Freed from jail, Mubarak goes quietly home
Activists vow to continue Egypt’s ‘revolution’
• Six years after his overthrow, former Egyptian president Hosni Mubarak was freed from detention Friday, dashing the hopes of many who saw Mubarak’s downfall as a sign that Arab leaders could be held accountable for corruption and repression.
On Friday morning, Mubarak left the Maadi Military Hospital in Cairo, where he had been detained since 2013, and travelled to his mansion in the upscale northern suburb of Heliopolis, his lawyer said.
The 88- year- old leader’s release comes weeks after the nation’s top appeals court cleared him of any role in the deaths of more than 200 protesters at the hands of the country’s police in the 2011 populist revolts, part of the Arab Spring uprisings, that ended Mubarak’s three- decade rule.
“Yes, Mubarak has been released today,” Mubarak’s lawyer, Farid El Deeb, said in a brief telephone interview.
Mubarak’s supporters predictably welcomed his release, describing it as a vindication of sorts.
“I was certain from the beginning that the man who served his country and fought for it for 30 years could never kill his people,” said Samir Abdulaziz AlAswany, 47, a bank employee who described herself as a co- founder of a Mubarak support group. “Today’s release proves he is an icon and that the Egyptian people are smart ... Mubarak is not a killer, but a respectable man.”
But many activists who risked their lives to oust Mubarak viewed his release as the latest indication of how little change the revolution has brought in terms of its key goals of democracy, justice and eradicating corruption. Today, their unbridled dreams of six years ago have been replaced by a weariness that has tamped down efforts to confront power.
On key anniversaries, such as Jan. 25, when the uprisings began, there are no longer protests or even gatherings — and it’s highly unlikely that any demonstrations will erupt against Mubarak’s release. President Abdel Fatah al- Sissi’s government has jailed tens of thousands of opponents and activists, a level of oppression that critics say exceeds that of the Mubarak regime.
“I feel a little pain in my heart, but it will not interrupt my day anymore,” said Mona Sief, a well-known activist, referring to Mubarak’s release. Her sister, Alaa Abdelfattah, is serving a five- year prison sentence on charges of staging protests without official permission.
“I no longer have hope in this judicial system and I am not waiting for it to prosecute any criminals or those who have ruled or committed crimes in their names,” Sief added.
Mubarak was the first leader to face trial after the Arab Spring uprising, arrested two months after he was ousted from office in an 18- day revolution that drew hundreds of thousands of Egyptians into the streets.
The following year, Mubarak was sentenced to life in prison, along with his interior minister and six aides. But an appeals court later ordered a retrial. In 2014, the court dismissed the charges of killing protesters, citing the prosecution for technical flaws, and the ruling this month further absolved him of any accountability and paved the way for his release.
Initially, some observers had thought that the Sissi government would not allow Mubarak’s release, fearing a public backlash. But the judicial rulings in Mubarak’s favour have been widely viewed by government critics as the latest indication of the nation’s lack of judicial independence and that the old pre- revolutionary order has returned.
Some activists say Mubarak’s release, while disappointing, will not end their struggle. “Whether Mubarak is at home or in prison, the revolution continues to be part of the hearts and minds and consciousness of millions of the young people of Egypt,” said Ahmed Abdallah, head of the Egyptian Commission for Rights and Freedoms. “And they cannot change this.”
I FEEL A LITTLE PAIN IN MY HEART, BUT IT WILL NOT INTERRUPT MY DAY. I NO LONGER HAVE HOPE IN THIS JUDICIAL SYSTEM AND I AM NOT WAITING FOR IT TO PROSECUTE ANY CRIMINALS OR THOSE WHO HAVE RULED OR COMMITTED CRIMES IN THEIR NAMES. — ACTIVIST MONA SIEF