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Politics

Quadriga

January 31, 2013

The unrest in Egypt has not only left dozens dead. It has also shown how divided Egyptian society is two years after the fall of Hosni Mubarak. President Morsi has proclaimed a state emergency in parts of the country, and the military is patrolling on the streets. But Morsi is also calling for dialogue. Meanwhile the opposition is sceptical.

https://p.dw.com/p/17Vgj

Empty words and time-wasting - that is the verdict of leading members of the opposition on President Morsi's offer of talks. The mainly secular opposition sees the president's policies as the cause of the unrest. They want an interim government and changes to the Islamist-inspired constitution.

Morsi faces not just the problem of a divided country, but also of a declining economy. Tourists and foreign investors have been staying away during the chaos. Will President Morsi be able to unite the various different social groups in a single democratic state? Or will Egypt revert to its authoritarian past?

Tell us what you think: Egyptian Winter - Morsi Under Pressure

quadriga@dw.de

Our guests:

Said Samir - Has been living and working as a freelance journalist in Germany for the last five years. Born in Egypt, he studied at Cairo’s Ain Shams University. In 2004 he and his family relocated to Germany, his wife’s home country. He works for  Arabic and English medias. He is presently working as a consultant, assisting European media to gain a foothold in the Arab World.

Thomas Hasel - is a German journalist and political scientist. He studied at the Universities of Munich, Paris and Berlin. His 2002   doctorate examined the conflict in Algeria between Islamists and the state. Since 1994 he has specialized in political and economic systems in the Arab world. He taught at Berlin's Free University examining the authoritarian regimes of North Africa and the difficulties in democratizing them. He has also written a number of press articles on the region and has produced documentaries on post Mubarak Egypt.

Hoda Salah - studied Education and German in Egypt, and Political Science, Media Sciences and German Language & Literature in Germany and Canada. Her doctoral thesis focused on the political participation of women in Islamic societies. Until 2010 she worked at the Institute for the Politics of the Near East at the Free University of Berlin. She is currently undertaking research on youth culture in Egypt and on young people as the agents of moral and social change at the University of Frankfurt. She continues to work on the politicis and culture of the Near East, processes of democratisation, women's movements, Islamic feminism, political Islam and social movements in the Middle East. She is also a political advisor to the European Parliament and to political foundations and institutions.