Originally posted by the Voice of America.
Voice of America content is produced by the Voice of America,
a United States federal government-sponsored entity, and is in
the public domain.


Mideast Students in US Riveted by Egypt Revolt

   Both Arab and Israeli students feel a vested interest in outcome

   Adam Phillips | New York  February 04, 2011
   For  Middle  Eastern  students studying in the US, the events in Egypt
   could have a lasting impact.

Photo: VOA - A. Phillips

   For  these Middle Eastern students at International House in New York,
   the events in Egypt could have a lasting impact.

   Students   from   more  than  100  countries  live  and  socialize  at
   International  House  while  studying  at New Yorkās universities. The
   peaceful atmosphere seems a world away from Egypt, where millions have
   demonstrated  to  force  President  Hosni Mubarak from power. Yet, for
   Middle Eastern students at the house, it all hits very close to home.

   "I  thought  heād be assassinated. Thatās mean, but I thought he would
   end  up  like that because thatās what happens to people who rule like
   that,"  says  Mary,  an  Egyptian  law  student  who was born the year
   Mubarak  came  to  power. "Honestly, I didnāt think people would go on
   the street. I would be scared to go on the street given how the regime
   is. They beat up people.Itās pretty scary."
   Mary  says  her 55-year-old mother has watched Egyptās public life and
   infrastructure  crumble since she was a student in the 1970s. She is a
   middle-class  businesswoman  who  also supports the uprising. But Mary
   says  that  Egyptās wealthy class continues to support Mubarak because
   they're  afraid  the  Muslim  Brotherhood and other Islamist political
   movements will come to power.
   "They  fear that the bad we know is better than the bad we donāt know.
   I  agree  with  that  statement, but not in this case.Ā  If the people
   taking care of the country are not corrupt, it will work out."
   Mary  doesn't  believe  Mubarak's  recent  promise  to  step  down  in
   September,  despite  his  2006 declaration he would stay in office for
   life.
   Haleem, a 29-year-old international affairs student from Lebanon, adds
   that  even if Mubarak does step down, it will not necessarily not mean
   that a democratic form of government will emerge.Ā  Ā
   "There is a difference between democracy and liberalism. Itās not only
   about  having  free  and  fair elections. Itās also about the range of
   freedoms you can have in your country - any kind of freedom," he says.
   "Ask  any  Egyptian  and  he  can  tell  you  what  he is deprived of.
   Transition  is  not  an  easy  thing.Ā   We  can  see for example what
   happened  in  the Iranian Revolution, and I cannot really rule out the
   Iranian  case  to  repeat  itself  in  Egypt.  It  can  have also many
   spillover  effects,  either  on  Israel, and if on Israel, it can also
   have  some  impact  on  Lebanon.  The  Middle East is like a system in
   itself,  and I include North Africa. Itās a dynamical system. We canāt
   predict."
   Avner,  a  music student from Israel - which has had a cold peace with
   Egypt since 1979 - is divided over recent events.Ā  Ā
   "As  a  human  being,  as  a person, living in a democratic country, I
   think  there  is probably nothing worse than living under a regime you
   donāt  believe  in and there is nothing you can do about it," he says.
   "On  the other hand, I think weāre afraid of whatās going to happen in
   Israel.  People  are  afraid  that  some  regime thatās unfavorable to
   Israel  will  rise.  In  my  opinion,  I donāt think Egyptians have an
   incentive  to  make  war  on  Israel. I think if an agreement was made
   theyāll honor it."
   Because  of  Egyptās  reliability  as  a  staunch ally, Washington has
   supported  Mubarak,  giving  his  government  billions  of  dollars in
   military and other aid over the years. That is one reason why many who
   oppose Mubarak also oppose the United States.

   The situation poses a dilemma for Cairo-born Nesrine. She supports the
   uprising, but is in New York on a scholarship paid for by the Egyptian
   and American governments.

   "For  me,  I  felt freedom here that I never felt in my own country. I
   wear  whatever I want. I say whatever I want. I am not afraid. So I am
   enjoying  things  here  and  this is the psychological thing. I can be
   anything  in  this  country  if I wanted," she says. " And at the same
   time  there  are people dying. So itās really not easy. I cannot say I
   hate the U.S. but I love my country at the same time."

   Nesrine has contemplated staying in the United States once her studies
   are  complete,  but now feels she would rather go back home. While she
   can't  predict  the  outcome  of the upheaval in Egypt, she is certain
   about what she wants.

   āI  hope  for  a  future  that  will  take  away  all the pain and all
   suffering, all the long lines and corrupt bureaucratic offices. I hope
   for better education, for water to reach everywhere, for new buildings
   to  be  built,  new factories, new job opportunities, a better future,
   people  getting  married,  people  smiling again. I just want a better
   future  that  will  take  away  the  pain that the Egyptians have been
   suffering for 30 years.ā

.