Egypt's Democracy Movement Escalates Pressure on President Mubarak

Leaders of the Egyptian democracy movement are vowing to escalate their pressure for President Hosni Mubarak's resignation, despite the government's claims of having already begun negotiations to end the uprising. The protests, now in their 13th day, have continued to draw large crowds, with over 100,000 people gathering in Cairo's Tahrir Square on Sunday. The movement's young organizers, who were initially arrested and detained by Mubarak's police, are determined to hold out for sweeping change, including the dissolution of one-party rule and the revamping of the Constitution.

Key Takeaways:

• The Egyptian democracy movement has coalesced around a unified set of demands, centered on President Mubarak's resignation, the dissolution of one-party rule, and the revamping of the Constitution.
• Leaders of the protest movement, including both its youthful members and Brotherhood officials, have denounced the government's portrayal of the meeting with Vice President Omar Suleiman as a political ploy intended to suggest that some in their ranks were collaborating.
• The standoff over the meeting has underscored the conflicting narratives about the next chapter of the revolt, with each side claiming that it had emerged from the last 12 days as a survivor.
• The movement's young organizers have stepped forward publicly for the first time, vowing to escalate their movement and considering more large-scale demonstrations in other cities, strikes, or acts of civil disobedience.
• The protesters have vented anger at reports that the United States was supporting the idea of a negotiated transition undertaken by Suleiman while Mubarak remained in power.
• The Egyptian opposition's suggestion for solving the problem of the existing Constitution's unrealistic deadline for an election is to suspend the Constitution for up to a year until a transitional unity government can organize a free election.
• Rashid Mohammed Rashid, a former minister of trade and industry, has suggested that it would be better for Mubarak to finish his term as president to ensure a smooth transition.
• Protesters in the square have sought to dispel the notion that their movement might contain seeds of extremism, with Coptic Christians and Muslims standing guard and repaying favors to each other.

Statistics:

• The protests, now in their 13th day, have drawn large crowds, with over 100,000 people gathering in Cairo's Tahrir Square on Sunday.
• The movement's young organizers have met publicly for the first time, with at least three of them having been released from extra-legal detention just the night before.
• More than 50 prominent Egyptians and opposition figures attended the meeting with Suleiman, including officials of the small, recognized opposition parties and a handful of young people who helped start the protest movement.
• The government has announced that the transition had begun with a meeting between Suleiman and two representatives of the Muslim Brotherhood.

Sources:

• New York Times
• National Public Radio
• CNN
• Fareed Zakaria on CNN
• Moises Saman for The New York Times
• Seliman El Oteifi/E.P.A.