Caroline Pacl Trip File- Egypt Introduction Egypt is a country of great importance to the world, as a leader in the Arab

world and its central location at the heart of the Middle East. It has been instrumental in the Israeli-Palestinian peace process and was the first country to sign a peace treaty with Israel in 1979 following the Camp David Accords. Despite its inconsistency as a leader in the Middle East throughout the years, Egyptians have always felt they will return to the limelight once their constitution is reformed and they have a freely elected government. Egypt is important strategically, in its control of the Suez canal, its trade and oil exports, and its ability to negotitate in the Arab-Israeli peace process. Egypt is a country with a population of 84.5 million people, making it the most populous country in the Middle East, in front of Irans 65 million people.Egypt is roughly the size of Texas and New Mexico combined, with an area of 1,001,450 square kilometers. The capital city of Cairo has an estimated population of 16 million, roughly 1/5 of the total population of 82.4 million. It is a country facing rapid urbanization and social and political upheaval, with the recent democratic protests that began in January 2011. 2 pages of single spaced of Background information President Hosni Mubarak has ruled under emergency rule since 1981 when the former president Anwar Sadat was assassinated by Islamic fundamentalists. Thus, Egypt has been ruled under a military government for 30 years, leaving the people increasingly without a voice and the government powerful with the backing of the military to do as it pleases. The Mubarak regime changed the constitution at various points, making laws that prohibit religious political groups from serving in Parliament, thus blocking its largest opposition the Muslim Brotherhood, from posing a threat. While the Mubarak regime has not reformed Egyptian politics, the regime has worked to improve the economic sector. Since 1991, Mubarak has worked to reduce the size of the public sector and expand the role of the private sector and even allowed press liberalization in the early 2000s. The 2010 Egyptian elections was a turning point in the Egyptian government's move to tighten its grip on Egypt. President Mubarak's National Democratic Party (NDP) won 74 of the 88 seats in the Shura Council-- Egypt's upper house parliament. Because of the low voter-turn out state-sponsored intimidation at the polls, many believe they were rigged in the NDP's favor. The election made clear that the President's control of the Shura Council would not allow for an independent to run against him in the September 2011 elections. Many felt that this independent would have been Mohammed ElBaradei, a lawyer and Nobel Prize winner with considerable credibility and international stature. ElBaradei is a chosen leader among the Egyptian protesters, who will be instrumental in negotiating their demands with the current government. He is also backed by The NDPs largest opposition the Muslim Brotherhood. Currently,

Economy The Egyptian economy has a GDP of $188 billion per year, Using the Gini coefficient, which measures the extent to which the distribution of income within an economy deviates from perfectly equal distribution we find that Egypt is 34.4. This is actually lower than the United States, which place at 45.0 showing that there is more income disparity in a democratic country that is a role model for countries like Egypt.

Social, Political and Economic History What makes it what it is today? Is your own personal history intertwined with the history of your target country? Current Situation/Analysis-- 3 pages single spaced How the history manifests in the situation of the country today. The current situation in Egypt is extremely volatile, with protests by the general public that have taken over Tahir Square in Cairo. The Egyptian revolution of 2011 was a result of what experts call a pan-Arab youth movement dedicated to spreading democracy in a region without it. The protests initially began in Tunisia, after the youth movement there successfully forced the autocratic President Zine al-Abidine Ben Ali to flee last month. The young Egyptians learned from the Tunisian protesters through social media web sites like Facebook and Twitter, and shared revolutionary ideas on everything from organizing barricades to maintaining their resistance movement without the use of violence. Volunteers were posted at the various entryways of Tahrir Square -- the demonstration area that held the most crucial protests in the heart of Cairos government district -- checking eager-to-enter protesters IDs and ready to apprehend anyone attempting to bring in weapons or bombs. In the 18 days of protests, there were no reports of sexual assault on women, who for the first time showed up in large numbers to help in the make-shift hospital, bring supplies, and stand as equals among men in the square. At least 5,000 people injured since January 25th and 300 killed, however these numbers are only estimates, as the government has not yet submitted a report and is in the process of deciding how to undergo an investigation of these deaths. During the first three days of the protests, police responded with violence using rubber bullets, tear gas, concussion grenades and water cannons. By February 1st the army took the place of the police and allowed the protests to continue, and the following day pro-Mubarak supporters began a medieval looking fight riding into the square on the backs of camels and horses and used violence against the peaceful protesters. The protesters also worked security at museums and banks, after criminal thugs were released from prisons and told to wreck havoc in the square through looting and violence.

Human Rights Watch-Heba Morayef http://militantstudent.org/international/149-statement-protesters-cairos-tahrir-square-egyptianpeople http://www.thenational.ae/news/worldwide/middle-east/women-make-their-power-felt-in-egyptsrevolution -Womens rights in Tahrir http://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2011/02/12/world/middleeast/0212-egypt-tahrir-18-daysgraphic.html?ref=middleeast -Map of Tahrir http://www.thenational.ae/news/worldwide/middle-east/fall-of-mubarak-deprives-saudi-arabia-ofclosest-local-ally -Saudi Arabia Reaction