On the recent crackdown on sexual minorities in Egypt!
Ever since the last time I blogged here, many events have taken place; most of which were dramatic and sad. On both personal and political levels, we have all gone through drastic changes. We are still suffering from the post-Arab Spring phase in the region. We have thought that the so - called revolutions in the Arab World would lead to better circumstances and conditions. We have made believe that it will finally bring us prosperity, more liberties; democracy, stability; social justice and diminish poverty. Unfortunately, it did not. On the contrary it led to more havoc, namely, in Iraq, Syria,Libya and Yemen.
This was not the case in Egypt despite the turmoil it went through and the violence that broke out during the second half of 2013. We have seen the country leaning towards relative stability and gaining much more security as opposed to 2011, which marked the outbreak of the Arab Spring, which toppled a number of authoritarian Arab Presidents and led to more chaos and destruction in the end not to mention the instability it caused as it replaced secular dictators with totalitarian and authoritarian Islamist Fascist theocratic rulers or in some cases replaced them by military autocrats.
Following the ouster of the former Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak, personal freedoms have suffered from a backlash and setbacks socially and legally.
Since the advent of the Muslim Brotherhood ruling and then the Military-backed president El -Sissi personal freedoms started to degrade and turn into a sad reality. I hereby bear witness to what`s currently happening in Egypt and i truthfully cannot blame it all on the government nor even the legislation system but also on the society and the nation itself.
There is a large segment of the society which is prone to discrimination and sometimes physical danger - to name a few of the categories vulnerable and marginalized: Feminists ( not necessarily feminists but women in general), dark-skinned people; people with special needs, Nubian population, atheists; LGBTIQ ( Lesbians, Gays, Bisexuals, Transsexual and Transgender People, Intersex, Queer, Free Thinkers; sexually-liberated people, Baha'i`; Shiite, Christians, Jews; Quranists , religious, racial and sexual in General in addition to the stigma inflicted on people living with HIV. They are not only subjected to verbal harassment or verbal violence or marginalization and seclusion by the government but they are also denied and deprived of all rights and sometimes subjected to physical violence especially the LGBT category.
Here is just an example of Homophobia in Egypt at its best, reaching new heights;and people who watched what`s going on didn't bother to help the victim who was attacked verbally and physically and mocked by a group of homophobic bullies, who demonstrated their fake superiority over the poor guy in the worst manner ever. sadly, the guy didn't get any help from passers by. The Police didn't Intervene. Moreover, there are no Laws in Egypt that incriminate or prohibit gay bashing or even discrimination against LGBT.
Here is a URL to the shocking video published by activists a few days ago....
This proves my point that the society and the people themselves are to be blamed along with the government for the spread of homophobia. It is not only the recent wave of police raids on gay cruising areas but also the mentality of Egyptians that fell short of denouncing and renouncing Homophobia ....
Many factors lead to the rise in homophobia in Egypt, on the one hand the deeply cultural- rooted
sexism, macho mentality and the discourse that depicts women inferior to men ( which states that men are dominant and more powerful) all these factor lead to the rise in homophobia and sexual harassment. on the other hand, the rejection of diversity and being different in Egypt either you are hetero or homosexual.... if you are different, you will be oppressed and discriminated against.
sexism, macho mentality and the discourse that depicts women inferior to men ( which states that men are dominant and more powerful) all these factor lead to the rise in homophobia and sexual harassment. on the other hand, the rejection of diversity and being different in Egypt either you are hetero or homosexual.... if you are different, you will be oppressed and discriminated against.
Absence of laws that prohibit discrimination and violence against sexual minorities plays a role in the rise of the phenomenon. It escalates the current Status Quo, especially with the recent media hype about the government combating immoral acts and perversion. The media plays a heinous and malignant role in inciting against sexual minorities and transgender people.
Religion and traditions in Egypt both stand as a chronic stumbling block in the face of progression in Egypt, with the large influence ultra-salafi preachers have in the most populous country in the Middle East. The situation for the gay community hasn’t changed much during and since
the revolution to be honest. It has been stagnant and pretty much the same.
Despite the fact that dozens of members of the gay community took to the street
protesting against Mubarak and participated in the protests, activists fell
short of speaking about gay rights during the revolution. It has changed
nothing. The society didn’t make a social or a sexual revolution. Homophobia is
deeply rooted in the culture. It is a legacy of a mixture of religion and
traditions in addition to, masculinity and sexism. On the contrary, I think the situation has gotten worse, if it is not the
police crackdown; it is the political unrest which led to a security vacuum. I
believe this caused a rise in the number of violence incidents. Violence
practiced against the queer community.
During the Muslim Brotherhood backed President`s tenure (2012-2013), there was
still political unrest, his group and
entourage were pretty much preoccupied with monopolizing and taking over the
State Institutions; and with only one year in power, they couldn’t or didn’t
have enough time to crackdown on gays.However, we would be naive to believe
that they would have granted them rights. Islamists are the same as Military.
They disdain and loathe homosexuals. We were relieved in the beginning that
they were gone and ousted but the crackdown increased following the advent of
El Sisi`s rule.
Not only this, but there a growing sense of
fake preservation of morals by the media and the regime. There is an excess of
stories tackled by the media related to private lives and personal freedoms.
The media plays an instigating role. The
media sometimes instigates and drives the Ministry of Interior to arrest gay
guys.
The Egyptian government chose to crack down on
places at some times rather than others....(ie everyone knows that the sauna is
a gay meeting, why do they chose to make a big raid for the media at sometimes),,, This is largely due to the fact that the successive regimes that preceded and followed the Arab Spring phase in Egypt, - (name it Mubarak, Sisi, Morsi or whoever will replace them) have always
used such topics as a tool to distract the attention of the public opinion and
divert their anger towards something else instead of them venting their anger
on the government. It is politicized. The police definitely knows all about the
gay cruising areas and the places that are frequented by the gay people, and
they just wait for the right moment to launch a smearing campaign. In the same
week, the media talked about cafes frequented by atheists and covered stories
related to personal freedoms and gossips about celebrity to distract the
attention of the public. Many online news websites intensified its coverage of
news related to the recent arrests by morality police of prostitutes (Sex
workers).
-
As long as we have flawed and regressive laws, the crackdown wont stop.
The International community has to play an active role in enforcing UN
resolutions related to the
protection of the vulnerable sexual minorities. Pressure has to be put on the
Egyptian government. The Egyptian law doesn’t explicitly mandate the
incrimination of homosexuality, but other obsolete laws targeting prostitution
and debauchery are used in the prosecution of gay guys.
In the Ramsis bathhouse case in particular, it was driven by a
notoriously shameful TV Anchor who reported the bathhouse to the police and
spoke on TV about it, the Ministry of Interior immediately ordered the arrest
of the guys, in a move meant to prove to Islamists that the military regime is
also protecting and guarding the morals and maintaining the Egyptian traditions
intact. In another case reported earlier, the gay wedding party on a boat in the Nile, A female Member of the
Muslim Brotherhood claimed that gay marriage would only take place during
Sissi`s era.
The situation for LGBT frequenting the Downtown Community in Cairo has drastically changed, due to the recent turmoil many cafes became abandoned by gay guys unlike before, especially with the rise in police arrests. Still, there are few gay-friendly places where they hang out. It is still a bit dangerous, however, it remains more friendly than other areas.
It depends on where you live in Cairo. You
cannot be yourself and openly gay or feminine in a slum in Cairo, yet you can still be bashed in an upper-class neighborhood.
I cannot set my expectations high enough. I lost faith in the possibility of gay rights happening in Egypt. All I just hope for is at least passing laws that prohibits discrimination against Gays, Lesbians, Transgender, Queer and bisexual people and protect gender non-conforming people. They should at least stop interfering in personal freedoms and protect bodily rights. They should cease the arrest of people based on their sexual acts. I also hope that homophobia gets eradicated from the Egyptian society.
sometimes I start to presume that Mubarak`s regime was much more compliant with
the international pressure and less resilient and less fierce than nowadays.
Again,
Conclusion and notes in my own humble opinion:
1- To be a gay man in Egypt is quite perplexing, tough, stressful, dangerous and thrilling at the same time. I can say it depends on where you live if you live in a big city such as the capital , or in a small town, village or the countryside which is definitely more conservative....consequently it differs from a place to another, and also depends on the place you hangout in the capital itself, your neighborhood etc...
The obvious- looking ones, name it (feminine or lady boys and transgender) can be subjected to discrimination and violence at a wide range, socially and security-wise. Not to mention the harassment in the streets, catcalls or verbal and physical assaults (occurrence is possible and frequent). I once saw a group of macho guys stalking an effeminate boy in the street, cursing him and when he ignored and kept walking down he was grabbed, bullied and slapped on the face and no one gave a damn until two police informants intervened. If the police decides to arrest a gay guy or entrap him one day, or raid a gay party, then their lives would be ruined; even if they get away with it or get acquitted, the media will speak about it and he will be ashamed forever. So it is tough yet other Arab and Muslim countries execute homosexuals.
2- The reaction to the recent sentencing of a group of gay guys, who appeared in a video uploaded on youtube; showing them celebrating what was dubbed by the media as a gay wedding party in a boat on the nile, was met by shock and decries by quite few human rights organizations which vehemently condemned the regime for the recent crackdown and of course was met with shock , fear and concerns by the homosexual community. However, the guys appearing in the video didn't get the solidarity and support needed from non-homosexual communities or ordinary citizens.... If you read the comments on the video that was leaked.... you would notice the amount of homophobia and incitement against them .... Some people called for their killings, the media was tarnishing them; very few outlets were objective and didn't incite against them, some members of the Muslim Brotherhood politicized the issue and blamed the so -called military coup on the gay-wedding video. They even said: "this wouldn't have ever happened during Morsi`s presidential term".
3- I believe the media`s recent intense coverage of the issue is a double-edged weapon, it could shed light on the personal freedoms and bodily rights but on the other hand, mentioning names of the gay social media outlets and dating apps and website could introduce them to the public whose curiosity or homophobia and hostility can motivate them to use it and then ambush gay guys and beat them like what happens in Russia.
4- There is not a big difference for the gay rights situation during the three different eras of Mubarak, Morsi and El Sisi to be honest: it is the same. All of the three regimes targeted homosexuals in different ways and at different levels. To believe that morsi`s ruling would have been better for us is a silly joke. of course, there have been cases of arresting gays and oppression was recorded. This only happens when the government decides to distract the public from urging issues to more controversial issues, or to make political use and to appear as the custodian and guardian of morals and virtues to appease or win over Islamists such as salafis. The media showed the video which in itself pressurized the ministry of interior to arrest and take the guys to the court to evade criticism and pressure by media and people and of course Islamists.
5-This is always going to happen no matter what regime it is , as long as the laws are not changed ,and the mentalities and cultures of Egyptians are still stagnant and resistant to change and liberalism... As long as Islam and religion generally dominate the society, as long as Egypt is complying with the Gulf Arab States pressure to vote against laws aiming at the protection of LGBT in the UN. Additionally, the government would not have targeted LGBT, unless it is accepted by the citizens who are mostly hypocritical about it and homophobic.
The only difference is that during Mubarak`s era, there was much more security and safety in the streets.
Atleast during Mubarak rule, Egypt secretly complied with pressure from UN and allowed the UN working staff in Egypt to spread sexual health awareness among the gay cruising areas.
6- A good ideal Egypt:
This would only happens when people start to expand their horizons and become really liberal and open-minded and ready to accept other people no matter what differences , and accept diversity and start to become more secular. This would deem doable, when we have achieved a great record of preserving human rights and protection of religious freedoms. This would happen when the government and the society is more secular and laws that genuinely protect all citizens equally are passed. This would be achieved when minorities are fully respected and protected and granted their rights, name it Atheists, homosexuals, sexually liberated people, sex workers.... etc...
7- I am not asking for allowing gay marriage. but merely asking for laws that protect homosexuals and trans-sexual people from violence and discrimination.
8- The story of Omar Sheriff Jr. made me think that if we start to see more celebrities from Egypt coming out of the closet publicly and forcing their visibility this might help creating slight changes. the gay community circles were quite proud of Omar`s audacity and declared solidarity with him. However, and not surprisingly, media lashed out against him, and of course, it began its usual smear campaigns tarnishing and shaming him and the comments of the readers were appalling and hateful.
9- The police focuses much more on arresting prostitutes or sex workers either gay or females. we don't even have a law that stipulates that homosexuality is prohibited. They use the debauchery and defamation of religions law to prosecute them.
10 - I don't think that the International Community`s reaction to the crackdown is enough, what they just do is issuing condemning statements... While the governments ignore them and keep on doing what they want , i guess the international community has to find mechanisms to enforce the resolutions issued by the UN, and start to impose sanctions on the violating countries. Western world is complicit in supporting dictatorial and terrorists-sponsoring regimes such as Saudi Arabia , Iran , Turkey and others , so i lost faith in the international community, governments and the UN. all corrupt!
11- I knew about some guys that have been arrested, or beaten up by bullies in the streets, some were stolen , mugged entrapped and some were disowned and kicked out of the house by their families.
12-I don't want Egypt to be like any country in the MENA region, because none of them is the role model for me, even Israel!
I would rather hope Egypt becomes like Scandinavian countries or Canada one day in terms of abiding by human rights and equality laws.Israel is far better than the rest of Arab countries in term of gay rights status but it is engaged in pink-washing , what`s the use of protecting gay rights, while your country was established on a religious basis, your army is fascist and etc.... all countries are abusive in different ways.
Some references to articles about recent crackdown on homosexuals in Egypt:
http://www.madamasr.com/sections/politics/lessons-morality-egyptian-media
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