egypt or no egypt?

I'm still debating on whether or not I want to go to Egypt this summer. A part of me is dying to hear the call to prayer (athan) five times a day, to eat mango's, grape leafs, koshari, drink karkadeeh, asab, shop for hijabs for cheap, go for a morning run at the nadi, drink a costa frescato while reading a book at an odd hour of the day to avoid the loud noise and fuming cigarettes, see all my relatives, aunts, uncles, grandma, listen to egyptian jokes, watch cheesy egyptian movies, order everything from the comfort of my home (pharmacy, super market, cook door!!), ask for directions and end up in no where, listen to taxi driver's amusing yet sad ramblings, stay up all night with cousins talking about our naive, fun, corny pasts, go on a walk on the stanly bridge and eat roasted corn on the cob and friska, and so on.

Yetthe other part of me doesn't really want to witness sexual harassment, poor treatment of customers, maids, lower class workers, or cairo traffic, corruption, police officer and guards bribery, corruption, taxi's ripping you off because you have a slight accent, workers' attitudes, employee's stalking when you go inside a store, messed up streets, inadequate traffic laws, silly driving laws, heat, stuck-up rich people, teenagers (and older) with their stereo on so loud to look cool, being harassed although one is dressed properly, laziness, hijabi's wearing super tight, cheesy, rainbow colored clothes (lime green carina, seriouslyyy??), teens trying to hard to look 'western,' overpriced items.

to go to egypt or not go to egypt, that is the not so easy question

Dear Mr. Future president of Egypt

If you guys could write a letter to the future president of the Egypt (maybe Baradei), what would you say? I would LOVE to read what everyone has to say!!

Also apparently, you can ask Baradei a question and he will answer on http://www.google.com/moderator/?hl=ar#16/e=6017

So comment below and write your letters to the future president of the u.s.! open your heats out about egypt, ask questions, voice your concerns, personal issues, etc

Being denied health care ...

I'm pretty sure I'm the only one who checks and reads my blog but what the heck. Maybe one day other people will read it. Anyway, check out this article. It's really sad. What I find so strange though is that people complain about health care in America but in Egypt (and in a lot of other countries) health care is so much worse. I know of so many people who were diagnosed and treated incorrectly in Egypt. I mean sure it happens in the u.s. also, but in Egypt, if you were misdiagnosed at least you will get an apology and you can even sue the hospital/doctor. But in Egypt ... wazza hell? Yeah that doesn't work. Come one Egypt, you can do it. Just be fair in your treatments, doctors, and hospitals, don't deny people who can't afford health care. Imagine if you or one of your family members didn't have enough money to get treated, wouldn't it be nice if someone treated you for free?

2.2 million poor Egyptians were given free treatment in 2009


End of free health care hits Egypt’s poor hardest


Millions of poor Egyptians with no health insurance bear brunt of government’s empty coffers.


CAIRO - Hesham Gohary says he has been coming to the Health Ministry in central Cairo for weeks in the hope of getting free kidney dialysis treatment, but always leaves empty-handed.

The 54-year-old farmer is one of 35,000 low-income kidney failure patients whose collective US$118 million health bill used to be footed by the government, until it recently declared its coffers empty.

“I badly need the dialysis,” Gohary told IRIN. “But it seems so difficult to get free treatment in this country these days.”

Around 35 million of the country’s 80 million people are in the state health insurance system, according to the Health Ministry, and most of the rest are supposed to get free health care.

Those seeking free treatment must make their case at a Health Ministry office and, if successful, receive an official letter authorizing public hospitals to treat them for free. The hospitals then reclaim payment from the ministry.

Last year, the government gave free treatment to 2.2 million poor Egyptians, including kidney failure, cancer, diabetes and high blood pressure patients, according to Mohamed Abdeen, chairman of the Specialized Medical Councils, the part of the Health Ministry which determines whether a patient qualifies for free treatment or not.

This is a problem of money. The hospitals can’t do anything else. If they don’t get money, they won’t be able to offer treatment or medicine for these people.

“A problem of money”

But the government has incurred debts of US$219 million to hospitals and is no longer able to pay its health bills, and since mid-December 2009 hospitals have stopped treating the patients it sends to them.

“This is a problem of money,” Abdeen told IRIN. “The hospitals can’t do anything else. If they don’t get money, they won’t be able to offer treatment or medicine for these people.”

Gohary used to receive kidney dialysis treatment 12 hours a week at a cost to the government of $3,302 a year - a small fortune for him.

“I really can’t pay for my treatment. And it’s hard for me to work because repeated dialyses have made my body frail,” he said.

The Health Ministry says around 700,000 high blood pressure and diabetes patients used to receive free health care at an annual cost of $183 million; and around 25,000 cancer patients cost the government $51 million annually.

Egypt's economy grew by 7.1 percent in 2007, 7.2 percent in 2008 but just 4 percent in 2009, according to the government. Independent analysts say the loss to the economy because of the global financial crisis is bigger than the government is willing to admit.

Meanwhile, individuals like Gohary are facing the consequences: “I suffer bleeding every time I undergo the dialysis… This costs me 300 pounds [$55] in medication every month. This money and the cost of the dialysis are too big for my sons to be able to pay.”

It's about time!

It's about time! Sexual harassment in Egypt is crazy. It's especially embarrassing when foreign females are there and they're harassed-- do they think that these tourists are going to like Egypt more? It happens to everyone-- veiled, not-veiled, and niqab (burqa) and abaya (long, loose dress) wearing people also. It's disgusting to walk around the street in Egypt, minding your own business and you're forced to look down because if you make contact with a guy, it's a 'bad' thing and they'll assume you want to be harassed. I mean, it happens everywhere, but in Egypt, other people just watch as you're being harassed and if you tell the police near by, they don't do anything. Heck, policeman and guards even harass you! I hope this law works, come on Egypt, you can do this!

Egypt moves closer to passing sexual harassment law

Dina Zayed
CAIRO
Wed Feb 17, 2010 12:55pm EST

CAIRO (Reuters) - Egypt, under pressure from activists, has moved closer to passing laws to crack down on sexual harassment after overcoming initial legislative hurdles, members of parliament said on Wednesday.

World

Activists said sexual harassment has been an obstacle to women having a full economic and political role in Egypt, where a 2008 study found 83 percent of those surveyed had been sexually harassed and half said it happened daily.

The push for a change in the law gained prominence in 2008 when a truck driver was jailed for sexually harassing a woman, in the country's first case to be brought to court.

Members of parliament backing draft bills said that without a specific definition in law, penalties can be arbitrary. Activists say a law would curb harassment, an issue that can harm the image of tourism-reliant Egypt.

One bill was presented to parliament's legislative affairs committee this week and another was approved by the Justice Ministry so it can be presented to the committee in days.

MPs behind the drafts say they differ on details, such as the level of fines to be imposed, but would welcome either.

STATE RESPONDING

"It shows the state is responding and changing ... They are now understanding the significance of the issue," said Nihad Abu Al-Qumsan, head of the Egyptian Center for Women's Rights.

"There has to be a law criminalizing sexual harassment in Egypt," Abu Al-Qumsan told Reuters, referring to a need to address issues exposed in the 2008 study on harassment.

That study, conducted by Abu Al-Qumsan's independent NGO, was based on a sample of more than 2,000 Egyptian men and women and 109 foreign women. Ninety-eight percent of the foreign women said they had experienced harassment in Egypt.

Both draft bills define sexual harassment, specify its forms and assign punishments. Egypt has so far dealt with such cases under laws referring to lewd acts in public.

"I think the bill will pass, for the simple reason that it has been thoroughly studied by the government," said MP Georgette Kalini, who is sponsoring the bill that has been approved by the Justice Ministry.

The second bill, backed by MP Mohamed Khalil Qaweyta, had been derailed in a preliminary review but was now back in the legislative committee. Qaweyta said he aimed to have it on an agenda for MPs to discuss and vote on within a month.

In October 2008, Egyptian courts sentenced Sharif Gommaa to three years in prison and ordered him to pay about $950 (5,000 EGP) in compensation to Nuha Rushdi, a woman he sexually harassed. Gommaa's appeal was rejected earlier this week.

http://www.reuters.com/article/idUSTRE61G3ZS20100217

Sad fact

17 million Egyptians live below the poverty line. I think the show that I was watching (El beit beitak) said that was 350 pounds which equals around 70 dollars ... a month. 17 MILLION! Yet the president continues to congratulate soccer players. Hosni Mubarak, it is time for you to go and never come back. And may your legacy never continue through.


Does anyone read this blog? I think I am the only one who does. I'll continue to write. Maybe one day it'll mean something.

Egypt won, let's get over it and focus on more important issues

I'm really really really ecstatic Egypt won! I screamed, I jumped, I update my facebook status and 'liked' everyone's status on my friend's list who wrote about Egypt's victory. I even changed my pictures on FB to Egypt-related. Okay. Now what? Third time in a row champions. Very nice. 7 time winner. Excellent. So ... Again, now what? I think it's awesome that Egyptians every where are celebrating, and especially in Egypt itself, Egyptians are laughing, being happy, cheering, and having that pride-filled sentiment.

Unfortunately everything comes to an end. We won. The End. Now let's focus on more important issues, such as that flood that happened in Egypt, that no one seems to be noticing. And that the Egyptian election is coming up and people need to know more information about who is running. I find that soccer and sports can some times be a relief to all the hardship that's going on in one's country.

I mean, yes Egypt has accomplished a lot, but in reality, it's on a pretty low scale compared to other countries. If people were more enthusiastic about overthrowing corrupt governments, poverty, injustice, imagine how amazing Egypt should be? Egypt still deserves to celebrate, the people need a little break and past time and that's healthy. And it's also wonderful that Egyptians of all social levels and religions all cheer for that one team and celebrate together.

I just think they shouldn't celebrate for too long and no not move on with their lives -- but move on to other more crucial issues in the country. I love Egypt with all my heart. And one of the goals of this blog is to not criticize my country, but to encourage others to take MORE steps in making it a better country.

Congratulations Egypt, you deserved it, and he team made us all proud. But let us always stay proud of who we are, regardless of whether or not we win a soccer game, and to strive to make Egypt a better place. I'll end with this quote in a New York Time's article that just came out, title Soccer Gains Ground on Politics In Gaza Strip: "When people ... cannot find solutions to their political problems, they shift their interest to movies and sports. Sports have become a prime interest," he said.

http://www.nytimes.com/reuters/2010/01/31/sports/sports-uk-soccer-nations-palestinians.html

Athan ring tone, haram?

Okay, so a new fatwa was made that ringtones that are the Muslim's call to prayer "athan" and even Quranic verses are haram (forbidden). It can be "misleading." I think they are cool, some times. What if at that moment you were about to do something "bad" and then suddenly someone calls--and not your average Akon rington--rather a verse from the Quran or Athan. Would the person rethink what he or she was about to do? On the other hand, are some people just using these types of ring tones for showing off? Is it disrespectful to use Quranic verses as ring tones? I don't see any harm in it. But God knows best. Obviously there were no ring tones at the time of Prophet Muhammad (pbuh), but it is widely known that the Quran should always be respected, as well as other holy books and other religious beliefs, not just Islam. Here's the link: Oh, and I like the picture on the top--so typical of Egyptians on the streets.




CAIRO (AP) — Egypt's top cleric wants Muslims to answer the call to prayer, but not when its ringing on their cellphones.

Grand Mufti Ali Gomaa issued a fatwa, or a religious edict, on Wednesday urging Muslims to do away with a popular fad — Quranic verses or the five daily calls to prayer as cellphone ringtones. The government-appointed cleric says such ringtones are inappropriate, misleading and demeaning to God's words.

"God's words are sacred. ... He ordered us to respect them and glorify them," Gomaa said.

Muslims are required to pray five times a day, and the time for this is announced solely with calls to prayers from mosques, Gomaa said. "The calls to prayer are to announce it is time ... using it as a ringtone is confusing and misleading."

Edicts, or fatwas, serve as advice for the pious who observe them closely. Gomaa's edict, published on the official website of Dar al-Iftah, one of Sunni Islam's earliest institution for interpreting religion, is not binding.

FAITH & REASON: The less we know, the more we fear

Islamic ringtones are ubiquitous in this country of 80 million. They are also making the rounds in Baghdad, Saudi Arabia, the West Bank and to a lesser degree, multi-sectarian Lebanon. A group of Saudi clerics recently made a similar plea to Saudis not to use Quran for ringtones.

In Egypt, verses or calls to prayer from the holy book of Quran are not only popular as ringtones. They have become the rage with screen savers and text messages in holiday greetings. The tones can be downloaded from the Internet, mobile phone company websites and are advertised on TV stations.

With a rising tide of Islamic conservatism, Egyptians are increasingly peppering their lives with religious symbols, and turn to fatwas to regulate their day-to-day lives.

Head scarves are predominant among the country's Muslim women and men increasingly sport traditional beards. Quranic verses can be seen plastered as posters or stickers on cars, offices and homes. Even daily greetings have become Islamized, with people starting and ending their conversations by invoking God's name or words.

The majority of Egyptians are Sunni Muslims. There are nearly 50 million mobile phone subscribers.

For those insisting their ringtones have an Islamic character, he suggested they use Islamic hymns or religious prose.
Copyright 2010 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.


link: http://www.usatoday.com/news/religion/2010-01-22-egypt-fatwa_N.htm
----

What do you guys think? Do you have such ring tones? Do you think they're wrong?

Debatable: Religious, "Muslim" soccer players?

This is interesting. The Egyptian soccer coach only allows devout Muslims on his team. I mean, I see where he's coming from. If you're religious, you pray to God often. If you pray to God often, you pray that you win. If you win, then you win different cups, games, etc. But to single out Christian players? What if they're religious Christian players in Egypt that are really good? And what if these so called Muslims are pretending to be religious just to be on the team? I don't follow up often on Egyptian soccer games, but I'm pretty sure there have been excellent Christian players on the teams before (El-zamalek, Ahly, etc). I just don't think your religion should be based on whether or not you get to play on a team. If you're religious, excellent. If you're Muslim--good. If you're Christian--good. Let's keep a person's religious beliefs out of this and just WIN! And pray that we win!
Here's the link:
Egypt's soccer boss says piety key to making team

United we stand--Christians and Muslims in Egypt?

From what I read, this started when a "Coptic" raped an Egyptian girl a couple months ago. So the "Muslims" wanted revenge and attacked a Church. What the hell? You people live together, are neighbors, work together, go to school together. What's with all the stupidity? Both sides need to calm down a bit and stop playing the 'you started it you deserved it' game. What happened to Egyptians bonding, regardless of religion? Christians and Muslims are friends, especially in Egypt. And watch Hasan w Mor2os for a refresher.

Link: Suspects in Egypt's Christmas slayings surrender