It was only to be expected…. these last two days have been marked by confrontations and local demonstrations motivated by very varied, but genuine, reasons.

On Tuesday January 31, sympathizers of the Muslim Brotherhood prevented hundreds of demonstrators from reaching the seat of parliament in Cairo. An event that reminds us of the lively tensions between the Islamist forces of Egypt (whose representatives in parliament are already considered by some Egyptians to be minions of the transitional military government) and the revolutionary factions of Tahrir Square.

This photo of the Square was taken on Adly Street in front of the headquarters of “The Arab Contractors”, one of the biggest Egyptian corporations in construction and real estate.  The company was founded in 1955 by an Egyptian entrepreneur and politician, who was Minister of Housing under Sadat.  Along with other companies, it participated in the construction of the Library of Alexandria, as well as numerous other governmental buildings. So why demonstrate, you ask? For a very simple reason, easy to understand for any citizen of this beautiful planet…. they have not been paid their wages, and for many workers this means they are unable to provide even the basic needs for their families.

A well-known Egyptian blogger wrote recently that the revolution cannot come to an end until the working classes and farmers have intensified their own rebellion through strikes or demonstrations.

Egypt has a long and eventful past and one year is only a brief moment in its history. Looking at the events witnessed since the fall of Mubarak suggests that a clearer picture of what’s happening will only emerge in a few years to come. Rendezvous in Cairo in 2015….

Photo & Text by Gaël Favari

(Photo © Gaël Favari for The Global Journal)