Several columnists in Sunday’s newspaper issues marked the eighth anniversary of the 25th January Revolution, while some writers penned about French President Emmanuel Macron’s visit to Cairo.
In the state-owned newspaper Al-Ahram, Sakina Fouad wrote that the anniversary of the 25th Revolution confirmed the patience and determination of the Egyptian people.
Fouad opinionated that the 25th January events were a popular revolution which erupted against corruption and the monopolisation of wealth, mentioning its demands of bread, freedom, and social justice.
At the private newspaper Al-Masry Al-Youm, Wageeh Wahba argued that there is a dispute over the definition of 25th January Revolution, as some, according to him, consider it as a revolution, a popular uprising, and others view it as a coup. Wahba opinionated that all previous descriptions are partially true, noting that those who were negatively affected by the uprising reject to consider it as a “revolution”.
However, Wahba added that some people reject to define the uprising as a revolution from a political and academic standpoint. He argued that major revolutions throughout history such as the French revolution (1789), the Russian revolution (1917) and the Iranian revolution (1979) resulted in radical changes in political, economic, legislative, and social infrastructure.
Meanwhile, Mohamed Barakat of Al Akhbar daily provided different perspectives of the 25th January Revolution which also included a popular revolution, a youth uprising, or a conspiracy.
Barakat wrote that despite the radical difference between the mentioned visions, there is a wider viewpoint which suggested that what happened on 25 January 2011 was a strong move by proper youth to express their outrage against certain conditions in the country.
On the other hand, Al-Ahram’s editorial emphasised the significance of the Egyptian-French relations, noting that Macron’s visit to Cairo enhances relations in various fields.
The editorial mentioned the French support to Egypt in its fight against terrorism and France’s role in enhancing Egyptian military abilities. It also referred to the increasing amount of French investments and trade exchange in Egypt.
Along the same line, Karam Gabr of Al-Akhbar newspaper praised Macron’s efforts in supporting Egypt in its fight against terrorism, describing him as a friend of Egypt. Gabr hailed Macron’s earlier statements in October 2017, when the French president said that no one has the right to intervene in Egypt’s internal affairs.
