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Egypt and the Contradictions of Liberalism: Illiberal Intelligentsia and the Future of Egyptian Democracy
The liberatory sentiment that stoked the Arab Spring and saw the ousting of long-time Egyptian dictator Hosni Mubarak seems a distant memory. Democratically elected president Mohammad Morsi lasted only a year before he was forced from power to be replaced by precisely the kind of authoritarianism protestors had been railing against in January 2011. Paradoxically, this turn of events was encouraged by the same liberal activists and intelligentsia who’d pushed for progressive reform under Mubarak.
This volume analyses how such a key contingent of Egyptian liberals came to develop outright illiberal tendencies. Interdisciplinary in scope, it brings together experts in Middle East studies, political science, philosophy, Islamic studies and law to address the failure of Egyptian liberalism in a holistic manner – from liberalism’s relationship with the state, to its role in cultivating civil society, to the role of Islam and secularism in the cultivation of liberalism. A work of impeccable scholarly rigour, Egypt and the Contradictions of Liberalism reveals the contemporary ramifications of the state of liberalism in Egypt.
This volume analyses how such a key contingent of Egyptian liberals came to develop outright illiberal tendencies. Interdisciplinary in scope, it brings together experts in Middle East studies, political science, philosophy, Islamic studies and law to address the failure of Egyptian liberalism in a holistic manner – from liberalism’s relationship with the state, to its role in cultivating civil society, to the role of Islam and secularism in the cultivation of liberalism. A work of impeccable scholarly rigour, Egypt and the Contradictions of Liberalism reveals the contemporary ramifications of the state of liberalism in Egypt.
- GenresPoliticsEgyptMiddle East
400 pages, Paperback
First published April 12, 2016
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September 13, 2019
داليا فهمي أستاذ مشارك علوم سياسية، سوف تقدم كتابها الجديد بعنوان
" Arab Spring: Modernity, Identity, and Change (Critical Political Theory& Radical practice. Edition 2020
" Arab Spring: Modernity, Identity, and Change (Critical Political Theory& Radical practice. Edition 2020
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April 6, 2019This book answers a very important question: why do Arab liberals backup dictatorships.
December 13, 2024
How could Egyptian liberals firmly support the military coup of July 3, 2013, and justify the massacres that followed in Rabaa and Nahda squares a few weeks later? For the editors and contributors to this book, such support and justification are perplexing. Regardless of the excuses offered, the book concludes that by placing their full weight and legacy behind the military establishment, Egyptian liberals became victims of the very same institution.
The book explores the conflict between liberal intellectuals and the Islamist movement in Egypt, highlighting the alliance between liberals and the military regime against the Muslim Brotherhood, which reveals the contradictions inherent in the liberal discourse itself. The authors argue that Egyptian liberals' understanding of liberalism and their approach to it led them to this paradox. The book shows that 20th-century Egyptian liberals used the state to impose their liberal vision. When Islamists emerged as a counter-project, liberals found that protecting their vision was tied to the state. However, when that state became militarized after Nasser's coup, liberals faced severe contradictions but ultimately chose to align themselves with a project that entrenched authoritarianism rather than support a democratic project led by Islamists.
In this context, Egyptian liberals promoted what Amr Hamzawy terms "liberal deceptions," which contributed to the return of authoritarianism following the military coup in 2013 against Egypt's first democratically elected president. However, the roots of these issues predate the coup and even the 2011 revolution. The book illustrates how Egyptian liberals were part of a fragmented political scene long before 2011, where political parties suffered from structural weakness and failed to genuinely represent diverse societal currents. Meanwhile, the judiciary's independence deteriorated over the decades, especially under Hosni Mubarak, when it became a tool for legitimizing repression.
Thus, a robust liberal system capable of resisting the military-security state was absent long before the 2013 coup. For liberals, the fear of the Islamist project outweighed their fear of a return to military authoritarianism. According to Daanish Faruqi, liberals' reaction to Sisi's 2013 coup was not a break with the past but rather a continuation of a historically rooted logic that reflects their bias against ordinary Egyptians and their fear of Islamists.
Due to their opposition to Islamists, figures like Mohamed ElBaradei, Alaa Al-Aswany, Ibrahim Eissa, Dr. Saad Eddin Ibrahim, and Mohamed Aboul Ghar exaggerated the threat posed by Islamists. In truth, upon reflection, each of these figures had their unique motivations, whether explicitly stated or inferred from their overall positions. Ibrahim Eissa, for example, has always espoused an intellectual project opposing Islamists. Even if he praised the Brotherhood during Mubarak's era, their mere presence was, in his view, sufficient reason to combat their project—motivated more by ideological than patriotic concerns.
The book comprises various essays of varying strength and importance, but together they paint a vital picture of the first three years of military rule from 2013 to 2015 and the liberals' stance toward it. Liberals failed to recognize that Sisi's agenda was not merely about avenging the Brotherhood but about targeting all those who participated in the January 2011 revolution.
Despite the liberals' failure to protect democracy and oppose military rule in Egypt, Emad El-Din Shahin, in the book’s conclusion, expresses hope in liberalism’s potential to achieve its goals, albeit under specific conditions. Ultimately, the book emphasizes that liberals must prioritize the nation over their ideological interests.
In conclusion, this is an important and worthwhile book that deserves to be read.
The book explores the conflict between liberal intellectuals and the Islamist movement in Egypt, highlighting the alliance between liberals and the military regime against the Muslim Brotherhood, which reveals the contradictions inherent in the liberal discourse itself. The authors argue that Egyptian liberals' understanding of liberalism and their approach to it led them to this paradox. The book shows that 20th-century Egyptian liberals used the state to impose their liberal vision. When Islamists emerged as a counter-project, liberals found that protecting their vision was tied to the state. However, when that state became militarized after Nasser's coup, liberals faced severe contradictions but ultimately chose to align themselves with a project that entrenched authoritarianism rather than support a democratic project led by Islamists.
In this context, Egyptian liberals promoted what Amr Hamzawy terms "liberal deceptions," which contributed to the return of authoritarianism following the military coup in 2013 against Egypt's first democratically elected president. However, the roots of these issues predate the coup and even the 2011 revolution. The book illustrates how Egyptian liberals were part of a fragmented political scene long before 2011, where political parties suffered from structural weakness and failed to genuinely represent diverse societal currents. Meanwhile, the judiciary's independence deteriorated over the decades, especially under Hosni Mubarak, when it became a tool for legitimizing repression.
Thus, a robust liberal system capable of resisting the military-security state was absent long before the 2013 coup. For liberals, the fear of the Islamist project outweighed their fear of a return to military authoritarianism. According to Daanish Faruqi, liberals' reaction to Sisi's 2013 coup was not a break with the past but rather a continuation of a historically rooted logic that reflects their bias against ordinary Egyptians and their fear of Islamists.
Due to their opposition to Islamists, figures like Mohamed ElBaradei, Alaa Al-Aswany, Ibrahim Eissa, Dr. Saad Eddin Ibrahim, and Mohamed Aboul Ghar exaggerated the threat posed by Islamists. In truth, upon reflection, each of these figures had their unique motivations, whether explicitly stated or inferred from their overall positions. Ibrahim Eissa, for example, has always espoused an intellectual project opposing Islamists. Even if he praised the Brotherhood during Mubarak's era, their mere presence was, in his view, sufficient reason to combat their project—motivated more by ideological than patriotic concerns.
The book comprises various essays of varying strength and importance, but together they paint a vital picture of the first three years of military rule from 2013 to 2015 and the liberals' stance toward it. Liberals failed to recognize that Sisi's agenda was not merely about avenging the Brotherhood but about targeting all those who participated in the January 2011 revolution.
Despite the liberals' failure to protect democracy and oppose military rule in Egypt, Emad El-Din Shahin, in the book’s conclusion, expresses hope in liberalism’s potential to achieve its goals, albeit under specific conditions. Ultimately, the book emphasizes that liberals must prioritize the nation over their ideological interests.
In conclusion, this is an important and worthwhile book that deserves to be read.
Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews