![]() |
The first post-revolution Egyptian parliament session on January 23, 2012. Photo credit: Khaled Elfiqi/EPA POOL |
![]() |
Women wait in line to vote in Zamalek during the Egyptian elections. Photo credit: Peter MacDiarmid (nydailynews.com) |
Phew! Got through that. Now onto my meeting. I was able to contact and meet with two elected AUC alums. The first MP I met with was Ahmed Said, a well-known and successful business man turned politician. He is the co-founder and president of the Free Egyptians Party, founded in April 2011, and played a major role in the forming of the Egyptian Bloc. In other words, he is a BIG deal. We casually met in the Marriott and talked about his life trajectory, Egyptian politics and his time as Student Union President at AUC. Without skipping a beat, he was clear to distance himself from the institution AUC has become in Egypt (in short, isolated and elitist) and wanted to prove to me how AUC was just another Egyptian university when he attended it. I wasn't shocked to hear this. It seems like every person associated with AUC wants to distance him or herself from it.
This past week I was invited to the office of Sameh Mikram Ebeid, a financial consultant, long-time politician, and recently elected MP. I was giddy at the chance to both leave work early on "official business matters" and see his office. I was not disappointed.