Egypt's military rulers wanted a celebration. But a year after the revolution, many Egyptians feel there is little to celebrate and much more to revolt against, writes Shaden Shehab Would the first anniversary of the 25 January Revolution witness celebrations or protests? By the time Al-Ahram Weekly went to press hundreds of thousands of protesters had poured into city squares across the country, many demanding an immediate end to military rule. Whether the day would end peacefully or not was still unclear. Police reported that two people hurled a Molotov cocktail at a fire engine stationed at Heliopolis fire station, though the only reports of injuries were because of the large crowds that had gathered. The Ministry of Health says that around 100 people have been injured because of the crush. In Cairo 12 marches set off from various areas of the capital, all intending to converge on Tahrir Square, the epicentre of the massive protests that led to the ouster of president Hosni Mubarak. The square itself resounded to chants as angry protesters resuscitated the slogans of early 2011, replacing Mubarak's name with that of the military rulers who replaced him. Some protesters wore masks bearing the faces of slain protesters in a show of solidarity with the victims of the revolution. Ultras supporters entered Tahrir Square donned in V for Vendetta masks. Qasr Al-Dobara, an evangelical church near Tahrir, opened its doors to Muslim protesters seeking to wash before prayers and announced that its field hospital was ready to accept anyone in need of medical attention. Protests were held in Alexandria, Beni Sweif, Port Said, Kafr Al-Sheikh, Minya, Damietta, Mahalla, Mansoura and Suez, which witnessed its largest march since 28 January 2011, the Friday of Anger. Suez was the city which saw the first martyr fall in January 2011, and along with Cairo and Alexandria is viewed by the authorities as a potential flash point for conflict. In Alexandria hundreds of thousands of protesters began their march from the Two Saints Church in the city's Sidi Bishr neighbourhood, site of a devastating bomb attack on New Year's Eve 2011. The demonstrators carried images of slain protesters and chanted against the ruling military council. In Tahrir there was a stark contrast between the nationalistic songs that members of the Muslim Brotherhood blared out across loudspeakers, and the slogans of liberals demanding the transfer of power. Brotherhood loyalists, fresh from their recent triumph at the polls, were chanting religious songs and shouting Allahu Akbar. The Muslim Brotherhood's stage, around which supporters were distributing stickers emblazoned with the logo of the group's political arm, the Freedom and Justice Party, also hosted a marriage ceremony. On the other side of the square protesters were demanding that the head of the military council face trial for killing protesters, and the single, overwhelming chant was, "Down, down with military rule". Thousands of protesters, led by Mohamed El-Baradei, marched to Tahrir Square from Giza. Unlike many of the demonstrators, Nobel Peace laureate El-Baradei said that the immediate return of the military to the barracks was no longer an immediate priority. "I don't think that is the issue right now. What we need to agree on is exactly how to achieve the revolution's goals, starting with putting in place a proper democratic constitution, mending the economy and security, ensuring an independent judiciary and media and guaranteeing that those responsible for the murder of protesters are prosecuted," he told the press. Presidential hopefuls Amr Moussa, Abdel-Moneim Abul-Fotouh, Hisham Bastawisi, Selim El-Awwa Hamdeen Sabahi and Secretary-General of the Arab League Nabil El-Arabi, all joined the protesters. The interior minister said security forces had been ordered to protect public buildings but to keep out of city squares and warned that "people wearing military or police uniform in areas of protest are infiltrators". "We have information that some will seek to employ criminal tactics to create a rift between the army and the people," it stated. Popular committees were formed around Tahrir to prevent such infiltration and stop any weapons being taken into the square. Many shops, especially those close to Tahrir, were closed. Store keepers, though, had done brisk business in the days leading up to the anniversary as many members of the public stocked up on groceries and filled their cars with gasoline, clearly fearing the worst. They had, perhaps, taken to heart warnings issued by the Supreme Council of Armed Forces (SCAF) after violent clashes between the police and protesters in front of the Cabinet Office on 16 December. Egypt's military rulers warned at the time that "dangerous domestic and foreign conspiracies are seeking to burn the country on 25 January". The SCAF had declared 25 January a national holiday. In an attempt to keep protesters from gathering they had planned an array of alternative festivities, including gifts dropped from the sky by air force planes. A tweet issued in response to the free gift idea quickly spread across social networking sites. "You can either bend down and collect the coupons or raise your head and continue your revolution," it said. In what was perceived by observers as an attempt to draw the sting from protests, SCAF had also announced the release of 1,959 protesters who had been tried before military tribunals. Michael Nabil, a blogger serving a two-year sentence after being found guilty of insulting the military, was among them. The head of SCAF, Field Marshal Mohamed Hussein Tantawi, gave a televised speech to the nation on Tuesday in what was again seen as an attempt to defuse anger at military rule. He announced a partial end to the decades long emergency law, though his proviso that it would henceforth be used only in cases of "thuggery" -- a catch-all term -- was enough to convince human rights activists that nothing had changed. After paying tribute to the "martyrs of the revolution", Tantawi praised Egypt's revolutionary youth, who he urged to join political parties. He also praised the "new mindset" of the police apparatus, as well as the positive role played by the military. He also said that the army would return to its traditional role of protecting the country from external threats as soon as the interim period concludes in June with the election of a civilian president, an assertion repeated a day later, on Wednesday at noon. Although the 55 political forces that called for protests yesterday all agree that military rule must end, they have different visions of what should follow. While some favour an immediate transfer of power to the elected parliament, others want to see presidential elections brought forward to April rather than June. There are also divisions on whether the protests should continue in the form of sit-ins until the handover of power. However, 6 April movement and the Youth Coalition announced it will not leave Tahrir Square until their demands are met. That the Muslim Brotherhood and Salafis conditioned their presence in Tahrir on celebrating and protecting the square has led to accusations that they are collaborating with SCAF to abort the demands of the revolution. The Brotherhood had repeatedly called on Egyptians to show patience and exercise restraint until the parliamentary elections were over. Now they are calling for the same thing until presidential elections are held. Although Mubarak's fall and the dismantling of the former ruling party's monopoly on power are important accomplishments, activists charge that SCAF is mishandling the transitional period and protecting the vested interests of those responsible for corrupting public life by using the same oppressive, policing methods as the Mubarak-era. Since the military took power in February activists have been summoned for interrogation and imprisoned, more than 12,000 civilians face military trials, and protests have been regularly attacked by central security and military police. Demonstrators have faced barrages of tear gas, rubber bullets, live ammunition and birdshot, often fired deliberately at head height. In the meantime Mubarak's own trial looks set to continue indefinitely, and no police officer has been successfully prosecuted for killing protesters. Additional reporting Mohamed Abdel-Baky
