Unity across the Arab world

international | anti-capitalism | other press Friday April 01, 2011 18:44 by John Cornford

The Revolutionary Socialists in Egypt are a group that adheres to the same tradition as the Irish Socialist Workers Party. Peter Manson asked Mohammad Hamama, a prominent RS member, about the prospects for the working class movement in Egypt and beyond. Full text at url below.

How would you describe the current situation in Egypt?

This is an era of revolution. The toppling of Mubarak was just the start. We need to overthrow the regime, but Mubarak was just its head. There are a lot of mini-Mubaraks all over Egypt: in every sector, every apparatus and every institution. Government ministers and private sector bosses - they are all corrupt and they all make up the regime, the regime we want to topple.

But things are getting very tough. The idea that the revolution ended when Mubarak fell is really wrong. The revolution is only just starting. The army generals are serving their own interests and they will try to save whatever they can of the old order. The workers must take the lead now - this is their moment. The movement must spread all over Egypt. We need to turn every corner of the country into Tahrir Square. We need to topple every single Mubarak.

We need far more than political reforms. We need very radical social reforms relating to how wealth is distributed. The companies privatised over the last 30 years need to be nationalised again in order to undermine the generals.

How would you assess the strength of the revolutionary movement?

The radical revolutionary forces and the socialists are very few and this situation is not as good as we would have wished. The radical point of view is always opposed by counter-propaganda and today the line is being pushed that continued strikes will destroy stability and halt the wheels of production. Socialists have an important role, but, as I say, we are very few in number.

And we are fighting on different fronts. Countering the media, fighting the military and the remnants of Mubarak’s regime, opposing the mistakes of the middle layer of activists.