From the legacy of modern Egypt's first ruler comes a call for East-West understanding, writes Seheir Kansouh Many strong feelings were generated by a recent trip to Kavala, Greece, initially meant for enjoyment and cultural fulfilment. As development practioner, the feelings of nostalgia for the bygone days of my early childhood, emotions aroused by visiting the very birth place of Mohamed Ali Pasha with a number of his descendants, mixed with sorrow for the hard life many of them who still live in the Diaspora have had after leaving Egypt following the coup d'état of 1952, were overcome by strong feelings of what Mohamed Ali, almost two centuries later, can still do for the future of Egypt and its relations with Europe. It is no secret that in Egypt, history books have been tampered with to suit political purposes. Credit is given to some rulers, or taken away, depending on whose side the rulers were on the time these books were published. Nowadays, with the information and communication revolution, it becomes more difficult to hide the truth, though even with such accessible truth opinions diverge. The purpose of this piece is therefore not to pass a value judgement, condemn or praise past or current regimes. The purpose is to recognise opportunity when it comes and to call on all stakeholders in Egypt and in Greece to seize it. In a nutshell, Kavala offers a unique stepping-stone on which a bridge between East and West can be built, materially and culturally. It could serve as an excellent conduit to implement some of the concepts of the EUROMED initiatives blessed by current Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak. In 1799, Mohamed Ali, a 30-year old man born in then Macedonia, now Greece, came to Egypt as an envoy from the Ottomans to drive Napoleon's forces out of Egypt. He had strong ambition and a vision, for himself and the country of his destination and destiny. For himself and his descendants, he created a dynasty that ruled Egypt -- and later also Sudan -- from 1805 to 1952, spanning one and a half centuries of Egyptian contemporary history. For the country and its people, Mohamed Ali is regarded as the "founder of modern Egypt", having modernised the country's military, navy and infrastructure. His vision of Egypt was that of a regional power. There is little more to say beyond what already exists in written or virtual records, either about Mohamed Ali himself or any of his descendants, each of whom varied in performance, reputation and fame. In Kavala, Mohamed Ali left a legacy carrying the name of "Imaret" that, it is argued, can offer a platform on which a dialogue between Eastern and Western civilisations can develop, strengthening ties between Europe and Egypt, and spreading in the old continent a better understanding of Islam, defamed in recent times by many offenders, out of malice, out of ignorance or out of stupidity. Some information and views need to be shared, hopefully to stir some action by concerned officials in Egypt and in Greece. What follows is the argument. Imaret in the new millennium can offer more than a concept from the past. An imaret, based on e-lexicons, is one of the names used to identify the "soup kitchens" built throughout the Ottoman Empire from the 14th into the 19th century. These public kitchens were often part of a larger complex known as Waqf, which could include hospices, mosques, caravanserais and colleges, or madrassas. The imarets gave out food that was free of charge to the participants of their activities, the rest going to the poor. Imarets were not invented by the Ottomans but developed under them as highly structured groups of buildings. They were meant to be a form of zakat or saddaka to follow Muslim religious teachings about charity. (For further reading: Timur Kuran, "The Provision of Public Goods under Islamic Law: Origins, Impact, and Limitations of the Waqf System," Law and Society Review , Vol 35, No 4 (2001), pp 841-898). The Imaret of Mohamed Ali, built 1817-1821, is a masterpiece of late Ottoman architecture with high aesthetic and cultural value. It was donated by him to the city of Kavala, his birth place. It included a kitchen, two schools, a primary school, two teaching rooms, a private mosque and administrative offices. The Imaret of Kavala became a recognised centre of learning in the Balkans, during the last phase of the Ottoman Empire. Falling in decay after more than a century of neglect, Imaret was viewed by Anna Missirian, a lady entrepreneur from Kavala, whose family originated from Izmir, as a great legacy from the past that could improve rapports between East and West marred by tensed ideological differences in recent times. Through her marriage to a wealthy tobacco merchant, Missirian was able to raise the necessary funds for restoration of the priceless building. For this, she took a long-term lease of 50 years from the Egyptian government, owner of Mohamed Ali's patrimony (under the Wakf system), to restore the historical monument in full compliance with its cultural worth. The project was under the management and technical supervision of architects from both the Greek and the Egyptian ministries of culture. The restoration works were concluded between 2002-2004. Since that time the imaret is operating as a luxury but intimate hotel (now placed under the category of "boutique hotel"). In 2006, the Cairo Opera Symphony Orchestra was invited in Kavala to provide the very first Egyptian cultural presence in the city in contemporary times. This was organised by the (Constantine) Cavafy Association (in memory of the famous Greek poet of Alexandria) as their main biennial activity. In 2008, Imaret earned the prestigious honour of becoming member of the "Relais & Chateaux" global hospitality association. However (and this is the main purpose of writing this article), Missirian's hope is to use the long lease of Imaret to transform the current hotel facility into a madrassa or school for Islamic and Arab teachings in cooperation with one of the major European universities interested in EUROMED and Middle Eastern studies. For this, she founded and NGO by the acronym of IMARET, standing for the Institute of Mohamed Ali for Research in Eastern Tradition. Two more monuments are close to Imaret: a great statue of Mohamed Ali on his horse, and the big mansion he had built for his family, also fully restored by Missirian. Negotiations are underway with the Egyptian government to make of Imaret a cultural bridge between East and West. Many obstacles still exist to translating such a project into reality, such as the need to establish a direct sky link or sea link between Egypt and Kavala. Tedious bureaucratic requirements could take years to resolve, but if a lady from Europe was able to put her energy and dedication into reviving an almost dead legacy within just a few years to become an invaluable asset on which a EUROMED initiative with Egypt could be established, Egypt should not lose time in responding to this call for action.
