Mursi’s Ouster | A Stab To The Heart

Eyes are teary, hearts are weary, strength is fading, hopes are shaking and the souls undergo a massive torment. While completely disregarding the paradigm of the Muslim Brotherhood and their ilk, we weep nonetheless for their strife and feel equally affected by their plight. For decades of Egypt’s recent past, we despised its political situation where corrupt, autocratic foreign puppets were at the helm of affairs actively combating and persecuting an Islamist revival. Finally after a long and hard fought struggle; the Brotherhood successfully installed in Egypt’s presidency a benevolent personality that changed such treacherous policies.

However, the pawns (the army generals and the opposition) of the international ‘world order’ led primarily by an anti-Islamist secular intelligentsia would not let these developments come to pass. President Morsi’s ouster is intensely severe; an eye tearing, heart aching, enraging, demoralizing, dispiriting, dismal event; a set back to the Ummah; so bleak, lonesome, and despondent. It crushes the aspirations of a nation that had ‘elected’ Mursi to become president. For the second time, the Algerian experiment was used against Islamists who manipulated the democratic process to their favor. We are resolute in this dark hour to show solidarity with our brethren who fight our common cause and face our common foe.

As Muslims we raise our arms to Allah SWT our lord to ease our way through the crisis.

Oh Allah! Mark our revenge against our foe and grant us victory.

In retrospect we analyze valid reasons for his ouster, which of his shortcomings brought about this unfortunate end? The sole charge faced against him is inefficiency in governance. His critics flared arguments that the state of the economy did not live up to expectations. Although the Egyptian economy is in a dreadful state, however it is not Mursi who brought about this situation. To begin with, he did not become president in the best economic conditions; pivotal problems existed prior to his election. The reasons behind the major factors (including currency weakness, capital flight and crumbling state finances) of Egypt’s inactive economy owe not to the Mursi era which lasted a mere 12 months, but have come in existence over the long years of corrupt regimes particularly the Mubarak era which spanned over the last couple of decades.

Therefore, it is naive to believe that the economic downfall would arise in the duration of only a year and more so to expect a magical change by Morsi in this short time. Besides, any government which comes to replace Morsi will face and fail amidst similar problems. Furthermore, the government under Mursi does have a few remarkable milestones to claim in the economic field. This includes the March 2013 Egyptian Central Bank report, which shows that the overall balance of payment deficit went down from $11.2 billion to $2.1 billion. (1)

So in reality, his ouster was not due to a deteriorating economy, rather the charge sheet against president Morsi from the perspective of the army that sacked his government include his bold stance against Iran, his permission to the Egyptian youth to take part in the Syrian Jihad, and most importantly his anti-Israel stance with a simultaneous support of armed Palestinian resistance. Morsi’s major crisis came when violence between Israel and Hamas restarted after the targeted killing of a Hamas military commander by Israeli forces on November 14th. In a stark contrast  from his predecessor Hosni Mubarak, Morsi supported Hamas’ position outright, blaming Israeli forces for the violence and excessive civilian casualties. Morsi, as a Muslim Brotherhood leader, has not even referred to Israel by name in his time in office, nor met with any Israelis. Al Jazeera footage showed Palestinians in Gaza waving Egyptian flags in celebration. (2)

This calamity came through division more than any other factor. The Islamists were on no common grounds each thinking and acting independently. Where some like the Jama’a Islamiyaa took a passive stance, others like the Salafist Al-Noor party and the Sheikh at Al-Azhar joined the ranks of the leftists, and the Army. This left a weak and lonely Muslim Brotherhood standing firm behind its president in refusing to accept the military coup. Although no resistance of any kind was enforced against the military’s intervention for the Ikhwan had only verbally and politically defied the military takeover, mass arrests of notable leaders of both the Muslim brotherhood and other personalities and groups who allied themselves with the outgoing president. Most prominent of these arrests were of Mursi and Hazim Abu Ismail. Many killings of leaders and activists of the brotherhood also took place.

This sacking of the government and the mass arrests complicate matters quite seriously, at least in the short run. It implies the complete sidelining and isolation of Islamists in Egypt.  The future seems very uncertain and carries little hope. It also subjugates the causes of neighboring countries which more or less are affiliated with Islamism. The struggles being fought in Syria and Gaza now become doubtful. There is now also little hope for the advocates of such an ideology to find success in Egypt. More so than anything else, these recent events were a mere conspiracy against Islamism.

Coming back to the issue at hand; our differences with the Ikhwan remain invariable; however, their recent experience in Egypt has once again exposed the reality of ‘democracy’ and the true face of democracy worshippers. The events once again explain that it wasn’t ever the sincerity with the ‘democratic’ doctrine that drove the seekers of democracy, its’ the hatred against Islam causing havoc. ‘Democracy’, to its diehard believers as well is a disposable vessel. When democracy serves the aim, it is demanded; when it doesn’t and rather threatens such aims, it is disposed off.

Hang in there, it isn’t the end yet! True that democracy isn’t meant for us the Muslims. However, solidarity with our Muslim Brethren of Egypt against the Islam hating wicked foreign empowered rogues at the moment is obligatory.

The need of the hour is to act with maturity and to appear united as one entity keeping aside, for a while, the mutual differences. There will be ample time in which the right methodology may be explained. The time is to show the world that the concerns of Muslim activists are one and so are there aims regardless of the methodology. This also is peak time to expose the reality of the west and their secularist/liberal puppetry that chants for it. This responsibility lies on our shoulders; our Ummah awaits its youth, scholars, and activists for wise action. Jump in, you are the most needed!