Dissent isn't something easily countenanced in Egypt. Whilst the country might be the second biggest recipient of US aid after Israel, so-called American values of freedom of association and elections, democratic values and a proper judicial system are singularly absent.
It is therefore surprising that an Egyptian poetess, Iman Bakry, has had almost carte blanche in criticising the Mubarak regime and commenting on the state of the nation:
"The explosion is already happening," she said in an interview in her Cairo apartment. "There's demonstrations, political activism, labor strikes, protests over clean water and bread shortages. All this signals the collapse of the whole society. We are walking to hell, toward a very dark future."
The LA Times explains in a piece "Dissident poet is allowed to speak, but Egypt's leaders aren't listening" who Bakry is:
"Bakry is a media-savvy wordsmith who has risen to national prominence through television appearances and public readings. Her politically barbed verse articulates the frustrations and false dreams that have embittered a cynical public and laced the air with hints of rebellion. Opposition forces are often silenced and intimidated by the authoritarian government, but Bakry senses the anger welling.
A former Arabic language teacher, Bakry has a curious relationship with the government she pillories. Until recently she headed the publishing department of the Egyptian Cultural Ministry. She resigned after complaining that her superiors resisted new writers and new ideas. She also sensed that some within the ruling National Democratic Party were fed up with her criticism of Mubarak's 27-year rule."
It is therefore surprising that an Egyptian poetess, Iman Bakry, has had almost carte blanche in criticising the Mubarak regime and commenting on the state of the nation:
"The explosion is already happening," she said in an interview in her Cairo apartment. "There's demonstrations, political activism, labor strikes, protests over clean water and bread shortages. All this signals the collapse of the whole society. We are walking to hell, toward a very dark future."
The LA Times explains in a piece "Dissident poet is allowed to speak, but Egypt's leaders aren't listening" who Bakry is:
"Bakry is a media-savvy wordsmith who has risen to national prominence through television appearances and public readings. Her politically barbed verse articulates the frustrations and false dreams that have embittered a cynical public and laced the air with hints of rebellion. Opposition forces are often silenced and intimidated by the authoritarian government, but Bakry senses the anger welling.
A former Arabic language teacher, Bakry has a curious relationship with the government she pillories. Until recently she headed the publishing department of the Egyptian Cultural Ministry. She resigned after complaining that her superiors resisted new writers and new ideas. She also sensed that some within the ruling National Democratic Party were fed up with her criticism of Mubarak's 27-year rule."
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