CAIRO – A few minutes after the judge trying former president Hosni Mubarak and his two sons, in a case that has riveted the world's attention so far, decided to stop the live broadcasting of the trial, Egyptians seemed to be polarised. Some people opposed the decision, seeing in it an attempt by the judge to keep the public away from the whole process, in preparation for pardoning a former president charged for involvement in the killing of more 800 demonstrators and the abuse of his presidential powers. The surprising thing, however, is that a large number of Egyptians have welcomed the decision to ban the live broadcasting of the trial, saying this decision will help safeguard many of the nation's secrets, which are expected to come to light in the course of Mubarak's defence. "Let me tell you that I feel very happy about this decision," Eman Adel, a 27-year-old assistant teacher, told the Egyptian Mail in an interview. "Time will tell the importance of this decision for Egypt's national security.” What might be incomprehensible to many observers, particularly foreign ones, is that it was nationally minded people like Adel who had pressed in the past few months for the trial to be broadcast live, considering this to be a sign of transparency. When the former president appeared inside the cage on a hospital bed for the first time on August 3 between his two sons, Egyptians were in a state of total disbelief. The vast majority could not believe that the man who'd destroyed their lives, dreams and ability to express themselves freely for 30 years was finally being brought to account. "This is mere theatre," one Egyptian riposted, as he saw the former president sleeping on his hospital bed in the cage. "The Military Council is bringing him here so that we shut up and stop demanding justice," said another after the August 3 court session. When Mubarak appeared in the cage for the second time on Monday, the same disbelieving people decided to oppose further broadcasting of the trial, because of the threat to national security. "No-one benefits from the live broadcasting of this trial," said Tamer Hassan, a 34-year-old civil servant. "The lawyers are using it to get the public's attention. That's all." Hassan might have a strong argument in fact. When the trial started yesterday, some of the lawyers representing the victims of the revolution wanted to show the TV cameras their good side. The sad thing, however, is that most of these arguments have nothing to do with the charges levelled against the former president himself. "The final session of the trial can only be broadcast when every party to the case has presented their defence and proofs," Hassan said. "Let the public see the judge reading out the sentence. Before that, national security could be harmed."
