In the midst of sectarian turmoil and a turbulent run-up to Sunday’s parliamentary polls, Facebook activists added fuel to the fire with calls for a nationwide protest this weekend.
The anonymous administrator of the Facebook page “We are all Khaled Saeed” called upon Egyptians to turn Friday, 26 November into a “day of anger,” during which participants are expected to wear black and produce noise to express their opposition to police violations of human rights and the continuation of the state of emergency.
The Facebook page reads: “On Friday, we will all prove that we are united against torture and the humiliation of the dignity of Egyptian young people.”
The page was created last summer to commemorate the killing of a young man in Alexandria, allegedly by two policemen, and expose Egypt’s poor human rights record.
The Facebook platform attracted hundreds of thousands of users who sympathized with the cause and mobilized scores of demonstrations in Alexandria. Eventually, the two suspects were referred to court. Their trial opened in late July and is set to resume on Saturday.
In an earlier interview, the page’s architect told Al-Masry Al-Youm that he sought to come up with innovative protest tactics in order to circumvent laws that ban demonstrations. Last summer, the page introduced the idea of silent protests, during which silent protestors dressed in black and stood in line along the sea.
“At 7 PM sharp, we’ll all engage in something that will be happening in Egypt for the first time,” wrote the page’s creator, who goes by the pseudonym Elshaheed (Arabic for “martyr”). “All those with cars should keep their horns on….We will be carrying Egypt’s flag and blowing whistles to express our anger. Even those in their homes should take to their balconies and make noise by any means.”
“They should know that we will not shut up and will not take any more humiliation and disgrace,” added the page.
"I have not heard of such protest methods anywhere else in the world," said said Hafez Abu Seada, secretary-general of the Egyptian Organization for Human Rights. "I support all forms of expression as long as they do not harm others."
So far, nearly 6000 Facebook users said they would participate in the planned protest.
“I am against nuisance,” said Ghada Shahbander, a prominent human rights activist. “But this is a normal reaction because people always shut up. So they need to raise their voice in order to be heard.”
The call was endorsed by the followers of would-be independent presidential candidate Mohamed ElBaradei, who posted the same Facebook message on the website.
The plea comes shortly ahead of parliamentary elections set for Sunday. The run-up to elections has been marred by clashes between the government and opposition supporters. The scene was particularly volatile in constituencies in which the Muslim Brotherhood opposition movement is running against the ruling National Democratic Party.
The call also comes on the heels of violent clashes that erupted between the police and thousands of Coptic protestors in Southern Cairo on Wednesday. Violence broke out after police halted construction of a church that Copts had built without obtaining a building permit.
One Copt was killed and scores from both sides–including 14 policemen–were injured in the confrontation.
“The atmosphere is filled with tension. I fear the police reaction to the protest will be violent,” Abu Seada said.
In the meantime, Abu Seada expressed doubt that the calls for a “day of anger” would resonate with large swathes of Egypt’s depoliticized population.
“Facebook calls are meant for the Facebook users, and do not reach all the people. Plus, there is nothing that could mobilize large numbers of people except for economic demands,” he said.
“Big protests have nothing to do with ideas like human rights,” Abu Seada added.
In recent years, Facebook has emerged as a platform for opposition to the regime of President Hosni Mubarak. In 2008, young activists used the social networking website to publicize a labor strike in the Nile Delta, which eventually culminated in a riot.
