MB’s Leading Role in January 25 Day of Anger – Prospects for Victory

MB’s Leading Role in January 25 Day of Anger – Prospects for Victory

 

Under the title “Protesters in Bloody Wednesday clashes in Cairo’s Tahrir Square would have been slain but for the fact that young Muslim Brothers defended them,” journalist Bara al-Khatib wrote in the weekly issue No. 120 of “Al Youm Al Sabe3″ on Tuesday, February 15, 2011. He was praising the leading role of Brotherhood youth in defending the protesters of January 25 glorious revolution that ended in former Egyptian president Hosni Mubarak’s resignation on Friday.

 

In his article entitled “This Is Egypt’s Revolution, not Ours”, which was published in Britain’s Guardian, Mohamed Morsi said “the detailed account of the Brotherhood’s role needs a book written in which our literature and public statements emphasize that we see ourselves as part of the fabric of Egyptian social and political life”. So we deserve an equal opportunity to work for the prosperity of Egypt through promoting our message and solutions, just like all other groups.

 

Once the Muslim Brotherhood announced their participation in the Day of Rage protest scheduled for Tuesday, January 25th, Brotherhood bloggers promoted a banner across Facebook pages entitled “I’m a MB member who will demonstrate on January 25”.

 

The revolution has sparked on Tuesday, January 25th with the distinct participation of 156 leading Brotherhood figures, including 88 MB former parliamentarians, dozens of MB candidates in the 2010 parliamentary elections and a handful of media men in Cairo’s Tahrir Square.

 

The leading role played by Mohammed El-Beltagy, NAC member, Assistant Secretary General of the MB’s parliamentary bloc in 2005 and a member of the People’s Parliament, was clear as he ignited the revolution and urged youth to participate and express their anger in front of the Higher Court, where he was being carried on the shoulders of the youth heading to Tahrir Square amid slogans denouncing Mubarak’s rule.

 

The Day of Wrath continued anidst police brutality by a group of MB leaders, headed by Beltagi as they rushed to Tahrir Square to take part with the Egyptian masses for the liberation of Egypt.

 

Despite the brutal interference of security forces to break up anti-government protesters in Tahrir Square, the popular anger continued with the MB presence throughout the country. Abdel Moneim Abdel-Maksoud, the group’s lawyer, said MB detainees who participated in the demonstrations reached 149 in two days, mostly young people.

 

Despite heinous acts by security forces, the Egyptian masses along with the Brotherhood, as a part of the social fabric, continued to demonstrate on Friday’s Day of Anger and and then again on the Day of Departure at a time when Mubarak refused to step aside, arousing public anger. Muslim Brotherhood youth were falling dead and wounded during Wednesday’s clashes in Cairo’s Tahrir Square.

 

Senior members of Egypt’s Muslim Brotherhood Saad el-Katatni and Mohamed Morsi took part in the formal meeting which was chaired by Egyptian Vice President Omar Suleiman while they were participating in the protests. The group supported the people’s demands and held a press conference emphasizing that Mubarak’s government was not serious and that their participation was just to explore the government’s intentions towards the people’s demands. Once they realized the government would not respond to the people, they immediately suspended the dialogue.

 

Since the outbreak of mass protests, it is noticeable that the MB’s daily remarks were addressed to the Egyptian people, refuting the former regime’s fabricated lies and insisting on meeting the people’s top demands that included Mubarak’s immediate ouster.

 

The MB’s participation continues to make comprehensive reforms as high ranking MB figures like Mohammed Beltagui has joined the Coalition of the Youth of the Wrath Revolution, and the Supreme Council of the Armed Forces named MB member Sobhi Saleh to join the committee to amend the Constitution.