Five-star steam

Amira Howeidy reports from a highly-charged conference where participants declared the US the nation's number one enemy, called for retaliation, issued warnings and applauded suicide attacks
The "nation" has never seen worse times. The United States is conducting a "barbaric invasion of Afghanistan" and Israel is pursuing its "ethnic cleansing" war against the Palestinian people. Furthermore, the US may be planning potential hits on Iraq, Yemen, Somalia and Sudan. There is a "dangerous international phenomenon" afoot, which "threatens the security and stability of human society." These sentiments and more were zealously voiced on the top floor of a five-star hotel overlooking the Nile last week.
The conference lasted four hours, and was boldly entitled "in defence of the nation against hegemony."
Big words and strong messages were not limited to the title of the event, organised by the independent weekly newspaper Al-Osbou. Enormous posters covered the walls of the hall with pan-Arab slogans. "From Marrakech to Beirut... a single people who refuse to die," screamed one. "Iraq, do not relent, all honourable people are with you with their blood," read another. "Intifada till victory," claimed a third.
Although the temperature (outside the conference hall) was as low as two degrees Celsius and Cairo was awash with non-stop rain which kept the capital's inhabitants in their homes, Shepheard hotel's vast Nefertiti hall was packed with more than a thousand people applauding the fiery speeches.
"Arafat is imprisoned in Ramallah," claimed enthusiastic speaker Mahmoud Bakri, Al- Osbou's deputy editor. "The American sword is slaughtering Muslims in Afghanistan and is preparing to slaughter Muslims in Iraq and Somalia. These are difficult moments in the history of our nation."
His brother Mustafa Bakri, who is editor-in- chief of the same newspaper, continued in the same vein. "The US is behaving like a thug... breaking international law... It has given itself the right to invade countries and suppress entire peoples... We have no option other than resistance... From here, we declare our support of all resistance movements: Jihad, Hamas and Hizbullah. And we declare that there is no peace with the Zionist entity."
With this, a frenzied applause filled the hall. Bakri raised his voice to continue. "We are confident that the future is ours. Painful operations and suicide attacks, the last of which killed three Israeli soldiers and one Israeli officer -- this is the only road!" Passionate applause interrupted him again. "Gamal Abdel-Nasser once said" he shouted above the clamour which by now had become hysterical, "that what was taken by force, will be retrieved only by force."
As he went on, the audience would explode into applause at similiarly charged points in the speech. Bakri and other speakers used the same phrases time and again and again: "cutting off diplomatic ties with the Zionist entity" and "Arafat will be released only when Israel is hit really hard."
Bakri's words would be echoed by various other speakers for the next four hours. Hamdi Al- Sayed, president of the Doctors' Syndicate, said he felt "good at heart" when his car radio broke the news of the Hamas suicide attack "I am full of hope again," he said.
Afghanistan was another point of concern. "They kill prisoners and call it a rebellion?!" questioned one speaker. "The US is simply acting like a thug," claimed another.
"America is the number one enemy... We should boycott America and those who shake hands with America," warned Sameh Ashour, president of the Bar Association and secretary- general of the Arab Lawyers' Union.
Time and again, hostile sentiments prevailed as the "enemies" of the nation were declared for the umpteenth time. The audience seemed to include people from across the political, artistic and Arab diplomatic spectrum. Representatives of both Al- Azhar and the Orthodox Coptic church joined the rally.
The conference issued eight recommendations that included establishing a national fund for donations to the Palestinian Intifada, boycotting Israel and condemning the sanctions on Iraq. Also dealt with were issues such as the wars on Afghanistan and the Palestinian people, rejecting the confusion between Islam and terrorism and urging the UN and rights groups to form fact- finding committees to investigate the "slaughter" of Afghan prisoners of war.
Despite the clamour, the highly emotionally charged event was not hosted by an opposition party -- as would normally be the case -- but by a newspaper. Bakri made a point of saying that "the security apparatus and the government placed no obstacles in our way to arrange for this event." The speakers clearly felt at ease urging the audience to "go out in the streets, protest, express yourself" because "we're tired of conferences and of rhetoric." Why such massive mobilisation?
Why the four-hour-long event?
No one could provide the answers. And, after the conference, no-one took to the streets.
Although left-wing Tagammu Party figure Fathiya Al-Assal attacked late Egyptian President Anwar El-Sadat and called for withdrawal from the Camp David accords, and actor Salah Al- Saadani shouted "to hell with all governments, the people must have their say and take to the street," -- a sentiment which the audience seemed to like -- everyone went straight home once it was over.
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