Monday, November 7, 2011

#25Jan away from tahrir square !

from the other side
Yes, away from Tahrir square the place which witnessed the Great Egyptian revolution ,the place was under the spotlights and the world's eyes during the 18 days of the revolution.
I will tell you about the small twon in Giza which called Hawamdia, No one knows what really happened in this small town on Friday 28th on January 2011 ... No one of you know this small town.

El-Hawamdia lies on Cairo-Assiut agricultural road 26 km away from El-Giza square, small town but it has a huge sugar factory, fields, city hall, large number of TOKTOK, 2 schools,huge hospital which serve the town itself and the small villages around it, police station and a state security office.

On the other bank of the Nile river you will fine El-Maadi and then the small town will appear as a beautiful landscape from outside which is totally different from the ugly truth inside...just like many other small unknown towns here in Egypt.

To be clear like many places in Egypt just few people in Hawamdia really cared about the 25th protest's invitations but they didn't protest there they joined the demonstrators in Cairo like Tahrir square, Moustafa Mahmoud square and Giza square, the day passed like any other day there except some people's chats about what was happening that evening outside their small calm town.

Despite this town was suffering from the corrupt regime just like many spots in Egypt and still suffering from it, they didn't show any tendency to revolt against that regime in the name of stability, security, and the biggest fear was the control of the state security on everything their in addition to the FEAR from the torture, kidnapping and detention by police.

BUT one day everything changed .. After El-Gumaa prayer 28th January people from all the mosques started to chant "Bread , Freedom , Social justice" , finally they broke the fear barrier created the corrupt regime.
Martyr\Mohamed Shahat 19Y

Huge numbers of people all ages men, women and children joined the protests and roamed their small town more than once passing by the police station, state security office and the national democratic party headquarters ,chanting against the False parliament, police brutality, and the regime, Then they stopped in front of the police station which was the symbol of the regime on earth ! at this time CSFs had just arrived as a backup in case of any violent clashes and to disperse demonstrators. 

After half an hour police officers asked the protesters to leave but they didn't and for the first time they challenge the regime symbols and refused to obey the orders of the parliament members and the ruling party pigs.
Martyr\Mosa Sabry 16Y
Police started to shot warning gun shots in the air but the protesters didn't walk away, they insisted to continue their protest and to be ruled by them selves, So they replied the warning gun shots by whistling, louder chants and rocks ... 

In my opinion that was a great change with no comeback option

Then the massacre started by shooting protesters with live ammunition and the only weapon they had back there were ROCKS and determination on new life and new world order. -even if it will be symbolic- but for them it means a lot.
This small calm town lost 6 of it's youth with gunshots from the Egyptian police 3 of them were by the same officer -Tamer Salah- who was the torture specialist.
A monument to the martyrs of the town

As a result the protesters stormed the police station and the city hall building where the police officers were shooting and hiding, few hours after the first bullet the police station and the city hall were empty and burned as a punishment for using live ammunition against peaceful protesters, but none of the police personnel get injured they all escaped and left the small calm town as a prey for thugs and gangsters but the locals protected themselves.

That was a story of one day in one small town away from Tahrir square, and Egypt is full of these days and towns.

By the way El-Hawamdia is the hometown of the Martyr Atef Yehia who died after a gunshot followed by a coma for nearly 6 months during the 1st Israel embassy protest in the memory of El-Nakba.

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