CAIRO - Asmaa Mahfouz, one of the Facebook bloggers who, before the January 25 revolution, had started calling for reforms and social justice, believes that Egypt's new constitution should guarantee democratic life, not create a new dictator. “We have suffered from corruption for the past 30 years. We should extend the transitional period, because there is an urgent need to make the people aware of the constitutional prerequisites. This is the young people's responsibility,” Mahfouz, who participated in the protests that swept Mubarak aside, adds. Moustafa el-Naggar, another young activist, argues that the revolution was a dream in the beginning. “Young people only started the revolution; the people made it happen. What prompted the revolution was the corruption of the former regime which came to a head in the legislative elections last November,” he told a recent gathering in Cairo. “We demanded food, freedom and social justice,” stressed el-Naggar, adding that January 28 was the real turning point, when many protesters were killed by Mubarak's loyalists in Al Tahrir Square in Cairo. “The violent incident witnessed thugs riding camels and horses, killing a lot of protesters,” he recalls. Masterminds of the violent attack are being indentified and investigated. According to el-Naggar, the former regime wanted to foment a civil war in Egypt, but thankfully that never happened. “We've now got to move beyond the revolution to reconstruction, as we continue to work together to achieve the revolutionary goals.” Taha Abdel-Gawad, one of the revolutionaries, notes that the Egyptian people were deprived of freedom and democracy, although it wasn't as bad as in Tunisia. “We chose to launch the revolution on January 25, so as to spoil the joy of Police Day,” commented Abdel-Gawad, adding that January 28 was the beginning of the end of the Mubarak regime and that what we now need is a new constitution. Ahmed Maher, another young revolutionary asserts that the revolution didn't come as a surprise; rather, it was the result of an accumulation of many problems. “On January 25, the protesters called for the dismissal of then Minister of Interior Habib el-Adli, communicating via Internet and Facebook. Following the revolution, the young revolutionaries also met with the Supreme Council of the Armed Forces more than once, in order to decide how to get rid of the remnants of the former regime,” he says. “We want the creation of a presidential council and then a transitional period, to give political parties and NGOs time to organise themselves. The purpose of making ordinary citizens politically aware is to create a sound political life and a real democracy,” Maher, 30, adds. The ruling military council has announced that the parliamentary elections will be held in September and that curbs on creating political parties will be removed.
