An agreement between Sinai's Bedouin and the security apparatus ended recent tensions in the peninsula. But for how long, asks Serene Assir Hundreds of Bedouin from across the Sinai Peninsula took part in a sit-in at Kerem Shalom near Al-Arish. The protest ended on 29 April, after four days, with a deal struck between tribal sheikhs and Egyptian state authorities. According to participants in the protest, should the authorities fail to honour the deal's conditions within a month, they will embark on another stronger campaign. The protest was triggered by the killing of two Bedouin from North Sinai, Suleiman Hussein Hemeid El-Meney and Khalil Selim Abu Jabra, by police during what was otherwise a routine patrol. The violence coincided with the national holiday marking the liberation of Sinai from Israeli control. "The two men were driving a pick-up without a number plate, so when they saw the police they tried to escape for fear they would be imprisoned or shot at, as often happens here," said Selim. An unemployed graduate of Al-Azhar University, Selim (not his real name) took part in the protest and is a member of the same tribe as El-Meney. "The police opened fire. Suleiman died immediately while Khalil died later in hospital from a gunshot wound to the back of his skull," said Hassan, also a relative of El-Meney. Triggered by the killings, clashes between police and Bedouin broke out and continued for four days. One officer was reportedly injured. The ensuing sit-in provided the Bedouin of Sinai with an opportunity to push for long-standing grievances to be resolved. Among the demands put forward by the protesters was an end to discrimination against them by the state, and the release of Bedouin prisoners jailed without charge. The authorities responded by pledging to improve the overall situation of the Bedouin. At the time of writing, at least two detainees had been freed. Mustafa El-Meney, Hussein's brother, was released on 29 April after almost four years in prison. "I slept in a tiny room with six other detainees, none of whom had been tried or convicted," El-Meney said. Still recovering from his ordeal ,he refused to discuss whether or not he had been tortured. Khaled, who asked that his surname be withheld, was also freed on 29 April following 25 days in prison. "Any honest person who saw the conditions in which I was held would have thought I had committed the greatest crime in history," he said. "Yet no charges were filed against me. Still they kept my hands tied to the walls day and night with tight handcuffs for the duration of my detention. Had it not been because of the will of the people of Sinai I would still be in prison now." Participants in the sit-in said they chose to stage their protest at the border in order to guarantee the Egyptian authorities would not respond with force. Under the 1979 Camp David agreement any violent action undertaken at the border by the Egyptian authorities could be interpreted by Israel as a violation, triggering a diplomatic crisis. They deny reports that they intended to cross over into Israel. "If we wanted to cross into Israel we would have done so. We know the desert like the back of our hands. Neither the Egyptians nor the Israelis would even have to know about it," said Hassan. According to Sheikh Ijmaan Abu Masouh, who heads the Al-Oga town- based Tarabeen tribe, officials are determined to portray the Bedouin as unpatriotic in deliberate attempt to discredit them. " When collaborators or criminals are discovered, says Abu Masouh, it is usually the tribe that takes action against them. "Our communities are tightly- knit, and we know what every member of the tribe is doing," he said. "Because we depend so much on one another within our communities it is against our interests to turn a blind eye to crime." Many Bedouin say they have assisted the police during investigations and searches for suspects, particularly in the aftermath of the 2004 Taba, 2005 Sharm El-Sheikh and 2006 Dahab bombings which killed over 90 tourists and Egyptians, despite the mass detention campaign which targeted Bedouins following the bombings. "None of us agree with terrorism; remember that the bombings affected our economy the worst," says Selim. "Yet for years now life has been rendered unbearable for us and it seems that any Bedouin is considered suspect by default." By the morning of 30 April, while families continued to mourn the deaths of El-Meney and Abu Jabra, the situation in North Sinai appeared calm. "Sinai is safe again for now," said Abu Masouh. It is unclear, though, how deep that calm is. Police stationed at checkpoints throughout North Sinai warned against entry into Bedouin villages. "They might shoot at you," said one police official speaking on condition of anonymity. Government officials deny any discrimination against the Bedouin. "Problems in Sinai are often exaggerated in the media," said National Democratic Party Secretary-General for North Sinai Munir El-Shorbagui during a 21 April interview with Al-Ahram Weekly. "Of course there is still much work to do developing Sinai but there is peace here. People live in safety except on very rare occasions -- as is the case everywhere in the world." Meanwhile Selim, Mustafa, Khaled and Hassan say they cannot venture far beyond the borders of their village for fear of random detention. "We need concrete changes before we begin to trust the police," said Selim. "Till then you can consider us prisoners, each trapped in our own village. This is very tough for us because as Bedouins, it is in our culture to value freedom above all."
