There is a controversy in Egypt about whether the government is failing to make an adequate response to the spread of the coronavirus in the country.
It has been apparent that countries all around the world are taking all the precautions and putting laws into place to help prevent the spread of COVID-19. However, some countries have struggled to initiate a formal response in how to address the pandemic to their citizens in order to stop the spread. Egypt is one of these countries in which there has been some controversy regarding government failing to make an adequate response to the spread of the coronavirus in the country. The seemingly lack of transparency from the Egyptian government comes into question regarding the principles of a Democratic Regime, where there is supposed to be a beneficial relationship between the government and their citizens. If things start to progress the way it is going around this time, it is apparent that the pandemic can lead to the government shifting towards a more authoritarian-ruling style of government, where the government and big business industries are going to dominate the country.
Repressive over Responsive
It is been apparent that current Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el;-Sisi and the Egyptian government has been more focused on the shutdown of public opinion in his country regarding the global pandemic as opposed to listening to what they have to say and responding to those claims in order to help stop the spread of COVID-19. On April 22nd of this year, President Sisi issued the Emergency Act, stating that “The amendment allows the President to give direct tasks to the security and the armed forces, endows the armed forces with the power of arrest and extends the military prosecutor’s power to investigate those held by the military.” The amendment essentially extends the power of the Egyptian military legal to prosecute citizens, with the power of arrest not being limited towards either direct or indirect attacks towards military buildings and individuals involved.
Furthering this claim, there have been claims that the government under the rule of Sisi have been silencing Egyptians, especially the health workers that are putting themselves on the front lines of it all. Associated Press recently reported some of these examples which include “A doctor arrested after writing an article about Egypt’s fragile health system. A pharmacist picked up from work after posting online about a shortage of protective gear… And a pregnant doctor arrested after a colleague used her phone to report a suspected coronavirus case”. In addition, there are even threats that authorities have been making towards these people who are putting their lives at risk to helping out COVID-19 infected patients, with the philosophy “Even if a doctor is dying, her must keep at working… or be subjected to the most severe punishment”, while continuing to label any health worker not coming into work as a “traitor”.
This has been extremely problematic where the workers fundamental rights for freedom of expression against the government are not sustained and under the mentality of only work but they cannot respond on what is happening. Through the perspectives in Democratic Blacksiding, it is apparent how the Egyptian government is more of a hybrid, due to it being considered a Democratic Republic, but also displaying Authoritarian tendencies through the silence of the citizens and other health workers when making claims and policies that are designed to repress the citizens of Egypt.
Lack of Accurate Information & Transparency
In addition to President Sisi and the Egyptian government trying to silence civilians on speaking out against authorities, there have also been instances of fabricated data regarding the number of COVID-19 cases in Egypt entirely. This is extremely alarming where the citizens of Egypt are unsure how serious the pandemic is in their country, specifically their area of living. In addition, one of the fundamental aspects of Democracy is the government being able to be transparent towards its citizens, and the lack of transparency that is occurring in Egypt is dangerous for the well being of the entire country.
As of June 16, it was reported that Egypt had a surge of COVID-19 cases, reaching 49,289 cases in addition to 1672 deaths. Egypt announced the reopening of its economy a month prior, where it would take place in a gradual three-step plan in effort to begin transitioning back to normal but with adaptations to the global pandemic. Originally in March, the government imposed lockdown measures which includes a night curfew, halting of flights, shutdowns of schools, and the closings of public places including restaurants, shopping centers and a place to worship. It has been said that in Egypt, “around 60 percent of the the population is formally employed, the entier economy depends on oil and gas production, tourism, remittances and Suez Canal revenues”, meaning the importance of how much a hit the economy took from the protocol effects of the Pandemic.
However, not only there have been predictions regarding the count of cases and deaths from covid-19 not being accurately, the response from the government displays the lack of transparency from the authorities and their motives being highly questioned. It was said “A reason for Egypt’s coronavirus policy failure appears to be a lack of monitoring through data collection, which can provide insights into the disease curve”. It has been estimated that the true numbers of cases was in fact “five times higher and the death toll 10 times higher than initially reported”. However, the responses from the Egyptian government were that the country had low cases of the virus, in contrast of actually addressing all the implications of the pandemic itself.
Economic Struggles
To say economies throughout the world have payed a price from the global pandemic in a negative way is an understatement. It is important to note that in addition to the Egyptian government struggling to establish transparency with their citizens, Egypt’s economy has also taken a massive hit in terms of businesses and public places being closed and shut in order to take precautions to help eliminate the spread of the coronavirus as much as possible.
Egypt, much like most other countries, prioritize their economic status and that “Large entities and industries are viewed as more valuable than small businesses or vulnerable citizens”, according to Middle East Eye. The economy is important because it can also reflect on healthcare for the citizens, and with the government’s attention being more focused on the bigger industries, it is going to lead with many people struggling to afford and maintain healthcare in a global pandemic where healthcare is much needed. If the government continues to prioritize the economy over ways to help protect the citizens from the coronavirus, the virus is going to continue spreading and the infected & death toll are going to increase gradually.
One of the industries that have been severely hit by the pandemic is the entertainment industry. When measures to shut down businesses to prevent the spread of Coronavirus began in March, it also included the closure of Theatres, cinemas and other institutions that had anything to do with cultural events that meant to be a public setting. It has been said more than half a million Egyptians work in the entertainment industry, meaning all of those workers lost their jobs and limited capacity policies that are going be enforced in order to have the industry open are gonna be a downward spiral for the industry as a whole. Actress Salwa Mohamed Ali told Middle Eastern Eye that she has been out of work since March and continues to be out of a job in the middle of August, while trying to contact many producers and directors for availability of potential roles and other projects, but are on hold to delay the risk of being exposed to the coronavirus.
The pandemic is completely effecting the economy of Egypt in a negative way where it is going to ultimately trickle down to the fact with citizens not being able to afford healthcare. With the pandemic spreading around the world like wildfire, it is completely apparent that without the presence of healthcare to afford being treated affectively. This can lead to a domino effect where the citizens who cannot afford healthcare can contract the virus and inherently cause the rates to go up, including the death toll. The pandemic in which it is currently affecting Egypt is detrimental towards Democracy because of the government way of not handling the pandemic, but rather silencing the citizens from speaking out against the government and depriving them of their right to free speech, potentially causing a downward spiral back into Authoritarianism and not being a true Democratic regime in Egypt
Trevor Funcheon is a Sophomore at SUNY Geneseo, Majoring in Political Science.
Bibliography:
Gaafar, R; 16, June 2020: “Why Egypt’s Coronavirus Response Failed”
https://www.middleeasteye.net/opinion/coronavirus-egypt-sisi-response-failed-why
Mandour, M; 15, July 2020: “Repression and Coronavirus Response in Egypt”
https://carnegieendowment.org/sada/82304
Emam; A; 9, August 2020: “Coronavirus shatters Egypt’s cinema industry with job losses and changing public attitude
https://www.middleeasteye.net/news/filmmaking-feeling-heat-covid-19-outbreak-egypt
Deknatel, F; 20, July 2020: “Even in a Pandemic, Egypt’s Sisi Only Has One Gear: Repression”