Atlantic Council

Nine new ministers were sworn in Tuesday after a minor cabinet reshuffle was announced, following several days of delays. The nine ministries affected by the changes are the ministries of justice, parliamentary affairs, petroleum, antiquities, agriculture, finance, planning, culture, and investment. 

A cabinet reshuffle was announced on Tuesday morning after days of expectations. The new reshuffle included nine ministries: justice, parliamentary affairs, petroleum, antiquities, agriculture, finance, planning, culture, and investment. 

“I have nightmares every couple of days,” said Sara Shuhdi, a 23 year old assistant professor of analytical chemistry at the German University of Cairo. “I don’t see a bright future for Egypt; maybe it would be better for me if I left.” Fifty-five days of fasting concluded on Coptic Easter, celebrated this year on May 5 according to the eastern calendar. Always a period of reflection and joy for Egyptian Christians, this year the community is deeper in the former and subdued in the latter.

The Egyptian cabinet will be reshuffled by the end of the week, a state-run newspaper reported, pointing to a delay in efforts to revamp a government widely criticized for failing to get the economy moving and to conclude a much-needed IMF loan deal. Recent reports indicate, however, that the changes may come sooner. 

During the short period in which the People’s Assembly was operational in 2012, we at the Human Rights Committee created a comprehensive and consensual draft of a new law for non-governmental organizations (NGOs). The goal was to ensure a free civil society, and to guarantee the freedom to organize, beyond governmental restrictions and security interference. The goal was to enable NGOs and authorities to acquire the necessary financing with transparency, legal oversight and without abuse.

Developments in the realm of Egypt’s foreign affairs have attracted attention in the opinion sections of the local media over the past week.  President Morsi’s trip to Russia and the evolving nature of the Egyptian-Iranian relationship have been particular points of departure that writers have used to consider Egypt’s international direction more broadly. 

Thousands of Egyptian hardline Islamists marched from a mosque in a Cairo suburb on Thursday night to the state security headquarters to protest against what they said was a return to the force's pre-revolution methods. 

While women in Egypt are habitual victims of sexual harassment in its various forms, the law does little to protect them or guarantee their rights. A survey conducted by the Egyptian Center for Women’s Rights (ECR) in 2008 indicates that 83% of Egyptian women and 98% of foreign women have been subjected to harassment.

Egypt's cabinet reshuffle will see six ministers replaced, al-Ahram Arabic news website has reported, citing a government source. President Morsi had intended to replace ten ministers, the source added, but the number was trimmed to six because he could not persuade enough replacements to join his cabinet. 

Rafik Hariri Center for the Middle East Director Michele Dunne appeared on Egyptian channel CBC to discuss the current situation in Egypt. Topics of particular focus including US policy towards Egypt, the Egyptian opposition, and ongoing negotiations between Egypt and the International Monetary Fund (IMF) for a $4.8 billion loan.

On Wednesday, Egyptian workers will celebrate the first Labor Day since the election of President Mohamed Morsi, by voicing longstanding demands and unfulfilled promises. A march organized by dozens of political parties, movements and labor organizations saw thousands of workers march from Sayyeda Zeinab near downtown Cairo to the Shura Council.

The rhetoric of the Arab spring and the democratization process, perhaps best paraphrased as “new government, new policies, new dynamics,” emphasizes respect for the rule of law and the maintenance of higher moral standards than those of the corrupt prior regimes. There are, nevertheless, many incidents that demonstrate that this rhetoric is not real, and which belie the stark contrast these new governments are trying to draw to separate themselves from their deposed predecessors.

Despite a backdrop of sporadic clashes, presidential power grabs, and crackdowns on freedom of expression, Egypt’s arts and culture sector has flourished since January 2011. While many artists feel unable to respond effectively to political events in their personal work, and traditional institutions have been faced with varying challenges, the past two years have given rise to a number of vibrant new spaces and initiatives.

Egypt said on Monday it was withdrawing from a second week of Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) talks in Geneva in protest at what it called the failure to implement a 1995 resolution for a Middle East free of nuclear weapons. That was an implicit reference to Israel which neither confirms nor denies having nuclear arms and is not a signatory to the NPT.