The coup in Egypt is unfolding so far much like the coup in Venezuela against Chavez in 2002 or the coup in Honduras against Zelaya in 2009. In Honduras many called it a "civil-military" coup (actually in Honduras they had more of a legal veneer than they did in Egypt - in that sense the coup in Egypt is more like the coup against Chavez in Venezuela.)
Whether the coup in Egypt can give way to something that deserves the name "democracy" is another question. In Honduras there was a boycott by Zelaya supporters of the election held under the government established by the coup, and that election and the government it produced was not recognized as legitimate by supporters of Zelaya. So far the Muslim Brotherhood is saying that they will not cooperate with the government being established by the coup in Egypt. Obviously, that state of affairs, if it persists, cannot produce a result that can reasonably be called "democratic." The only plausible chance for something that deserves the name "democracy" is some kind of accommodation that includes the Muslim Brotherhood. Right now the prospects for that don't look very good with much of the Muslim Brotherhood leadership under arrest, MB media shut down, MB supporters being shot in the streets. Those things will have to be reversed before there can be any outcome in Egypt that deserves the name "democracy." On Fri, Jul 5, 2013 at 7:51 PM, Jim Devine <[email protected]> wrote: > Shane Mage <[email protected]> wrote: > > Morsi was recalled by an overwhelming majority of > > Egyptians. Who, unfortunately, were unable to impose their own democratic > > government at this stage of their revolution. Which left--very > > temporarily--the military as the sole institution capable of sanctioning > a > > transitional government.... > > Military juntas come in many flavors. These days many of them don't > want to run their countries because they don't want the responsibility > and the blame for economic stagnation, social conflict, and the like. > So they can be sincere about wanting "democratic elections." Of > course, those who win the democratic elections can't tread on the toes > of the military. Usually, the military budget is increased. (Why does > Egypt have fighter planes?) Of course, juntas insist that Order Must > Be Maintained. (Morsi didn't do the job here, it seems.) Often, the > "democratically-elected" government acts like a sock puppet for the > military. > > That scenario seems likely to me in Egypt, where the military is > allied with the US (and Israel). There are cases in Sub-Saharan Africa > where the military is almost the only stable political force, but the > officers fight over who will be the leader and will skim off the very > limited surplus-product that the economy produces. > -- > Jim Devine / "Reality is that which, when you stop believing in it, > doesn't go away." -- Philip K. Dick > _______________________________________________ > pen-l mailing list > [email protected] > https://lists.csuchico.edu/mailman/listinfo/pen-l > -- Robert Naiman Policy Director Just Foreign Policy www.justforeignpolicy.org [email protected]
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