Cairo -

It has been remarkable in recent years, the activity of the Egyptian security in the pursuit of many content creators on social networking sites, the last of whom were 3 simple people from Upper Egypt called "the cute people", who were accused - according to reports - of spreading false news;

For criticizing the price hike in a satirical clip.. Has the "sleepness" known to the Egyptians become a heavy burden on the regime, or is it a process of resetting public behavior?

Last week, local media reported the arrest of "Crazy Ghalaba" and imprisoned them for 15 days, days after the presenters of the prank program "Crazy Taxi" were arrested on YouTube for allegedly filming in the street without a license, but the latter was more fortunate as they were released Soon.

What is interesting is that the "cute people" were apparently punished for re-enacting a song that ridicules the high prices, although the artist Akram Hosni, known as "Abu Hafida" (a former police officer), performed the same song years ago that uses other words to the tune of the song "Nar". For the late singer Abdel Halim Hafez.

@mrrrrr

#Following #Like❤️ #Explore #Cute #Al-Ghulabah

♬ Original sound - Zarifa El Ghalaba

The incidents of arresting satirical content makers are not new, but there are dozens of historical precedents for decades, from political jokers to short video clips and “comics” pages, most notably the arrest of a group known as “street children” in 2015, for allegedly “insulting President Abdel-Fattah.” Al-Sisi,” in an incident that sparked controversy and condemnation.

Also, the arrest of the "good guys" coincided with a decision to release 41 prisoners of conscience who were being held in pretrial detention, which raised questions about the motives for releasing some while arresting others.

While observers and opponents agreed that the pursuit of satirical content makers will not stop the Egyptians' penchant for satire;

Because of its significant impact, albeit indirect, in light of popular discontent with the economic policies that have caused prices to rise and the local currency to collapse repeatedly in recent years, a pro-regime journalist called for the containment of the “people of the poor”;

Because what they offer is catharsis and will not cause a popular revolution.

Multiple models

In fact, the incidents of arresting satirical content makers in Egypt are not new. Rather, there are dozens of historical precedents for decades, from political jokers to short video clips and “comics” pages, the most prominent of which are in recent years:

The arrest of cartoonist Islam Gawish in 2016, and accusations against him of drawing cartoons against the regime.

Al-Sisi said - in a telephone interview with the media, Amr Adib, on a local satellite channel - at the time that "these are normal things in a country that has been in a state of revolution for 5 years, and things have not yet been controlled," he said.

In the same year, the authorities arrested a group known as “street children” and imprisoned them for several months, after they posted short video clips on social media platforms, claiming that they “insulted Sisi”, in an incident that sparked great controversy and condemnation.

The famous YouTuber, Shadi Sorour, was arrested in 2019, upon his return from the United States, and charged with the crimes of “receiving financing for terrorist purposes, and using private accounts on the International Information Network with the aim of disturbing public order,” before releasing him after 20 months of imprisonment.

Sorour had criticized Sisi in April 2017 after the bombing of two churches that killed and injured dozens, and then sympathized with calls by opponents abroad to demonstrate against the regime.

- In May 2020, the Egyptian artist and photographer Shadi Habash died in Tora prison, more than two years after his arrest, due to his participation in the preparation of a satirical political song that criticized President Sisi.

arsenal of laws

According to human rights groups, the arrest of the "good guys" reminded him of the arsenal of laws restricting rights and freedoms, which put thousands under pretrial detention, at a time when human rights organizations estimate the number of political prisoners in Egypt at about 60,000, in exchange for permanent official denials.

The most prominent of these laws is the Anti-Terrorism Law issued in 2015, which imposed restrictions on digital freedom of expression and the ability to block various websites and platforms, in addition to several criticisms related to media and press regulation.

nature of the system

“What is exposed to creators of satirical content and those who express their opinions on social media platforms is consistent with the nature of the current regime, which does not tolerate the opinion and the other opinion, even if it is simple and acceptable in any other society.” With these words, prominent political opponent Ayman Nour began his comment on the arrest. Good luck."

In statements to Al Jazeera Net, Nour said that Egypt is facing a state of extremism in expressing opinion in general and with irony in particular;

For fear of a societal explosion or the arrival of their voices and criticisms to all segments of society.

Pointing out that when the scale of tyranny increases in any society, the weapon of irony is the alternative weapon in the right to express positions and opinions, the founder of the Ghad al-Thawra Party made it clear that political jokes were and will remain an important weapon in the face of successive regimes.

Nour pointed out that the post-2013 regime (the date of the army's overthrow of the late President Mohamed Morsi) did not tolerate in its infancy a little mockery of the presenter Bassem Youssef's program, which was violent and severe against Morsi and his regime, and this was repeated repeatedly with many satirical programs and content creators.

Abu Hafizah and the Ghalaba

It was controversial to arrest "Cleanliness of the Ghalaba", because of satirical videos, the most prominent of which was a clip previously presented by the artist Akram Hosni, known as "Abu Hafida", and his team on the "Good evening, your evening" program in 2015, and it was broadcast on MBC. MBC) Saudi Arabia.

And based on what he called the state’s open acceptance of what “Abu Hafida” offered 7 years ago, in exchange for the arrest of the “good guys,” Majdi Hamdan, the Assistant Secretary-General of the Conservative Party, attributed the lack of reciprocity in both cases to the state’s efforts to control the state of popular anger and grievance.

In statements to Al Jazeera Net, Hamdan - the former leader of the Salvation Front that led the demonstrations on June 30, 2013 and paved the way for the army's intervention on July 3, 2013 to overthrow the elected President Mohamed Morsi - said that the state wants to contain popular anger in any way, and therefore is trying to make A state of discipline about any satirical content that criticizes the high prices.

Hamdan considered that the matter does not fall under the category of muzzling only, but rather an attempt to control so that it does not turn into a new phenomenon and crisis after a series of undisciplined policies that threatened the Egyptian market and made it not bear any new situation of high prices.

Indications of the art of overpowering

In evaluating the activity of artistically satirical content makers from the regime’s policies, journalist and art critic Osama Saffar saw that imitation in general is an amateur’s playground, adding that the content for which the “funny people” were imprisoned may not be a great artistic achievement, but it is certainly a precursor to what could be There are talents.

And about the authorities’ confrontation with the overwhelming mockery of their condition in the framework of artistic works, Saffar told Al-Jazeera Net that “the military authority, by its nature, is a heavy-handed authority that hates everything that is human, and tends to mechanically disciplined work in its military context, and when those values ​​are transferred to the political and popular atmosphere It is met with hidden and hidden irony."

He added that the problem with irony here is not that it is irony but that it is overt;

Where the system lives in a state of chronic fear, and fear leads to violent behavior towards any stimulus, even if it is a mockery of some poor people of their conditions before it is from the system itself.

He stressed that this space of irony - in its simplicity - is frightening;

It is an iceberg that has come out into the open. According to the regime’s perception, it should hide its evidence or create alternative narratives, pointing out that the arrest of satirical content makers is an act that belongs to the concept of political security.

The journalist writer said that "the regime knows very well the danger of sarcasm and the leakage of the idea of ​​nihilism to a people who lost everything in the case of submission or revolution, and when the results are equal, the revolution becomes inevitable."

Searching for wise men

In the same context, Issam Kamel, editor-in-chief of the newspaper "Feto" (particularly close to the regime), denounced the arrest of the "good guys," noting that they were simple people who presented nice art that would not cause a revolution or problems for the government, but rather a relief for the citizens.

In a video clip on Facebook, Kamel questioned the reasons for the arrest of the "Poor Gentlemen", which were not announced by either the police or the Public Prosecution, calling on those he called "wise men" within the regime to rethink the arrest of the "Poor Gentlemen" team without leaving Such matters are for the unwise, which may affect the form of government before the people.

The journalist stressed that the "good guys" did not incite against the regime, but rather presented satirical content that had been presented 7 years ago and is still being repeated today, noting that it was possible to benefit from their performance and their spread as the voice of the people.