak’s regime could be toppled. Hosni Mubarak fell from power in February and the parliamentary elections that began in November were heralded as the next vital stage in the country’s post-revolutionary history, how sad then that members of the security services can still be found on the streets meeting out their own particular form of justice against peaceful protesters?
I have no answer to the situation in Egypt, I just hope it can be resolved quickly and cleanly with the minimum discomfort to the population at large; justice and opportunity in equal measure for all.
My lasting memory of Egypt is of a land where ancient and modern not only meet at the crossroads of life, but co-exist in a way I have not experienced elsewhere. Of a people who endure hardship, but embrace hope. Also of a land where bribery and corruption are rife… but no more rife than here in the UK perhaps, just more open.
Egypt: a land where worlds collide
