Cairo Heart

It should be bleeding today, here, in Tahrir Square, after the rag-bag, Sisi-adoring parliament agreed that proposed changes to the 2014 constitution (itself, a cobbled-together affair) be put to the people in a referendum.  They did this yesterday, and the referendum will take place at the beginning of next week . . . yes, that's right, four days for a national discourse.

The referendum is being fixed by the President in a number of ways, not least, by the ' Vote Yes' posters, which you see above, plastered all over the country without any space or funding for 'Vote No' ones.

The main/worst change is the extension of the presidential term to six years (maintaining the maximum of two terms - believe that will hold, and you'll believe anything) with a special measure to allow the present incumbent to keep office until 2030.  Sisi overthrew the last president in 2013 and, so, with this extension in the bag, is well on track to rival Mubarak's time in power.   Another constitutional change will see him exceed it, for sure - Sisi is a much more ruthless operator than even Mubarak was.  

So, Sisi is nimbly securing himself a place in the Parade of Presidents from Nasser onwards, all army officers but for the one who was actually elected, Mursi.   You may say that that would be dependent on Sisi winning more elections, which are open to a free vote in theory but not in reality, given that any opponent will be underfunded, imprisoned or be one his own staunch supporters fielded, as a cheerleader, to herd the misguided home to the Sisi 'truth'.

The other two worrying amendments are, firstly, that for the first time he constitution specifically puts a duty on the army to do whatever it takes to defend the country, and the constitution . . . this will allow its commanders to do what they like, no matter what any elected representative may plan to do - the 'deep state' brought into the light, explicitly, for the first time.  Secondly,, the president is being given full power over the judiciary . . . yes, that's right, full power to appoint and manage the normally independent third pillar of state.

So, is it good-bye to Egypt as we know it?  No, it's more of the same, but it is goodbye to Egypt as it deserves to be.  Maybe, the flowers of the second African-Arab Springs in Algeria and Sudan will yet blossom here.