The South African Civil Society Information Service
A nonprofit news agency promoting social justice. Seeking answers to the question:
How do we make democracy work for the poor?
A nonprofit news agency promoting social justice. Seeking answers to the question:
How do we make democracy work for the poor?
26 Nov 2012
Commenting on Egyptian president Mohammed Morsi's move to grant himself sweeping powers that has brought Egyptians back to the streets in protest, Hamid Dabashi, Professor of Iranian Studies and Comparative Literature at Columbia University in New York, says Egypt has had an "open-ended revolution". After negotiating a ceasefire between Israel and Gaza, Morsi passed edicts, which allow him to overrule any judicial oversight, essentially giving him dictatorial powers.
It is very important to keep in mind that Morsi, came to power with a certain degree of democratic legitimacy -- the Egyptian elections were free and fair, argues, Dabashi. But, power corrupts and democracy is messy, he contends, as he talks about the Muslim Bortherhood's parliamentary majority and the influence of regional politics on the new Egyptian government.
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