What's Going on in the World?-- Egypt Protests

Since the unruly and violent protests throughout Egypt have ended, their effects are still resonating throughout the country. After almost 30 years in control on Egypt, President Hosni Mubarak finally gave into the protesters and stepped down from office on February 11. While the protests may have ended and the streets are currently not filled with violent protesters wanting a change in society, the effects of the protests are still visible and people are curious as to what is going to change in Egypt and when this change will be seen. According to the article, “Egypt Delays Expected Reopening of Stock Market” in The Seattle Times, Egypt’s stock market closed after the business day on January 27 and still has yet to reopen. While the initial plans were for the stock market to reopen today, March 1, it was decided to delay this reopening, yet again, to March 6. Many people are worried that The Egyptian Exchange is going to greatly suffer from being closed for such a long time, but due to the labor strikes and closing of the banks after President Mubarak stepped down, the country simply could not safely reopen the market. While many brokers throughout the country are suffering from the closing of Egypt’s stock exchange, they are not the only ones that are beginning to run into financial pitfalls. According to the article, “Hosni Mubarak: Egypt's Former Leader Given Travel Ban” by BBC News, President Mubarak is also running into financial issues as the assets of his entire family have been frozen. President Mubarak, his wife, their two sons, and their wives, have all been issued a travel ban and asset freeze so that complaints that have been made against the family can be investigated. Since February 11, when Mubarak stepped down from office, he has not been publically seen or heard from, and it is believed that he is at his villa in Sharm el-Sheikh but is in poor health.

This situation in Egypt has not only affected Egyptians, but it has also affected the lives of the people living in nearby countries such as the Israelis and Palestinians. In the video, “Egypt’s Impact,” by Jaron Gilinsky for the New York Times, many interviews take place and it is explained how Israelis and Palestinians are reacting to the events that have unfolded in Egypt. Throughout the Egyptian protests, Palestinian authority repressed several attempts to rally and support of the Egyptian revolution in the West Bank by arresting and assaulting protesters. Many people are worried that currently it is still not safe to go and visit Egypt because although the protests may have ended, the country is still very “fragile” and anything could happen on a whim. One thing that a student who studied at Stanford University mentioned was that the Egyptian military and government needs to be wise about who is chosen to be the next leader of Egypt. If whoever takes control of Egypt does not remove the corruption within the government and the bureaucracy, it is likely that the same thing will occur and another revolution will take place in another 5 years. Although the actual protests in Egypt have ended, Egypt has a long road ahead of them in order to ensure the citizens that they have a stable country without any more corruption within the government.