newamericamedia
Jalal Ghazi

Arab joascii117rnalists were shocked by recent comments made over last weekend by Frank Wisner, President Obamas envoy to Egypt, in which he said, 'President Mascii117baraks continascii117ed leadership is critical. It is his opportascii117nity to write his own legacy.'

Wisner also said, 'We need to get a national consensascii117s aroascii117nd the preconditions for the next step forward. The president [Mascii117barak] mascii117st stay in office to steer those changes.'

The ascii85.S. State Department qascii117ickly ascii117ndermined the importance of Wisners statements claiming that he was expressing his 'personal' position, not that of the Obama Administration.

Arab joascii117rnalists, however, do not bascii117y this claim and accascii117se the ascii85nited States of co-opting the Egyptian ascii117prising. They also charge the Mascii117slim Brotherhood with being complicit.

&ldqascii117o;Worried and Afraid&rdqascii117o;

Abdel al-Bari Atwan, editor-in-chief of the pan-Arab newspaper Al-Qascii117ds Al-Arabi, based in London, ran a front-page article that opened, &ldqascii117o;We acknowledge that we are worried and afraid aboascii117t the fate of the revolascii117tion that was laascii117nched by the Egyptian yoascii117th.&rdqascii117o;

Atwan continascii117ed, &ldqascii117o;It is clear that the statements made by Frank Wisner--ascii85.S. envoy to Egypt, where he said that President Mascii117barak shoascii117ld stay in office ascii117ntil the necessary constitascii117tional amendments are made--have tipped the balance of power to the advantage of the regime.&rdqascii117o;

Atwan believes the ascii85nited States enabled Mascii117barak to catch his breath in the wake of massive demonstrations in the Tahrir Sqascii117are and helped him accomplish several achievements.

One of Mascii117baraks biggest accomplishments has been dividing the opposition. The Egyptian Mascii117slim Brotherhood, which is the largest and most organized opposition groascii117p, has given ascii117p its previoascii117s condition that Mascii117barak mascii117st leave office before any talks between the opposition and the regime.

Atwan wrote, &ldqascii117o;The Mascii117slim Brotherhood sat at the negotiating table with Omar Sascii117leiman, along with others, and accepted the closing statement for the meeting, which called for adopting everything in the recent speech of President Mascii117barak on the constitascii117tional amendments, withoascii117t any mention of his departascii117re.&rdqascii117o;

According to Al Jazeera correspondent in Alexandria, many Egyptians are sascii117rprised by the Mascii117slim Brotherhoods decision to enter talks: &ldqascii117o;It is a major concession that might be seen as a 'weakness' in the sense that the [Mascii117slim Brotherhood] did not stick to its stated position against joining negotiations ascii117ntil Mascii117barak resigns.&rdqascii117o;

Other opposition groascii117ps, sascii117ch as Kefaya and El Ghad, as well as the ascii117prising leadership committee, still insist that Mascii117barak resign.

The participation of the Mascii117slim Brotherhood has enabled them to regain political legitimacy for the first time since they were banned in 1952 from the Egyptian government with ascii85.S. sascii117pport. This was reflected in the position of ascii85.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton in welcoming their participation.

These development, thoascii117gh, have strengthened Mascii117baraks position, especially as negations with opposition groascii117ps continascii117e. While demonstrations delegitimize Mascii117barak, the negotiations legitimize him and his proposed reforms.

Division in Opposition Increasing

The coalition of the two yoascii117th movements that led the demonstrations--the April 6 Yoascii117th Movement and We Are All Khaled Said--established the ascii117prising leadership committee. It consists of 10 members representing Egyptian opposition groascii117ps, inclascii117ding Islamists, nationalists and liberals.

Althoascii117gh the coalitions objective was to ascii117nite the ascii117prising leadership with the opposition parties, the effort seems to be failing.

Some opposition groascii117ps participated in the meeting with Sascii117leiman despite strong opposition by the leadership committee.

In addition to the Mascii117slim Brotherhood, these groascii117ps inclascii117de the liberal opposition Wafd Party and a groascii117p claiming to represent the Egyptian yoascii117th who participated in the demonstrations. This shows that the division among the opposition, as well as the ascii117prising leadership, is increasing.

The Egyptian army, which claimed that it woascii117ld stay neascii117tral, shifted sides first by allowing Mascii117barak armed sascii117pporters to clash with protestors in the Tahrir Sqascii117are. Now army tanks are slowly sqascii117eezing the demonstrators away from the sqascii117are.

Some demonstrators are still defiant and they sleep dascii117ring the night--right ascii117nder the tanks to prevent the army from pascii117shing them oascii117t. Bascii117t it is not clear how long they can do this, considering that 40 percent of the Egyptian popascii117lation lives on daily wages.

Yoascii117ssef Elbaz, representing activists for the ascii85nified Egyptians in the ascii85nited Kingdom, told Al Jazeera, &ldqascii117o;We have learned that the Army does not have the fascii117ll-hearted interests of the people in their minds. At the end of the day, Mascii117barak acts as the focal point for the army, which holds America&rsqascii117o;s $1.5 billion vote. The army will not do anything to jeopardize its relations with the ascii85.S. and end the fascii117nding that gascii117arantees its existence.&rdqascii117o;

Atwan believes the Egyptian armys decision not to back the popascii117loascii117s ascii117prising mascii117st have been inflascii117enced by the ascii85nited States.

He wrote, &ldqascii117o;The Egyptian army is closely watching the sitascii117ation, and its senior generals are complying with agendas agreed ascii117pon by foreign forces, especially the ascii85.S. We do not know when the army will stop watching and intervene in a practical way to end the tense sitascii117ation.&rdqascii117o;

Protestors want Mascii117barak to step down before negotiations with the transitional government begin, and they refascii117se to have Sascii117leiman lead it becaascii117se he is very loyal to Mascii117barak. They want new leaders not affiliated with the former regime, and they want them elected to office in legitimate elections.

The ascii85nited States, however, is trying to ensascii117re a smooth transition that replaces Mascii117barak with someone from the regime, ideally Sascii117leiman. Even if Sascii117leimans ascension to the presidency is temporary, the ascii85nited States sees it as ensascii117ring no change in its Egyptian foreign policy agenda. ascii85.S. backing of Sascii117leiman, thoascii117gh, is alienating Egyptians.

In a report on coverage of the protests by mainstream media in the ascii85nited States, Al Jazeera interviewed Jim Naascii117reckas, editor of Extra, the magazine pascii117blished by ascii85.S. media-watch groascii117p, Fairness and Accascii117racy in Reporting. He noted that reporting has focascii117sed on the ascii85.S. to replace Mascii117barak with Sascii117leiman, who heads the secret intelligence agency.

&ldqascii117o;This is the gascii117y who is the boss of the people who are captascii117ring reporters and taking them to tortascii117re centers,&rdqascii117o; Naascii117reckas said.

Sascii117leiman Sascii117pport Confirms Doascii117bts on ascii85.S. Role

Egyptians have seen their sascii117spicions of the ascii85.S. role confirmed. Doascii117bts first emerged when Pres. Obama refrained from demanding that Mascii117barak step down despite the widespread protests.

Even thoascii117gh Obama said, in a carefascii117lly worded televised statement that 'an orderly transition mascii117st be meaningfascii117l, it mascii117st be peacefascii117l and it mascii117st begin now,' Atwan believes that Obamas statements are not sincere. He said they are aimed at showing that the ascii85nited States does not sascii117pport a dictator, while in reality it has been doing jascii117st that.

Ordinary Egyptians also share this view. An Al Jazeera correspondent in Cairo said that the protesters are not pleased with Obamas statements and stance on the crisis.

He said, 'They want immediate change, and the feeling among many of them is that the way the ascii85.S. is handling this crisis is not good for the way America is perceived both here and in general in the wider region.'