Name: Egyptian … Address: Tahrir Square
Now, I am proud to be Egyptian. I can sit in the evening among my children and grandchildren and tell them the stories of the revolution; the story of boys and girls who refused injustice and tyranny under which we lived for years and years. I will tell them the story of Mohamed and Paulis; “the Muslim and Christian” boys who stood one against the other, each of them hates the other and wants to destroy him. .. I will tell them how Paulis and Mohamed stood shoulder to shoulder confronting tyranny. I will tell them how Muslims protected churches against the violence of the thugs of the regime and how Christians guarded Muslims while they performed their Friday prayers at the demonstration square.
I will tell them that I have no explanation except that this infamous regime made us reveal our worst part.
I will tell my friends outside Egypt:
I do not want anyone to apologize for accusing us of yielding to tyranny. I do not want an apology for describing us as a people that can only bear with humiliation generation after generation and that our history is a witness that we were subjugated by all the tyrants of the world.
I do not want anyone to apologize that they did not hear us or did not care to hear us when we said: “we are neither a submissive nor a dormant people. But we are patient. And everyone should take care when we become impatient”. And I will forget the sarcastic smile with which they received my words.
I do not want any apology from those who did not believe us when we said that the heralds of revolution have appeared in the Egyptian skies: look for them in the workers strikes and sit-ins and in the protests of the poor and the oppressed. They did not believe us.
I only want you to listen to me when I tell our stories … the story of the revolution of anger… the story of the Egyptian youth who came from the “virtual world” to occupy Tahrir “Liberation” Square on 25th January 2011.
I will tell my children and grandchildren how thousands or rather tens of thousands including young and very beautiful girls demonstrated and that none of them was harassed in the crowds. I will tell them how young men used to listen to the speeches of the young women and obey their calls to keep order during the sit-ins.
I will see the surprise in their eyes when I tell them how the regime started to confront the revolution by cutting off the internet and the mobile phone services. They wanted to cut off communications, but we continued to communicate.
I will tell them about the Friday of Anger “28th January”. Thanks be to God, we were not conquered. It is difficult to describe the battles between protestors without arms on one side and the security forces with their brutal weapons on the other side. How protestors resisted for long hours confronting security forces regardless of their live munitions, tear gas bombs and rubber bullets’
How can I describe the moment of victory when demonstrators succeeded to cross from Kasr el Nil Bridge and from the outlet of 6th October Bridge to Tahrir Square. At that moment, the security forces collapsed. The youth could have destroyed them all, but they were faithful to the emblem of their revolution, “a peaceful revolution”. So, they only controlled the Tahrir Square.
I will tell them about the Battle of the Camel. It is the name of a battle that took place over one thousand years ago. But I will describe the new Battle of the Camel in which the thugs of the regime used camels, horses, mules and carts. You may laugh at it, but it was a real battle. Horse, camel and mule riders were armed with swords, knives and whips. The other infantries were armed as well. There was a real battle which was televised to the whole world. We won, the protestors conquered the thugs of the regime and chased them until they withdrew. What a foolish regime; it confronted the youth of the internet with camels and carts!!
I will tell them how we resided in the Square and it became our address. Our genius of adaptation was disclosed. We established field clinics to treat the injured. We made tents: tents named after the governorates, others named after organizations and others named after families. The workers had a tent there. There was surplus of everything there: blankets, improvised water closets connected to the sewage system, etc. some people were selling flags, badges, food and tea. In the evenings the youth sang for the revolution and young poets recited their poems.
You asked about the army. The role of the army from the very beginning was to protect us. The army soldiers very often shared in our discussions and parties.
I will repeat the stories which we exchanged when we spent the night on the curbs and on the asphalted Square … how we shared pieces of bread and laughed sarcastically at the insults of the regime’s media who described us as stooges and that we get orders from the USA and Iran and that fast food was provided to us from Kentucky. I will tell them how we received the news of the fall down of the regime and how “rams” were driven to the slaughterhouses to be sacrificed to save the regime !!
I will make them laugh very much when I tell them our jokes and comments when we saw the photos of “rams” on the front pages of newspapers. I will tell them about the evening parties we made and the poems we heard, how we danced enthusiastically when we heard the music which we used to hear but we did not feel in the past because we were in despair. I will tell them the love stories which were born in the Square and the marriage parties.
I will tell them about the Sunday mass and how charming were the carols chanted by Muslims and Christians all together.
I will tell them about the Muslim “Prayers on the Absent” for the souls of the martyrs. I will cry. Yes, I will cry when I remember the mother of a martyr who overcame her grief and came to support us.
I will tell them about the nights we spent in fear when the police withdrew and betrayed their people and set out the thugs and the criminal prisoners to terrorize our families. But our response was decisive. In every street and in every lane there appeared very quickly popular committees for the youth to protect us. They resisted very bravely the thugs and those criminals who escaped from prisons. They managed to bring about peace to every house. I will tell them how the guard shifts turned to parties and I will tell them about the noble human communication.
I will tell how the world followed up in astonishment the heroic stories of our youth and how the noble people all over the world consolidated with us….the story of the youth who came from the poor and the rich classes raising up one flag (the flag of freedom) and turned Tahrir Square – from a place which witnessed how the police treated Egyptians brutally and harassed female protestors – to a square for freedom where the revolutionists stay and defended by teams of young men and women safeguarding its entrances.
The Square attracted the attention and respect of the whole world. It has become the Square of Freedom, the castle of the revolution and its emblem. The young revolutionists, armed with faith, they managed to defeat the assaults of the regime’s thugs.
Thousands were injured in this square. The noble blood of the martyrs which covered its roads and baptized its curbs made us stronger and more insisting to take one road, the road to freedom and to raise one flag carrying one sentence: “ the people wants to overthrow the regime”.
I will tell them about the moment of victory .. how we received the news of the resignation of the president .. how we shouted and cheered, how some of us prostrate and some of us cried. In a few minutes everyone in Egypt was happy. People flooded the streets and the streets turned to one big celebration.
Regarding out martyrs, you know them more than I do ! Their photos decorate the walls of all the homes of the Egyptians and their stories will be taught as school.
All what I can say is that their death and their photos which are raised up everywhere during the days of the revolution as much as they affected our hearts have kindled our emotions and made us more determinant that there is no alternative for victory.
The Tahrir Square has become our address and a witness of our revolution … the revolution of all the Egyptians who wrote a new chapter of their stories which lived with them for thousands of years when it started with them along the banks of the Nile and became the dawn of the human conscience.
Peace be upon our martyrs and greetings for the young people who made the Revolution of 25th January and hereupon we started to regain our dignity, love our country and our name and our flag. We started to raise up our heads in dignity and to be proud that we are Egyptians.
Kamal Abbas