Chaos on the streets of Cairo and other major cities is compounding the sense of insecurity among the public, writes Khaled Dawoud Friday, 3 June, was supposed to be relatively peaceful. None of the major youth groups that took part in the 25 January Revolution had called for a massive protest in Tahrir Square. A few hundred people did gather in Tahrir, pressing a variety of demands, but the real action was in nearby Galaa Street where thousands surrounded the Azbakeya police station and set it on fire after news spread that a microbus driver had been beaten to death inside. Shortly after the incident the Interior Ministry issued a statement claiming that the Brigadier Mohamed Madkour had been trying to organise traffic in congested Galaa Street when he confronted the driver of a microbus, Mohamed Nasr, which was blocking the road. The driver, the statement continued, spoke rudely to Madkour, slapping him in the face when he requested Nasr's licence and registration, following which crowds in the street, dismayed at the way in which the police officer was being treated, attacked the driver until police arrived and managed to arrest him. The Interior Ministry's account of the incidents that led to Nasr's arrest were denied by his family and within hours hundreds of people had gathered outside the Azbakeya police station. Newly appointed Cairo Police Chief Major General Mohsen Murad subsequently attempted to blame members of the 6 April Movement for the ensuing disorder, claiming members of the group had come to Galaa Street from Tahrir Square after hearing rumours that a citizen had been tortured to death by police, and incited the public to attack the police station. Official accounts then spread the net even wider, accusing members of Nasr's family, and that useful catch-all group, the baltagiya, or thugs, for leading the siege of the police station and starting fires that also consumed a number of police vehicle. The 6 April Movement was quick to refute the allegations, issuing a statement pointing out that its members were not in Tahrir Square, criticising the Ministry of Interior for concocting such an implausible story, and saying the incident confirmed security forces have not changed the way they treat ordinary citizens. Madkour and other policemen at the scene, it said, had stood by indifferently as a crowd attacked the microbus driver in the street. Several witnesses of the initial incident also questioned what had happened to the driver once he was inside the Azbakeya police station. The Interior Ministry then said that Nasr had arrived at the police station in a bad condition and that it was Madkour who ordered that he be taken to the nearby Coptic Hospital. The situation continued to be tense around the Azbakeya police station until Al-Ahram Weekly went to press. Police sources say they have continued to receive threats that attempts would be made to invade the building and free prisoners to protest against the killing of the microbus driver. The Azbakeya police station, notorious for its brutal treatment of detainees, was one of the first to be attacked by protesters during the 25 January Revolution. The security situation deteriorated further on Sunday when residents of the village of Bamha, 40km south of Cairo, blocked the highway and railway line linking Cairo to the south in protest at the building of a mobile phone tower which they claimed would damage the health of villagers. The Transport Ministry issued a statement saying 20,000 passengers from 18 trains were forced to sleep in coaches when the protesters refused to remove their blockades until the mobile company removed the tower. Senior local officials negotiated with disgruntled residents for hours without success as all trains travelling between Cairo and South Egypt came to a standstill. The protest ended only after the tower was removed early on Monday. Then, as Bamha residents were returning to their homes to celebrate their victory, clashes erupted between them and the family that owned the plot of land where the tower was being built. At least 11 people were injured. The street in front of the government-owned television building in Cairo also witnessed scenes of chaos as hundreds of people gathered to protest against the failure of local authorities to provide them with housing. Residents of Doweiqa were forced to leave their homes after a huge rock from Moqattam Hills fell on their neighbourhood two years ago, killing scores of people. They have been living in tents since then, waiting for the government to provide them with new houses. Residents said they had been protesting for months in front of the headquarters of the Cairo governorate. They decided to move to the television building -- scene of numerous protests and sit-ins since Hosni Mubarak's removal -- because they knew they would get more media coverage there. Political activists and commentators have decried the lawlessness that has prevailed since Mubarak left office. Many blame the interior minister and security officials for failing to return to duty following the collapse of the old regime. At least a dozen police stations have been attacked in recent months in an attempt to free prisoners. Interior Minister Mansour El-Eissawi has repeatedly promised that the security situation is gradually improving, and that the police forces are struggling to make up for the material losses they suffered in the course of the revolution. While more policemen are now visible on the streets the feeling among the public is that El-Eissawi's promises remain just that. Some even suggest the public is being punished for ending the brutal rule of the police.
