Interviews with Ahmed Samih

When you are in the streets, you don´t know all the people next to you. But you have only one thing. You have to trust them. Because they´re shouting like you. Or chanting like you. And when you are there, the only thing is to protect the group around (LAUGH) you. And you know the enemy.

The enemy is that people who´s wearing– the enemy is the people against you. Is people who– who is against you when you say, “We want to bring down Mubarak.” The people who organize the concept of we want to conquer the regime. Or we want to bring down the regime.

And this is your enemy. And the most important thing in this that the Egyptians united under the concept that we have to bring down the regime. No political flags was there. No political themes. No political groups. Everybody been obeying under the Egyptian flag, the national flag.

Everybody was understanding that this is the best way to keep our unity. And we had everything– we did everything John Sharp– wrote in his book– Waging a Nonviolent Conflict [Waging Nonviolent Struggle]. Except one thing– the leadership. We couldn´t bring the leadership. That was one of the– of the things, I´m sure– what– that was one of the negative things, I´m sure, we– we have to work on it very quickly.

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.