WBEZ | Egypt

Worldview 6.26.12

Tue, 26 Jun 2012 10:03:00 -0500

Tuesday on Worldview:

Mohamed Morsi, Egypt’s new president, publicly stated he will stand for women’s rights; but his former political party backed contrary legislation. Hania Sholkamy, an Egyptian social anthropologist who focuses on gender, tells us how she thinks Egyptian women will fare under the new regime.

Then, Paraguay’s president, Fernando Lugo, was impeached last week but several Latin American presidents call it a coup and refuse to recognize the new president’s authority. Anthropologist Kregg Hetherington, author of Guerrilla Auditors: The Politics of Transparency in Neo Liberal Paraguay, explains the political maneuvering.

Then, filmmaker Brent Huffman joins Worldview. He is documenting the preservation of a Buddhist site in the heart of Afghanistan’s Taliban country. A Chinese company purchased the site to dig for copper, but archeologists are working to ensure that ancient Buddhist relics are not lost in the process. Huffman tells us about the politics of preservation.

Omar Khorshid: Egyptian icon

Wed, 20 Jun 2012 09:43:00 -0500

Egyptian guitarist Omar Khorshid is a music and film icon in the Arab world. Born in Cairo in 1945, he came into the Arab music scene during Egypt's "cultural revolution." In the mid-'60s Khorshid had a band called Le Petit Chats, an Egyptian beat group modeled after the prevailing influence of Elvis and the Beatles.

His film compositions are remembered as being the most progressive of the time; compositions for Tbnati El Aziza won him the Premier Prix award at the Film Festival of Tachkand in 1971. Despite his short career — he died in 1981 — Omar Khorshid's contribution remains an integral part of Egypt's musical fabric.

Wednesday on Worldview, Jerome and Eight Forty-Eight/Radio M host Tony Sarabia listen to his music and discuss his career.

Track list:

1. Johnny Guitar

2. Njoum El Layl

3. Ijaza min al Hobb

4. Hebbina Hebbina (Love Us Like We Love You)

Egypt's high court says elections are unconstitutional

Fri, 15 Jun 2012 10:48:00 -0500

Cairo-based journalist Ashraf Khalil and Nezar Al-Sayyad, Chair for Middle Eastern studies at UC-Berkeley, join us to discuss what this decision could mean for the future of the country.

Worldview 6.15.12

Fri, 15 Jun 2012 09:25:00 -0500

Friday on Worldview:

Egypt’s supreme court has declared last year’s parliamentary vote unconstitutional just two days before Egyptians are supposed to vote for a new president. The court has called for the dissolution of the lower house of parliament and new elections. Cairo-based journalist Ashraf Khalil joins us from Tahrir Square to discuss what this decision could mean for the future of the country.

Then, Worldview film contributor Milos Stehlik tells us why we should ignore the advice of some critics and catch one of the Billy Wilder films playing at the Music Box.

And, on Weekend Passport, the segment where we help listeners plan their international weekend, we head deep into the heart of Scotland for The Scottish Festival, complete with Scottish sausage, whiskey and games.

Egyptian protestors take to the streets as elections approach

Tue, 05 Jun 2012 09:49:00 -0500

An Egyptian official says the top prosecutor in the Hosni Mubarak trial will appeal the recent verdict, which acquitted the former leader and his two sons on corruption charges and cleared senior police officers of complicity in killing protesters during last year's uprising.

The prosecutor must appeal the entire verdict, which also included convictions and life sentences for Mubarak and his former security chief for failing to stop the killing of protesters in the uprising that ousted him. Six top police commanders, who faced the same charge of complicity in killing protesters, were acquitted for what the judge said was lack of concrete evidence.

The verdict has spurred a new round of protests inside the country as election day draws near. Egyptians are angry about the verdict and frustrated by the slow pace of change the country has seen since last year's uprisings in Tahrir Square.

Tuesday, Worldview discusess the public's reaction to the Mubarak verdict and the growing unrest in Egypt with Emad Shahin. Shahin is a professor of religion, conflict and peace-building at Notre Dame's Kroc Institute for International Peace and is just back from a recent trip to Egypt.

A stark choice for Egyptians in upcoming elections

Wed, 30 May 2012 12:00:00 -0500

Egyptian voters are bracing for a presidential runoff pitting the former head of the air force, Ahmeh Shafik, against Muslim Brotherhood candidate Ahmed Morsi. Shafik has some voters thinking the revolution is a stake with his candidacy – he was Mubarak’s final prime minister plus he has a military background.

A Morsi presidency would put both parliament and the presidency in the pocket of the Muslim brotherhood – an outcome undesirable to Christians and secularists.

Ahmed Rehab, director of the Chicago Chapter of the Council on American Islamic Relations, joins Worldview to discuss the election.

Worldview 5.30.12

Wed, 30 May 2012 09:49:00 -0500

Wednesday on Worldview:

Egyptians head to the polls mid-month to elect a new president; now the field of candidates has been narrowed down to two. Ahmed Rehab, director of the Chicago chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations, tells Worldview what this election means for the future of Egypt.

Then, Rehab sticks around to talk about the power of music in this political campaign. Campaign songs and online music videos have played an influential role in Egyptian politics since the uprising in Tahrir Square. Many of the songs were written by underground musicians who flourished during the revolution that ousted Hosni Mubarak. Ahmed, Jerome McDonnell and Eight Forty-Eight/Radio M host Tony Sarabia dissect the lyrics during Global Notes.

And, Worldview talks with director Micha X. Peled about his film, Bitter Seeds. The movie examines the causes of an epidemic of farmer suicides in India—one every 30 minutes. In 2004, an American company introduced genetically modified seeds to the Indian market, with catastrophic results for local farmers. Bitter Seeds screens Wednesday at the Gene Siskel Film Center as part of the Human Rights Watch Film Festival.

Music's influential role on Egypt's presidential campaign

Wed, 30 May 2012 09:47:00 -0500

When the revolution began in Cairo’s Tahrir Square, music played a big role in galvanizing young people and giving them a voice. So it's not surprising that music continues to play an important role in Egyptian politics as the presidential candidates began their campaigns.

For the most part these songs and music videos haven't been produced by well-known pop artists. Instead, these are songs written by independent artists who were part of the underground movement that fueled the uprising that ousted Hosni Mubarak.

The songs range in style from rap to hip-hop to traditional Egyptian folk music. The lyrics and the sounds reflect the diversity of candidates who've peppered the race, which has now been narrowed down to two candidates: Ahmed Shafik, a former air force general and the last prime minister under Hosni Mubarak, and Mohamed Morsi of the Muslim Brotherhood.

On today's Global Notes segment, Ahmed Rehab, director of the Chicago chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations, Eight-Forty-Eight's Tony Sarabia and Jerome McDonnell dissect the lyrics and the political message behind the music.

Track List:

1. We're Coming for Abol Fotouh

2. Abol Fotouh is the Most Suitable.

3. I Love Amro Moussa

4. Ahmed Shafik (campaign song)

5. Mohamed Morsi (campaign song)

Egypt bars top candidates from running in election, risking new political unrest

Tue, 17 Apr 2012 09:57:00 -0500

Next month, Egypt is set to hold its first presidential election since the uprising. The Egyptian election commission, however, has barred three of the frontrunners from running. The candidates are appealing the decision, but the latest disqualifications have shaken up an already tumultuous race for the presidency. It has many questioning whether the May election will be truly independent and representative. Cairo-based journalist Ashraf Khalil tells Worldview about Egypt's current political climate.

‘Liberation Square’ provides eyewitness account of Egyptian uprising

Wed, 29 Feb 2012 17:03:00 -0600

Egypt’s ruling military council set the date for the country’s first post-Mubarak presidential election for May 23 and 24. The announcement comes nearly a year after hundreds of thousands of Egyptians took to the streets and ousted longtime President Hosni Mubarak.

Ashraf Khalil writes on the Middle East for Foreign Policy and The Times of London. The Libertyville product has been based in Cairo for the last 15 years. He discusses his book Liberation Square: Inside the Egyptian Revolution and the Rebirth of a Nation.