Three years on, the excitement and dreams of the 2011 Egyptian Revolution have all but faded away.

It is already three years since the beginning of the 2011 Egyptian Revolution that eventually led to the resignation of erstwhile leader, Hosni Mubarak, on February 11, 2011. Three years on, the excitement and dreams that accompanied the fight to unseat a ‘dictatorial’ regime have waned or disappeared.

Causes Of The Uprising  

Obviously taking a cue from Tunisia’s revolt against long-time President, Ben Ali, activists in Egypt in January 2011 began protesting against poverty, unemployment, government corruption and the rule of President Hosni Mubarak who had been in power for three decades. Thus, the popular uprising that soon spread across the country was a demand for more freedoms, better governance and jobs.

How It Manifested

Activists, mostly young people, mobilised crowds through sit-ins, street demonstrations and mass gatherings at the famous Tahrir Square in the capital, Cairo. Mobilisation was made possible through social media such as Facebook and Twitter; in addition to television footage and media reports on the developing story. In response, the regime offered some concessions like dismissing the government and President Mubarak’s promise not to stand for re-election. But the protesters deemed them insufficient, insisting that the President should resign. In response, government launched a bloody crackdown that failed to stem the demonstrations.

What Happened Next?

Left with no option, Hosni Mubarak, Egypt’s President for almost 31 years, was forced out of office on February 11, 2011. He was replaced by the Supreme Council of the Armed Forces, SCAF, led by Field Marshal Mohammed Hussein Tantawi. The Council oversaw a transition that was plagued by recurrent legal challenges and apparently-intended junta hitches. Parliamentary and presidential polls saw the Freedom and Justice Party of the Islamic Brotherhood winning. Mohamed Mursi, a US-trained engineering professor, on July 1, 2012, took over as Egypt's first, freely elected civilian President and Islamist leader.

However, Egypt’s experiment at democracy was short-lived as Mursi only lasted one year in power. Less than a month to handing over power to an elected administration, a high court on June 14, 2012, ruled that the entire new Parliament should be dismissed because of "constitutional violations." The SCAF then dissolved Parliament, arrogating to itself law-making duties.

This was followed by a June 17, 2012 military decree that withdrew the new President’s powers over foreign policy, defence, national security and in controlling the budget. He was also stripped of his duties as Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces, meaning he had no control over the military. Finally, the decree said the military will veto articles of any new constitution. Thus, the stage was set for eventual confrontation between an assertive, elected civilian President and the military establishment that wanted to see the old order maintained.   

After days of mass protests against Mohamed Mursi’s government, the military stepped in, overthrowing him on July 3, 2013.  The Moslem Brotherhood were also accused of being dictatorial, for trying to turn Egypt into an Islamic State and not sharing power enough with others. Anti-coup protests by his supporters in August resulted in hundreds of deaths when security forces stormed protest camps in Cairo.

Three Years On

Three years since the start of revolution, the military is back in power. Though Adly Mansour is Interim President, the real power behind the leadership is Gen. Abdul Fattah al-Sisi, the Army Chief of Staff. The Moslem Brotherhood has been banished and most of its leadership, including Mohamed Mursi, is in detention facing trial. Pro-Mursi protests still go on, though on a smaller scale; while some activists continue to challenge a recent law that restricts public liberties.

Egypt is living unprecedented security challenges with armed attacks against security, military and public buildings on the increase. The authorities attribute them to Moslem Brotherhood agents.  Relations with the US – hitherto a major financier of the military - are strained as the Egyptian society has become increasingly polarised by the outcome of a revolution that appears to have taken them no way. A new Constitution has just been adopted and elections are planned later in the year; with high chances that the military will remain in power. 

With the benefit of hindsight, Egyptians should be asking themselves if the 2011 Revolution was worth all the pains. Or it was simply a case of much ado about nothing.