Egypt - Will the Elections be Mired by Violence? | Quadriga

A few days before the first free elections in Egypt, chaos has returned to the streets. Thousands of Egyptians have returned to Tahrir Square to protest - this time against the military government. Their demonstrations escalated rapidly: so far, more than 30 people have been killed and many more have injured by batons, tear gas and rubber bullets. So are Monday's elections in jeopardy?

The public's fear that the old leaders will return is equaled only by its distrust of the military council. The military that was once celebrated as an ally in the fight against the old regime is now accused of carrying out the same sorts of violence against opposition activists as Mubarak's thugs. Many Egyptians are questioning whether the military council really wants to bring about political change, or if it's just concerned with protecting its own power. The head of the Military Council, Field Marshal Mohammed Hussein Tantawi, is considered by many to be the new Mubarak.

The generals appointed by the ousted President have emphasized again and again that they only want to facilitate the transition to a civilian government. But the interim government, which has since resigned, was nothing but a puppet of the Council. The draft constitution cemented the power by the military rather than new democratic structures. And accusations of arbitrary arrests, torture and other human rights violations have slowly eroded Egyptians' last remaining confidence in the military. Meanwhile, supporters of the Islamist Muslim Brotherhood have joined the revolutionaries; arguing that they want a new government that does not share power with generals.

Ebtisam Aly Hussein -- is from Egypt. She earned a masters degree in Political Science at the University of Cairo. In 2007 she worked at the Cairo office of Germany's Friedrich-Naumann foundation- a political think tank linked to Germany's Free Democrats. She writes articles for Arabic media outlets on cultural policy and wider issues of society. Currently she is conducting post graduate studies on Muslim Cultures and Societies at the Berlin Graduate School.

Thomas Hasel - is a German journalist and political scientist. He studied at the Universities of Munich, Paris and Berlin. His 2002 doctorate examined the conflict in Algeria between Islamists and the state. Since 1994 he has specialized in political and economic systems in the Arab world. He currently holds a post at Berlin's Free University examining the authoritarian regimes of North Africa and the difficulties in democratizing them. He has also written a number of press articles on the region.

Ahmed Badawi -- After a course in Development Studies at the University of London, Ahmed Badawi joined the German Institute for International and Security Affairs (Stiftung Wissenschaft und Politik) as a research associate. He earned his doctorate in political science from Humboldt University. He has worked for the Institute of Development and Peace, University of Duisburg-Essen, the Oxford Research Group and the International Crisis Group. His research focused on Palestinian politics, the Israeli Palestinian conflict and the political economy of policy change. Prior to leaving Egypt in 1999, he used to work as a print and TV journalist and as a community development specialist. He is now a Research Fellow at the Zentrum Moderner Orient where he is studying representations of Europe held by contemporary Egyptian Islamists.