Egyptians fear of possible violence in Jan. 25 protests

Protestors shout slogans at Tahrir square in Cairo, Egypt, on Jan. 18, 2013, during a demonstration demanding justice for 74 people killed in a stadium stampede disaster in Port Said last year. (Xinhua/Amru Salahuddien)

With Egyptians set to hold nationwide demonstrations on Friday, marking the second anniversary of the unrest that toppled former president Hosni Mubarak, Egyptian opposition and revolutionary movements reaffirm their commitment to peacefulness and urge all participants to avoid violence on Jan. 25.

However, political analysts are not so optimistic toward the upcoming demonstrations, citing that protesters on Thursday set fire to an attachment of Scientific Complex in downtown Cairo following skirmishes with security men which injured one protester and five security men.

"If some forces resort to violence and vandalism during Jan. 25 protests, I believe they will be confronted by official security forces on the one hand and President Mohamed Morsi's Islamist supporters on the other hand without coordination between them," political science professor Tharwat Badawi told Xinhua, warning further turmoil in case of confrontation.

Badawi warned that if protestors try to storm sensitive state institutions such as presidential headquarters in Cairo, it might provoke Islamists, who has vowed not to take part in protests, to interfere to defend Islamist-oriented President Morsi.

"I believe Islamists are able to use force and overcome the vandalistic elements, but the cost will be dear and it will be paid by the Egyptian people," he added.

Opposition and revolutionary forces in Egypt made it clear that they would stick to peace and avoid clashes and confrontations.

Liberal politician and former diplomat Mohamed ElBaradei, leader of the main opposition bloc the National Salvation Front ( NSF), urged in a statement Thursday for peacefulness of protests and the necessity for all Egyptians to unite.

"We will take to the streets tomorrow to say that we are all Egyptians, not Salafists, Muslim Brotherhood members, Copts or liberals. We will go to affirm the necessity of our reunion," Elbaradei said.

The revolutionary April 6 Youth Movement, one of the main opposition groups that helped topple the regime of Mubarak, echoed Elbaradei and stressed it would avoid violence, although Jan. 25 for the movement is "another revolutionary wave, not just a celebration."

"Tomorrow will be a very big day. We will try to avoid violence and be committed to peacefulness because violence brings great losses," Ahmed Maher, co-founder and leader of April 6 Youth Movement, told Xinhua.

Maher added that in case of violence between any parties, "we will try as much as we can to peacefully interfere to stop it, but if we cannot, we will avoid it," stressing the movement's basic demands were constitutional amendments of debatable articles, sacking the current "unqualified" government and demanding Morsi to fulfill his presidential campaign promises.

The Egyptian army stated that it would not take part in security for Jan. 25 protests and that it would only secure vital institutions such as the Suez Canal and some ministries, referring the responsibility to the Interior Ministry, according to official news reports.

"Personally, I see the security presence on the anniversary eve is not enough. Anyway, what is most important is that they secure the vital institutions," Maher said.

Ahmed Qandil, political expert at al-Ahram Center for Political and Strategic Studies, was more optimistic about the peacefulness of Jan. 25 protests, arguing that the opposition and Islamist forces must have learned from the mistakes of their bloody confrontations outside presidential palace in December 2012.

"I do not think that there would be violent attempts during the protests, as revolutionary forces would not want to appear chaotic in the public opinion and the Islamists would not repeat the mistake they made outside Morsi's palace," Qandil told Xinhua.

For his part, President Morsi reassured in a speech Thursday that his administration was working hard on achieving the objectives of the "revolution," including good living, social justice, better public services and compensation for the victims of the unrest, which seemed to observers as an attempt to cool down protestors on anniversary eve.

"We achieved a lot of the revolution's goals and we're working on achieving more," Morsi said, inviting all Egyptians to work for the development of the country.

Islamists, particularly the Muslim Brotherhood (MB), the main supporters of Morsi, said they would not take part in Jan. 25 protests and that they rather launch an initiative, dubbed " Together to Build Egypt," as a constructive way of commemorating the upheaval.

"We'll take to the streets only to rebuild the country, not to protest. We're fed up with demonstrations, violence and delay of production," Mostafa Ghoneimi, member of MB Guidance Office, told Xinhua.

Ghoneimi added that to protect MB headquarters was the police's responsibility, ruling out the possibility that the group might confront protestors.

With Friday approaching, Egyptian people's fears and concerns about possible violent confrontations are growing, although the opposition's announcement of their commitment to peace and the MB' s decision not to participate in the protests provide some reassurance to them.