Interviews with Ahmed Samih

One of the things that the Egyptian wanted for so long to have their own dignity back. The way the police– the Egyptian police previously was dealing with Egyptians was very humiliating. For Egyptians and for any average human being.

And it was not a big surprise for me to know that during three days, from 25th till 28th of January, more than 4,000 police car been destroyed or burned. That´s a huge number.

All over the country. More than 400 police stations all over the country been burned or destroyed or not function anymore. And the Egyptian regime built a very powerful and real police organization to make themselves to maintain controlling the Egyptians.

So everybody knew that if we crack down the police organization the politician are with no protection. That´s first. Second, people been doing this peacefully as much as they could. But when they see how much brutal the police is acting against them using shotguns and killing people, we have 1,000 Egyptian young people died, 5,000 injured. One thousand of this 5,000 lost at least one eye because of the shotguns´ bullets. That´s a heroic action. A massive heroic action.

Ahmed has extensive experience as an organizer and trainer in international programs for human rights education. He has served as a media adviser and director of media observation in a national campaign for monitoring elections in Egypt sponsored by USAID. He has also been a trainer for projects sponsored by the Norwegian Human Rights Fund, such as Supporting NGOs and Right to Freedom of Thought, Conscience and Religion and Combating Propaganda for War. He is the founder of various organizations: Liberal Youth Seminar sponsored by New Civic Forum, Knowledge Club, and Free Youth Association sponsored by Al JEEL Center for Youth and Social Studies. Currently, Ahmed is the Director of the Andalus Institute for Tolerance and Anti-Violence Studies and the director of EGYPT 1st online internet radio.