Vinus Fouad meets the celebrated poet is one of our most prolific colloquial poets. Popular in Egypt and beyond, no encyclopaedia of Arab poetry is complete without entries from his work. In 2001 he became the first ever colloquial poet to win the State Merit Award. Abnoudi has written several books, including Ayyami al-Helwa (My Beautiful Days) in which he describes his childhood in Abnoud and his school years in Qena. He has spent years collecting the Sira Helalia (Tale of the Hilalis), a poetic epic about mediaeval rivalries that has its roots in Upper Egypt and also in North Africa. His recent poem "Al-Midan" ("The Square") captured the imagination of the 25 January revolutionaries and reflects his relentless depiction of his country's ailments and hopes throughout all his poetry. I interviewed the poet on the occasion of his 73rd birthday on 11 April. I would like to know your opinion of the 25 January revolution, and whether it is a model for other countries. I am on the side of the young people who believe in the revolution and who adopted its thinking and manners. My generation suffered under corrupt regimes. We were arrested, persecuted and hunted down. But this didn't make us change our path or ideas. I am grateful that up to now I have remained true to my homeland. I have never changed my position or views. When the revolution broke out, it was a scene no one had expected, I felt the urge to write. "Al-Midan", the poem I then wrote, was about the revolution, its ideas, and the suffering that preceded it. The whole thing happened so quickly, as if by sleight of hand or a magic wand. We used to think that the revolution could not happen without a big [political] party, a party with many followers across the country, leading the way. We never imagined that the day would come when the Internet, the computer and Facebook, this great technology, would bring about instant communication and achieve intellectual proximity among all classes of Egyptian society. As a result the whole idea of a party became irrelevant. Do you believe that a far-reaching change in the State apparatus is needed to protect the revolution? The first priority of the revolution was to bring down the State apparatus and replace it with a new one. This hasn't happened yet, and that's why we still have trouble and why the young people are continuing to make demands. Previous revolutions had the chance to replace all government officials with new ones at one go. But this didn't happen in our case, mostly because we are not acting as one party or with one set of laws and regulations. Consequently, the groups that joined the uprising belatedly became prominent and tried to hijack the revolution. I believe that the wonderful young people who carried out the revolution have now discovered that their revolution was more powerful than the political decay of the past. The young revolutionaries are like innocent flowers that blossomed in isolation from the filth of our political past. It is amazing how quickly they figured out the games veteran politicians are playing to usurp power. They have grown an entire lifetime in just two months. What do you think of the counterrevolution? It is as if a hole has opened and spiders have come out crawling out of it. The remnants of the old regime are organised and ready to defend their interests, and they are rallying together with the help of the former State Security and in collaboration with those who benefited from the old status quo. They are ready to do anything. They are willing to kill and commit unspeakable crimes, and the tardiness in locking them up has not helped. But we should give the Higher Council of the Armed Forces the benefit of the doubt. We have to give it a chance, because the council is thinking carefully about the steps it is taking. True, the council's tardiness in referring the masterminds of corruption to trial has enabled them to sort out their legal situation. It is maddening to see the corrupt get away with it. This is why the demonstrators kept gathering on Fridays to urge the council to act more promptly. How about the composition of the committee that amended the constitution? It was painful to watch. The committee lacked the fairness necessary to satisfy everyone. Its members didn't represent the varied sections of society. We should have had liberals and communists, Nasserists, and public figures joining it. But this didn't happen, and the committee has remained weak as a result. The whole thing violated the inclusive approach of the revolution. How do you view the current tensions in the country? The current tensions and the continued protests are due to the continued presence of corrupt officials in the government, such as the governors and municipal chiefs who are still up to their old tricks. But there have been cases when the people have wanted successful officials to stay in office, such as the security chief of Qena and the security chief of Luxor. This means that the people can tell the good from the bad. The snake is shedding its skin, but in slow motion, which suggests that some collusion is going on. Although some big names have been referred to trial, the charges remained confined to financial irregularities. The worst charges -- those of corrupting political life in the country for thirty years, of monopolising power, of rigging the elections -- have been ignored. How about the way Egyptian television acted during the revolution? The answer is clear and the people know it. Everyone saw what they were doing on television, and how it presented the exact opposite of reality. Anas El-Fiqi, the former information minister, and those of his ilk, are now in prison. When Fiqi was in charge, he behaved in a way that was insulting to the media and to those working in the media. He spread lies and ordered journalists to lie. His actions were disruptive, because he tried to cast doubt on the purity of the Egyptian revolution. Now you see young journalists demonstrating and demanding a purge of the media apparatus. They are asking for all the corrupt media officials to be removed, because some of them have been kicked upstairs to advisory positions. Repression, persecution and harassment of those who voiced dissident views were common practices in the media sector. My wife, Nehal Kamal, who is now head of television, was penalised because she spoke up against corruption. People like her were shut off from top position so as not to uncover the widespread financial and administrative corruption. Do you think that women should run for president? I am a strong believer in the abilities of Egyptian women and women in general. I believe that women have a crucial role to play in life, especially in our country. The Egyptian mother is the real force inside the family. We are all the sons of our mothers, not of our fathers, as people in Upper Egypt like to think. We see our fathers for a few moments, whereas mothers are around all the time, and take charge of education and guidance. Women are therefore the basis for civilisation and progress. My father and older brother were great poets who wrote in classical Arabic. I chose to write in colloquial because I was fascinated by the language used by my mother, who was illiterate,. She conveyed to us her immense knowledge of folk religious songs, and she did so in spontaneous and simple language, one you don't get in books. I learnt my vocabulary from my mother, the words and what they meant. So I would like to see woman running for public office. Would a woman candidate for the presidency have a chance? I will vote for the best candidate around. I will choose the person with a good programme and the ability to lead, man or woman. What do you think of the cabinet of Essam Sharaf? Well, it rid us of the cabinet of Ahmad Shafiq for starters. Sharaf has put together a team that is well-selected and reassuring. He knows how to choose his aides and he is trustworthy. How do you feel about the decision by Sharaf to invite young people to cabinet meetings and ask for their input? I believe that this is a good step. I was quite critical of the so-called Council of National Dialogue. I also believe that the issue of the candidacy to the presidency is being treated too lightly. My fear is that the elections could be treated carelessly and could become a farce. The very idea of so many people running for president is disturbing. Either they are after financial gain, or unable to appreciate the heavy responsibility that comes with such a post. Among the candidates are some who seem like replicas of former president Hosni Mubarak. The mere fact that they are running makes me cringe. Some of the candidates believe that a following of 500 or so supporters is enough to get them to the presidency. They seem to overlook the fact that we are a country of 86 million people. Also, there are places in this country that the candidates seem to have ignored, such as Upper Egypt and the desert communities. The candidates are not paying any attention to marginalised people or making them a priority. How, then, do they hope to change the status quo? Do you anticipate a period of political confusion? This happens in all revolutions. The things we see now, the thuggery and the like, are part of the plots hatched by the big shots in this country. But we will eventually move forward. We may experience economic difficulties and a bit of turbulence caused by those who expect immediate results. I wish everyone would go back to work in their factories and elsewhere. I know that the current government is working hard to achieve results. The change may be slow, but it is real. Did you know that we had so much corruption in the country? We knew about the corruption. The scale however was stunning, as if it were happening in another country. Do you feel that the corruption alienated us as people? We knew what was going on. We knew that an investor wishing to make projects in Egypt had to deal with corrupt people. This is the main reason investors fled from Egypt, and why only a few controlled the public land allocated to investment projects. The whole system of government was criminal. How do you see the suggested elimination of the culture and information ministries? I am all for having a minister in charge, one who is credible and can be trusted with matters related to culture and information. I do not think that the Ministry of Culture should be made a subsidiary of the Higher Council for Culture. The same thing goes for the Ministry of Information. I am sceptical of collective decision making, since it allows for disruptive opinions and ultimately for conflicting policies. How do you explain the rise of young people and the absence of pioneers from today's art scene? In times of change, it makes sense for a new generation to come out and for the veterans to keep doing what they do best, which pondering and assessing from a distance. The veterans act in a mature way because everything they say or do is of consequence. This is true not only for politics, but also for art and creativity. This is why it is good to keep them in the spectators' seats. As for the young, there are no barriers to their feelings and practices. We have seen poetry blooming, because this is an art that is faster than novels for example, or the theatre. We have seen many songs and poems born in Tahrir Square. We have dozens of new poets coming on to the scene. Eventually the dust will settle and only the best talents will survive. I enjoy reading the new poems in the paper, because they capture the zeal of the revolution. They are intense but not contrived. The young do not have to pay homage to the revolution. They are the ones who made it. Some of the new songs may be rough around the edges, but quite evocative. We must encourage this new wave of creativity and wait to see which will survive. I am proud that my poem "Al-Midan" was dubbed a manifesto of the revolution. I wrote it at an early stage of the revolution, before the Battle of the Camels. To my surprise, I saw Wust Al-Balad singing it in the square and later in concert. Some people have posted it on Facebook, along with a soundtrack by the talented composer Rageh Dawoud. What is your opinion regarding the Writers' Union? I quit the Writers' Union three years ago and don't follow its news anymore. I do not think that it truly represents writers, so I do not wish to be associated with its ways. Do you believe that the art produced during the 2011 revolution will match that of previous revolutions in terms of maturity? Sure. I believe that the revolution was a moment of truth. Some of the writings that have come out of it herald a new literature. Good things will come out of that. The revolution captured the feelings of my generation as well. Freedom is the source of creativity and will give rise to new literature. Otherwise there will be a disconnection between the past and the future. What do you think of the imprisonment of the former president? When you remove the masterminds of corruption and put them on trial, you inspire the thinkers and the poets and encourage them to express their thoughts and opinions in a creative manner.
