No mere visit “King Abdullah's visit to Egypt emphasises Saudi support for the Egyptian people and their new leader Abdel-Fattah Al-Sisi. That support has not only been on the economic level but also the political, and it delivered a message to the world that what happened in Egypt reflected the popular will.” Farouk Guweida, Al-Ahram Al-Sisi's initial messages “Al-Sisi's first message is asking the government to be sworn in at 7am. It showed that we do not have time to waste. Besides, he started by himself: he goes to his office at 5am and does not leave before 9pm. The other two messages that Al-Sisi delivered were the bikes' marathon and his visit to the victim of Tahrir sexual harassment. The first clearly demonstrated that the people and the president participated in something he likes. The second message, in which he apologised to the victim, showed that he sticks to the genuine values of the Egyptians.” Emad Al-Ghazali, Al-Shorouk A new way of thinking “I believe that I can see some signs of a new way of thinking about sexual harassment. Following the newspapers, I have recently seen headlines like ‘Harasser jailed for a year and fined LE300 for photographing a woman sleeping on bus' and ‘Harasser referred to immediate trial in Luxor'. I've also heard from friends that they are more comfortable now that it is no longer a matter of a young woman facing harassment but of a group of men and women who feel it is their duty to protect women from those who want to harm them. We need the same approach to other issues like female genital mutilation, smoking in closed areas, using places of worship for election propaganda, etc.” Moataz-Billah Abdel-Fattah, Al-Watan Egyptian Essence Titanic A popular rumour claims the boat sank because it was carrying an Egyptian mummy. It wasn't. Facebook “I said it before on ONTV: people's confidence in the future and in the ability of state bodies to create a better future is the only way to retrieve security and stability on the Egyptian street. Collective death sentences could have bolstered up the authority under the Roman Empire or in the days of Al-Hajjaj Ibn Youssuf Al-Thaqafi. But today, a different logic should be used to endorse state stability and face those who encroach on the state than collective capital punishment in cases deemed ‘criminal' that are in fact more dangerous. The logic by which the state is being run at present is a form of ‘naiveté'.” Hazem Hosny What is required from the present government: Redistribution of wealth should be done carefully and on temporary basis. A good government should create an environment that encourages private businesses to grow lawfully, providing work opportunities for the masses and paying their fair share of taxes. You can help people for a period of time but people should also work hard to help themselves. Ahmed Sobhy Twitter Erin Cunningham @erinmcunningham Kerry in Egypt “a return of American partnership with Egyptian authoritarianism after the tumult of the Arab Spring.” Bel Trew @Beltrew Kerry's visit to #Egypt & unfreezing of $572mn of aid — a precursor to the states working closely with well-positioned Cairo on Iraq crisis? Andrew Hammond @Hammonda1 The day after Kerry is in #Egypt promising cash to the military, the #Sisi regime commits a stunning crime against journalism.
