EP 21 - Egypt's 2022 National Dialogue: Political Shitshow or Beginning of a New Era?

On the 27th of April 2022, Egypt's incumbent president reactivated the presidential pardon committee and called for a national dialogue. At least one person has been documented to have been arrested as a result of criticizing the president's call for dialogue. As of the 30th of June 2022, only 236 political prisoners have been released, most of whom are already widely known within the Egyptian political sphere––activists, legitimate party members––or have been on hungerstrike beforehand.  With a board of trustees released two days ago, the so-called national dialogue proposed in April is set to start in a couple of days. Is it all just a political shitshow? Or the beginning of a new era? Well, one would have to wait and see how it unfolds.  In this episode of Tahrir Podcast, fellow Egyptian researcher and friend Ahmed Nada joins me in a lively albeit humorous conversation on how that ought to unfold, and other alternative the Egyptian state could undertake for it to actually show goodwill, and open up political space. I argue that for that so-called dialogue to work (or to not), the Egyptian constitution must be activated, pretrial detention laws must be implemented and non-combatants should stop standing before the infamous SSP accordingly.  Episode on YouTube: https://youtu.be/UMPcXEAjsfA  Reach out! [email protected]  Streaming everywhere! https://linktr.ee/TahrirPodcast  Support us on Patreon for as low as $2 per month ($20 per year)! https://www.patreon.com/TahrirPodcast (Use VPN if in Egypt)