OnIslam.net

It was not poverty, political marginalization, nor was it brutal security forces kidnapping their family members … A year ago Egyptian youth were driven to the streets to claim back their dignity and paint a new future where their identity would prevail over their lives and not what their dictator forces upon them.

Finally, throughout a year of tension and hardship the revolution gained something concrete; it gained an elected legislature that can speak on their behalf and reflect the spirit of the revolution. Yet, holding the steering wheel of a key state in one of the most strategic countries in the world, in the midst of an unfinished revolution that is trying to throw off a corrupt regime dangling off a decaying international order, is certainly not an easy task.

In light of such circumstances, the leading Egyptian Islamic movement — namely the Muslim Brotherhood (MB) — can take one of three tracks:

1- To make use of the street backing in order to work exclusively for the narrow interests of the movement

2- To put aside the goals of the movement and focus on the immediate short-term demands of the revolution

3- To combine between the movement's principles and the demands of the revolution

The first option would only lead to having the same scenario of the now-defunct party of the deposed President Mubarak, National Democratic Party (NDP). The NDP worked exclusively to benefit its own members even if that would jeopardize the Egyptian economic, social and political welfare. With a well-established network of members and backers, the MB has a suitable environment to fall into that trap, which will lead to immediate destructive repercussions especially that the spirit of the revolution is still floating around Egypt.

The second track is a game that the Supreme Council of Armed Forces (SCAF) has been playing with the MB since the revolution. Several events, some of them with SCAF's direct involvement, aimed at involving the MB in an exhaustive action-reaction game. However, the movement has managed so far to keep a distance between itself and events of marginal importance for the sake of focusing its efforts and weighing in on the side of the prime revolutionary demands. As a result, it was able to secure a sweeping majority in the first free parliamentary elections in Egypt since decades, which is also the first solid step for the revolution since it started a year ago.

A year ago Egyptian youth were driven to the streets to claim back their dignity and paint a new future

However, to pull the Egyptian revolution out of its short-term focus of fighting corruption and establishing freedoms, a visionary leader is needed to be able to see beyond a purely anti-Mubarak revolution. Egypt's historical leadership role can only be revived through a renaissance project that can utilize the exploding energies of youth and the country's rich resources; which leads to the third track.

The third option for the empowered Islamic movement is to claim the role of the wise young man who has his hands working on the details while his eyes are set on the horizon, making use of double opportunity of being in the Parliament and having the backing of the Tahrir Square. The short-term demands of the revolution resemble the live coal that can keep the fire burning in order to undo decades of corruption and indignity, while the vision of the Islamic movement — that includes and go beyond the principle demands of the revolution — is the frame in which the steps to rebuild Egypt should fit.

Welfare, freedom and social justice are the three principle demands of the revolution and are also fundamental principles protected by Islam, yet Islam offers a civilizational project that bases progress in the different realms of life on values and manners, rather than only on dry interests and material gains. An example of which is Islamic finance, which has taken a lot of attention after the 2008 world financial crisis. Principles and progress are the basis of the Islamic finance model and are reflected across Islam. It goes from the personal level up to the state-policy level.

Islamic movements in power can allow certain values to prevail in the society through the different means available for the state, such as media and education. At the same time, the state should use all ethical venues available to progress in scientific research, industrial production, agriculture and the other fields; all within the framework set up by Islam. Looking back into history, the model of Andalusia should come to mind. It was a beacon of knowledge and development for centuries under the Muslim rule.

On the practical level, there is an international and a local — although marginal — tendency to view Islamic movements with skepticism, especially that they are now on the top of a country like Egypt. Though the skeptical groups are concerned with both the material gains and protection of freedoms, the Egyptians who support the Islamic movements give some emphasis also to religion and fundamental principles. A wise effort to build up Egypt under the Islamic movements can satisfy the needs for both groups without any conflict, and if conflict happened, then, as a normal pattern in any atmosphere of true democracy, the concerns and needs of the electorate should be given a top priority.

A year on from the beginning of the Egyptian revolution, one message comes into light: Islamic movements are willing to and can play according to the democratic rules of the game, yet they need to have the vision and potential to offer more to Egypt than a mere reversal to the old regime.

Although democracy allows the Islamic movements to gain power, a renaissance can not take place in Egypt with the marginalization of the opposition groups. Egypt is a country with a very homogenous population who stood shoulder to shoulder in Tahrir Square in the same way they stand in prayer; an Islamic renaissance in this country is conditional upon the unity among all members of the society with no exception.

The Arab and Muslim Ibn Khaldun, father of historiography and sociology, offers the overall picture of what the region is witnessing now in his famous book al-Muqaddimah (Introduction). He says:

When there is a prophet or saint among them [Arabs], who calls upon them to fulfill the commands of God and rids them of blameworthy qualities and causes them to adopt praiseworthy ones, and who has them concentrate all their strength in order to make the truth prevail, they become fully united (as a social organization) and obtain superiority and royal authority.

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