Egypt -- Depriving the People the Human Right to Tweet

"The rioting in Egypt is an Egyptian problem, but when the country suppresses the people's basic right to communicate amongst themselves and with people throughout the free world, it suddenly becomes a world problem, for which we must stand up and proclaim."

Egypt means a lot to me.  My travels there this summer brought me friends and memories that will never fade as long as the Great Sphinx guards the pharaoh Khufu's Pyramids.

And I made many friends, some who I converse with on Facebook -- others whom I've lost touch with, but they're still deep inside my thoughts today.  Though Cairo with all its congestion and chaos (had to get up at 5:00 AM just to go for a run without choking to death or been run over) was one tough city to hoe, I found Egyptians warm, open and compassionate.  They were smart, savvy, and welcomed me with a strong handshake or even a hug, and they wanted to make a difference, if not for themselves, for their children.

And the children lived and worked in the most abject conditions I hadn't seen since Haiti.

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Though the people got my vote, the government surely lost my trust.

The living conditions for the common people, the children allowed to labor all day for a measly $3.50, the chaotic congestion on the streets and the way their women were pushed around like commodities made me revolt in the stomach.

Thankfully, the women of Egypt are finally saying enough is enough.  We abhor the way we are treated by our men, by our government.  We deserve to be treated more like equals.  Has that voice fallen on deaf ears?

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The government doesn't seem to give a hoot.  They are slow to get off their butts and energize, to take on the difficult but obligatory job of caring for their citizens.  In my foreign and naive observation, they were slow, inefficient and corrupt and cared mostly about keeping their jobs and providing a relative lifestyle of wealth and happiness but for their own families.

That is why over 20 percent of the the 76 million people in Egypt live in abject poverty.  The government just sits there like a bump in the log -- they can't even stem the tide of population growth and congestion that has gripped Cairo by its shoulders.  Can't seem to enact a law and enforce it.  Desperately, Cairo needs CHANGE!

Egypt once had a visionary leader. I remember when Anwar Sadat was shot -- killed by members of his own Army by a single grenade in retaliation for signing the Egyptian-Israeli Peace Treaty.  Sadat's Vice President, Mubarak, succeeded him and served for nearly 30 years -- the longest for the country.  Has he overstayed his reign?

Though, Mubarak honored all existing treaties and Egypt's membership in the Arab League was suspended due to the peace treaty (reinstated after eight years and now the headquarters has been relocated to Cairo), Mubarak hasn't been entirely a bastion of democracy.

A strong friend of the United States,  Mubarak, has been accused of resisting reform, of nurturing corruption, of imprisonment of political figures, retaining his crony friends and fostering torture.

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And in 2009, shortly after his inauguration, President Obama chose symbolic Cairo to make his call for  peace to the Middle East.  The choice was brilliant. Egypt is one of the most populous nation in Africa and the Arab world.  And the US sends 1 billion dollars of aid to Egypt every year.  The President made it clear to the Arab people that he was going to prioritize Israel's peace and security, yet he managed to maintain a balanced tone.

Though the location was strategic and the message strong, over a year later, that message has been blurred, the message regretfully has fallen on deaf ears.

Sadly, the nation, though democratic, has turned into a ghastly police state with extremist socialist ideas. The police has the right to search your house without a search warrant and to bug your phones and email.  An Egyptian can also be convicted and incarcerated for life by a government tribunal instead of a court of justice.  Do you think an Egyptian can march in Cairo without been arrested.

This week, emboldened by the success of the people in Tunisia, the people of Egypt did the unthinkable thing, stood up against their government and started a revolution never seen since the media entered our living rooms and livelihoods.

When the government got the sense that the rioters were assembling via social media, they quickly shut it down.  First it was Twitter, then Facebook and eventually all of internet, cell phones, SMS.

But to do this unilaterally is an infringement of today's basic human rights of communication and collaboration.

The complete internet shutdown just emboldened the heroic people of Egypt.  They have completely ignored Mubarak's order of curfew, overwhelmed the once militaristic police and complete anarchy has rocked the once placid "Paris on the Nile."

America, and the rest of the world, certainly cares what the people of Egypt are saying and if they need a virtual lifeline, we have the right to weigh in.  But should the US actively intervene?  This may be an opportunity of a lifetime to effect real and lasting change against corruption and for reform.  But memories of the disastrous Iran revolution 30 years ago are still strong.  Besides providing harsh rhetoric, there is very little we can do.  We do however implore the government of Egypt to open back up critical lines of communication.

The rioting in Egypt is an Egyptian problem, but when the country suppresses the people's basic right to communicate amongst themselves and with people throughout the free world, it suddenly becomes a world problem, for which we must stand up and proclaim.