Egypt has the most number of people in the Arab world and has the second most number of people on the African content. Regions in Egypt such as Cairo and Alexandria are among the world’s most densely populated because eighty million Egyptians live there. It contains 3,280 persons per square mile compared to 200 persons per square mile for the country. Communities tend to live in the urban area despite the government’s attempt to promote living in the rural areas. The proportion of population in the rural area is decreasing as they move to cities to look for higher standards of living and employment. Egypt’s population has been growing rapidly. As population grows, the need for businesses and housing lands rises, and the land used for agriculture falls, which makes Egypt produce less of its own natural resources.
There are many underlying causes of underdevelopment. It differs in every country. Egypt’s underlying causes for its under development are its legal origins and lack of judicial checks and balances. Egypt is the second most financially developed country in the 1913. It is a French civil law country. French civil law developed by using the state power to alter property rights. In a French civil law country, there is a high rate of government ownership, which becomes an important cause of inefficiency, as the government controls the rules and properties, this might eventually lead to corruption and high unemployment rate of a country that follows it. The government’s attempt to control and keep the power contributes to the crisis in Egypt, such as, financial and food crisis. The government’s desperate attempts to hold on to power cost its credibility and its legitimacy. Lack of judicial checks and balances are present in Egypt. Judicial checks and balances, gives the right to a Supreme or a Constitutional court to limit selfish efforts of governments. Constitutional review is used to secure the political and human rights as well as the preservation of democracy. But in Egypt, there were a big percentage of human rights violation, especially human rights violation that is done by the administration or the people in power. There should be also a preservation of democracy if there is no lack in judicial checks and balances, but in Egypt. Democracy is abused. It was not felt by the people because of the rule of President Mubarak. He concentrated all his power on his hands and did what he think the best for his country but never listened to what the people wanted. And there should be a supreme court that would limit the selfish acts of government in abusing the power given to them. But the supreme court has not enough control or say in the country. Civil law countries, such as, Egypt, has not adopted the idea of judicial independence. Judges remained subordinate to President Mubarak and his administration. . Independent judges are not guarantors of freedom in Egypt. In a French civil law country, there is a lower security of property rights and a higher government ownership. Levels of political freedom are significantly different between civil law countries and common law countries. Lower levels of political freedom are present in common law countries compared to civil law countries, French legal origin countries and lower levels of political freedom present. Egypt does not have a high level of economic freedom compared to a country, that is with German and Scandinavian legal origins.
Egypt has been under a one-party political system for three decades. The control of its president since 1981, President Mubarak, over Egypt may have caused its underdevelopment. Because of his too much control over his position, his repression over his people may start to create a civil war.
The Ottoman controlled Egypt for 365 years. The commander of dependent troops of the Ottoman turks, Mohammed Ali, was appointed to found Egypt. He eagerly ordered to westernize the capital city of Egypt, Cairo, by constructing a city that is European-like. British forces started a revolt against the Ottoman empire, making it the start of the occupation of the British empire of the Egypt. British influence dominated Egyptian’s reforms, such as, its fiscal, administrative, and governmental reforms.
Greater political freedom and new economic policy were introduced to Egypt by Sadat. These loosen up the control of the Egyptian government over its economy and investments. Sadat legally banned the use of torture in Egypt, the government officials that are accused of criminal actions were brought to trial. He also expanded the political participation in 1970s but was abandoned because of the violence resulting from the discontent of his ruling, which led to the experience of repression of Egypt. President Sadat was assassinated and his vice president, the air force commander during the October 1973 war, Hosni Mubarak was elected as the President of Egypt. The Egyptian constitution has an authority, which is vested upon the elected president. The president can appoint one or more vice presidents, a prime minister, and a cabinet. The president has six years to rule the country. There are 454 members of the People’s Assembly, the legislative body of Egypt. The president appoints 10 of the members while 444 of them are elected. There is a legislation that has been passed in 2009 states the addition new seats set aside for women alone. 50% of the assembly seats in Egyptian constitution are reserved for workers and peasants. The assembly’s term run for 5 years but can be dissolved earlier by the president. There are 264 members in a consultative council, the president appointed 88 of them while the other 176 members are elected and has a 6-year term but elections of the consultative council are done every 3 years. Authority is also exercised below the national level. It is exercised through the appointment of the central government and elected local councils to the positions of governors and mayors. Opposition party have the right to make their own public views and represent their followers, but even though they have the right to have their own views, the power is still concentrated on the president and the institutions of the political system. There are 21 parties present in Egypt, excluding the National Democratic party. The non-governmental organizations’ political process and freedom of expression have restrictions.
For the first time since 1952, Egypt experienced a progress in the political system in 2005, President Mubarak wanted to consolidate efforts for more freedom and democracy, therefore, he had allowed multi-candidate elections, where parties are allowed to fight against the administration, which let the Egyptians to choose a leader other than from Mubarak. However, he had put restrictions to the new law, which prevented the politicians who run against Mubarak from being popular, which made it easy for President Mubarak to win the 2005 elections with 88% of the voters’ population voted for him. When elected, President Mubarak introduced institutions that would increase his power as a president and he banned political parties based on race, ethnicity, and religion. Independence and principles of due process are increased and judicial review had greater respect under the Mubarak government. Government interference was accused to Mubarak and his supporters by election observers. They said that Mubarak and his supporters interfered through vote rigging, police brutality, fraud, and violence against the opposition. After the elections, President Mubarak imprisoned Ayman Nour, his runner-up in the presidential elections in 2005, but the U.S Government questioned the Egypt’s commitment to freedom, democracy, and the rule of law, after the imprisonment of Ayman Nour. Egyptians are doubtful with the democracy of Egypt and the rules of elections. There were 32 million registered voters out of the more than 72 million population of Egypt, but only less than of 25% of the 32 million voting population participated in the Presidential elections. Human Rights of Egypt are considered poor by several local and international human rights organizations. President Mubarak suppressed the activists of democracy, who challenged his rule. There are many human rights violation that can be seen in Egypt. Routine torture, arbitrary detentions, and trials of the military and security courts were some of the most serious violation that the Egyptians experienced. Critics also said that Egypt was noted for putting the women at a disadvantage by the discriminatory personal status laws that governs marriage, inheritance, and custody. And for placing restrictions on major construction of Christian churches, even though the restrictions regarding the church building and worshiping have been relieved.
Despite President Mubarak’s political autocracy, he has provided a level of peace and a level of stability in Egypt. President Mubarak has maintained peace with Israel, which Egypt fought wars for 25 years. He as also become a close supporter of the United States. He also enforced Muslim society and made Coptic Christian minority safe from growing attacks. Because of President Mubarak, Egypt has been stable and it stood as a force of stability.
Egypt is now experiencing a leaderless revolution. There is a pushing going on for a role in transitional government. No one knows ho to end this unrest in Egypt. President Mubarak promised that he would not run for this year’s presidential elections, but the people still insists that he should leave his position now.
Egypt is the second on the list of who receives most U.S foreign aid. It receives $2 billion annually, since 1979. U.S aid to Egypt is devoted on the strengthening of military, economic assistance, and security.
There are strong ties between the United States and Egypt, for they have mutual interests in peace in the Middle East, and the stability of its economy and security.
U.S military’s aid to Egypt totals to $1.3 billion annually but even with this amount, U.S cannot strengthen Egypt military power, for it is against the declared objective of the United States of ensuring Israeli’s supremacy and security over other Arab countries.
The given aid to Egypt by the United States enable private sectors to import goods and purchase military goods from the United State, as stated in the U.S. aid conditions to ensure that the given aid would return back to the United States by importing American products and that Egypt should give less competitive prices for American companies.
The aid benefits the military and the government of Egypt. The aid helps the military by modernizing its armed forces and its military equipment. According to the State Department, Egypt has received equipment such as fighter jets, armored personnel carriers, helicopters, missile, tanks, and surveillance aircraft. Egypt either purchased the equipment from the U.S contractors or from the U.S military. The Egyptian military holds the ultimate key to stability, security, and peaceful democracy.
Egypt’s economic aid from the United States has declined but it still receives over hundreds of millions. United States had given $57 million to the Egypt government to fund for the project that would increase the jobs and incomes to the country. But the participants did not meet the planned number of increase in jobs. In 2009, United States had given $151 million to fund the project that would modernize the financial sector of Egypt. The project was successful and the country experienced growth in its finance market throughout the duration of the project. It was criticized that the U.S government was not focusing on the problems of growing poverty and unemployment rate but focused more on the “programs valued for strict ideological reasons”.
United States had given $24 million to fund the Egypt’s NGO to promote good governance through democracy. But due to the lack of cooperation and participation of the Egypt’s government, the program had limited impact, especially, because for the Egyptian government, NGOs’ were too aggressive. They also asked the United States to stop funding organizations that are not properly registered as NGOs. According to a report in 2007, Mubarak was described as “deeply skeptical of the US role in democracy promotion.”
Egypt’s stability was fragile and still remains fragile because of the political reforms that had been with them for the past three decades, which is widely described as disastrous. It is important to look at the political system of the most populous country in the Arab world, which is Egypt. Because it shows the reality of the one-party political systems that has been prevailed over the past years for three decades. Egypt’s governance crisis and its government’s rightfulness to control the power and the position had triggered the ongoing argument about the Egypt’s future under the presidency of Mubarak, which can be seen in Cairo and in the other streets of the country.
The reason of its fragility can be seen in the recent happenings in Egypt. Egypt’s President Hosni Mubarak, the president for three decades and the leader of the National Democratic Party holds the power over Egypt and strengthened it over the years. There are two main opposition parties present in Egypt. The Muslim Brotherhood and the Wafd Party. Both parties allege President Mubarak of voting irregularities, fraud, interference, supporter intimidation by the government, and violence.
The Muslim Brotherhood even if banned over the past two decades, they helped establish an important position in the landscape of the country, socially and politically. The plan of President Mubarak to curb the power over Egypt and government’s greatest opposition was seen when the Muslim Brotherhood was left with no position in the new assembly, even if they had 20% of the outgoing parliament. Recent statements say that the ruling party will put his son, Gamal, in position in the next presidential elections. Mubarak, the president since 1981, has no longer hold on the power of his position. Yet Egyptians think that whether President Mubarak will stay in power or he will designate a successor, such as his son, instability and political violence will arise. With this possible outcome, government’s attempts to attract foreign investors and tourism to fuel the lifeline of Egypt’s revenues are threatened.
The government has failed to reduce the deficit of the country and is trying to raise the investment and savings. Egypt’s increasing unemployment rate and population growth are contributing to the problem of the country by placing large and heavy burden to the government’s shoulders to hold. Government tries to make opportunities in the workforce for the 750000 Egyptians who enter the workforce annually. Egypt’s high rates of poverty and unemployment add to the weakness and political instability of the country.
Egypt’s stability depends on the National Democratic Party’s ability to produce a committed leader, and who can acquire the undivided support of the citizens in Egypt and the ruling elite. And a leader, who is dedicated to democracy and political and economic reform.
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