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Cyber- Activism and the Egyptian Revolution (2011)

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Cyber- Activism and the Egyptian Revolution (2011) International Journal of Scientific and Research Publications, Volume 6, Issue 9, September 2016 96 ISSN 2250-3153 Cyber- activism and the Egyptian Revolution (2011) Neipechaii Mepfhuo Abstract- In this new era of digital revolution, the Information popular social media sites are Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, and Communication Technologies (ICTs) are transforming many YouTube, Pinterest, Flickr, Tumblr etc. Social media is aspects of modern society. The power of ICTs as a means of characterized by three important factors namely, anonymity, passing information to heterogeneous audiences makes it a many-to- many communication and cheap cost of veritable tool in mass mobilization. Owing due to these ICTs a communication. In comparison to the other modes of new form of activism has emerged known as cyber- activism. communication like television, radio or even print media, social The Egyptian Revolution can be perhaps regarded as the best media possesses an important advantage; it increases the flow of example of this new interaction between civil society movements information. Sharing of information on social media is faster as and the new media. Through social media the Egyptian activists information does not usually go through the filtering process like were able to carve out a virtual public sphere where they could most of the other modes of communication. These factors have create political awareness without the interference of the state helped in creating an alternative platform for the citizens of the security. authoritarian regimes where freedom of speech and expression is greatly limited. Index Terms- Social media, cyber- activism, Kefaya Movement, Egypt’s political system prior the Egyptian Revolution of April 6 Movement, ElBaradei Facebook groups, We Are All 2011 was a hybrid type, it consisted of democratic institutions Khaled Sa’id. and Civil Society Organizations (CSOs) coupled with a repressive system quick in suppressing any form of opposition. The untapped human potential coupled with under-representation I. INTRODUCTION in the public sphere compelled the frustrated youths to look for nformation and Communication Technologies (ICTs) have alternative public spaces which they could claim as their own I revolutionized the way people interact with each other; it has sphere of influence. The social networking sites consequently also produced a new generation of connected and empowered became the primary medium for expression for the frustrated citizens who are not afraid to speak their minds. These new youth, who had been silent for years as a consequent result of the brands of networked citizen strive for the creation of an ideal regime and its oppressive laws. A few years before the 2011 society with a responsive political system; they are motivated by revolution, a small but influential groups of urban, highly the belief that they have the capacity to change the world through educated, middle class, primarily young Egyptian activists, collective action. This belief has in turn produced a new coordinating and operating through multiple social media platforms, formed an array of loosely affiliated grassroots phenomenon known as cyber- activism or online activism, 3 internet activism or e- advocacy. Cyber- activism involves the activists networks throughout the country. These civil society process of using interactive communication technologies to movements in the form of Kefaya and April 6 Movement and operate and manage activism of any type; it allows any online groups namely We Are All Khaled Sa’id and the individual or organization to utilize social networks and other ElBaradei Facebook groups started a new online literary online technologies to reach and gather followers, broadcast movement through which they stated their opinions freely as well messages and progress a cause or movement.1 Cyber- activism as interacted with their like- minded peers. These civil society manifests itself in the form of creating awareness, gathering and movements and online groups helped in creating a thriving organizing followers and initiating reactions. It employs social virtual society where they openly criticized the regime and its media as a platform to share and broadcast information necessary actions thereby in the process breaking the fear barrier which the for mobilizing the masses. The social networking tools like regime has successfully imposed and at the same time building a Facebook, Twitter, blogging etc. have come to assume an politically conscious environment. While the government closely important role in the formation of collective identities, monitored print and broadcast media, it more or less neglected identification of common goals and organization of collective the social media sites like Facebook, Twitter and YouTube. The activities. absence of strict government censorship and monitoring enabled Broadly defined social media is “a variety of websites, the cyber activists to create a virtual world where they could services and applications that allow users to engage in social openly exercise their right to freedom of speech and expression. behaviours online or on a mobile phone.”2 Some of the most These discussions in turn prompted the growth of collective 3 Sahar Khamis, Paul B, Gold and Katherine Vaughn, 1 Beyond Egypt’s “Facebook Revolution” and Syria’s http://www.techopedia.com/definition/27973/cyberactivis “YouTube Uprising.”Comparing Political Contexts, Actors m. Accessed on 15th October, 2014. and Communication Strategies, 2 Suw Charman Anderson, Making the Connection: Civil http://www.arabmediasociety.com/?article=791. Accessed Society and Social Media, Carnegie UK Trust, 2010, p. 5. on 8th March, 2015. www.ijsrp.org International Journal of Scientific and Research Publications, Volume 6, Issue 9, September 2016 97 ISSN 2250-3153 consciousness. The common frustrations against the system and written in red through online blogging sites like its failure to address the existing political, economic and social ‘wa7damasrya.blogspot.com’ and ‘misrdigital.blogspirit.com.’ problems had been an important factor in strengthening the The bloggers wrote about human rights abuses by the police common consciousness. Inorder to understand the history of which received attention from international media like CNN, The Cyber- activism in Egypt it pertinent that the contribution of the New York Times, The Washington Post and Amnesty following groups namely Kefaya Movement, April 6 Movement, International. The popularity of these bloggers were attributed to We Are All Khaled Sa’id and the ElBaradei facebook groups are the bold and honest way in which they discussed issues which analyzed. were in a way forbidden by the suppressive regime. The initial As the number of Internet Service Providers (ISP) blogs were published in English but later owing due to the blossomed in Egypt so did the number of internet savvy Egyptian development of Arabic software much of the blogs were youths. With access to a vast sea of knowledge coupled with published in Arabic which helped attract greater audience. The increased online interaction with various people across the world, Kefaya Movement surfaced during this time as a prominent the Egyptian youth was able to carve out a virtual world where it group which helped to mobilize the discontent youth by could freely express its opinions without the constant glare and providing them with an alternative outlet to channel their monitoring of the Interior Ministry. Egypt got its first taste of frustrations against the regime. online activism through the Kefaya (Enough) Movement Following close on the footsteps of the Kefaya Movement, comprising of a group of young leftists. The movement was built the April 6 Movement burst upon the national scene in 2008. The around one single goal- to prevent Gamal Mubarak from April 6 Movement consisted of a small group of internet savvy succeeding his father. Kefaya’s mobilization and organization Egyptians who launched a Facebook page on March 23, 2008 in tactics mainly revolved around the efficient utilization of support of the workers at Egypt’s largest textile factory in the Information Technology. The group’s website provided free Nile Delta city of Mahalla al-Kubra who were going to protest membership to all its users and also at the same time it allowed against the prevailing low wages and the high food prices. To the users to post their grievances anonymously. One of Kefaya’s show support to the labor strike the leaders of the April 6 major organizing spaces was Misr Digital, the first digital Movement which included Amal Sharaf, Israa Abdel Fattah, independent newspaper in Egypt.4 The group used four primary Ahmed Mahar and Mohammed Adel invited 300 people to join means of communication: its Facebook page and within a day it had 3,000 members and Firstly, it used electronic mails (e-mails) to contact its within a few weeks, 70,000 had joined the call for strikes across members and the general public. A text message sent to Egypt in support of the Mahalla workers.9 On 6th April, 2008, thousands of mobile phones helped draw 2, 000 persons to a June thousands of workers rioted but it was harshly suppressed by the 2005 demonstration that one report described as “the most police. Following the protest prominent young leaders of the organized and impressive demonstration by the reform April 6 Movement like Israa Abdel Fattah and Ahmed Maher movement to date.”5 were arrested by the police. This incident helped the political Secondly, it published advertisements online. It was more activists realize the power of social media in exposing an idea safer for the group to advertise online as they were likely to be and generating support for it in terms of action.10 Post the strikes censored by the government if they published on print media. In the regime also realized to some extent that the internet could be 2007, an anti- Mubarak rally advertised by the group on an employed as a tool by the social activists to work against the independent newspaper Al-Karama (Dignity) was confiscated by system.
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