UCLA grad student witnesses Egypt’s first parliamentary elections

After participating in protests in Egypt’s Tahrir Square for the past week, Hazem Kandil watched on Monday as voters headed to the polls for the country’s first-ever parliamentary elections since former President Hosni Mubarak’s fall from power.

The doctoral Islamic studies student cancelled his discussion section and flew to Egypt last week to join protesters staging demonstrations in Tahrir Square. He had learned that Egyptian security forces were cracking down, and people he knew were getting hurt, he said.

Kandil, who completed his masters in political science from the American University in Cairo, flew to Egypt in July to protest. He said he only returned to UCLA when he was convinced the government would hold its security apparatus accountable for attacking protestors with tear and nerve gas and live ammunition.

The renewed protest set demands for two things ““ an end to military rule, and accountability on the part of security forces that supported Mubarak’s regime, Kandil said.

“(Violent treatment of peaceful protesters) is not acceptable,” Kandil said. “It is my duty to leave what I am doing and contribute to sending this message to the people in power.”

There are currently three UCLA students studying in Cairo, said Ines DeRomana, student safety and emergency response analyst for the University of California Education Abroad Program.

She said the UC students are safe in the university and associated housing, and have been instructed to avoid political gatherings and protests.

The elections, the first since Mubarak stepped down in February, will create the lower house of a new parliament. Preliminary results indicate strong support for the Muslim Brotherhood’s Freedom and Justice Party.

This month’s round of voting will be followed by elections in the upper house of the parliament and by presidential elections in March. A few students, who DeRomana said plan on remaining in the country and enrolling in the spring semester, will be in the country during this time.

Real change in Egypt will be harder to realize than in other countries in the Middle East which have experienced similar revolutions, said James Gelvin, a professor of Middle Eastern history. The Egyptian regime did not fragment like the Libyan dictatorship did, Gelvin said.

The military moved against another part of the government, which was in effect a coup d’etat, Gelvin said. This situation complicates the transition to civilian government in Egypt.

The Supreme Council of Armed Forces, Egypt’s leading military body that stepped into power when Mubarak was ousted, is conducting the parliamentary elections.

Many Egyptians are dissatisfied with the military and concerned by the amount of leverage the Supreme Council of Armed Forces possesses over the political process, Gelvin said. The military retains the ability to step in at any point during the transitional phase and prevent a civilian government from coming into power, he said.

Another point of concern for Egyptians is the future position of the Egyptian military in the political order, Gelvin said. Egyptian military leaders want to maintain their position of power and independence and exist outside the influence of civilian government.

It is unclear whether the military will retain control or if popular pressure will force the military regime to step aside, Gelvin said. The foundation of a new government is a long-term process, however, and results will not manifest immediately, he added.

Kandil said he plans to stay in Egypt until January, when elections for the lower house of parliament will be completed and elections for the upper house will begin.

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