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What Egyptians Should Be Protesting

April 16, 2016
Protesters gather to demonstrate Egypt’s decision to declare two Red Sea islands as Saudi Arabian Credit: Belal Darder

On Friday, several thousand Egyptians gathered in Cairo, Alexandria and other major cities to demonstrate Egypt’s recent decision to declare two Red Sea islands as Saudi Arabian. Across the country and the world, the protesters were hailed by some for their courage and for “keeping the revolution alive”. However, commentators, analysts, and the protesters themselves have failed to realize the fact that this level of anger only came after a decision that actually had significant merit. While many have argued passionately that the islands should remain Egyptian, it is difficult to deny the wealth of evidence supporting the Egyptian government’s claims that the islands have historically belonged to Saudi Arabia. Instead, #Land_Friday trended worldwide and protesters were hailed for campaigning for what appears to be a legally debatable cause. Demonstrators have been silent to the many vital problems across Egypt that have impacted the lives of millions. Television shows, parliamentary members, and even political leaders who have been silent for years, suddenly came out of the dark to express their outrage at this decision, yet have provided a muted response to many other real, life-changing issues. There have been no demonstrations against the quality…


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