UNREST IN EGYPT

Dominion, Volume 12, Issue 208, 28 May 1919, Page 7

UNREST IN EGYPT

IHE MOVEMENT OF SELF-GOVERNMENT CAN THE EGYPTIAN GOVERN HIMSELF At a time when most countries of the world are in a state of unrest and upheaval it,is not surprising that Egypt, in spite of hev character, suggesting n sleepy backwater, should fe*el the swirl'of passing events, writes tho spooial correspondent of the "Christian Science Monitor" from Alexandria. Few outside Egypt/however, would expect that.while the current elsewhere has generally been in the direction of progress, in t'he'Egypt of the lost few years a counter-current of retrogression seems to.have been experienced. As a matter of fact, few outside Egypt—spoaking of the general public—know or care to know very much about the internal condition of the country, in spite of its acknowledged importance ns the Gateway of the East. Evidently public discus'sione or newspaper comments on the subject are not officially encouraged. Ignorance of Egyptian affairs is due largely to the influence of a querulously timid oensor actin? undor the instructions of a weak end indefinite policy at the Residency, but it is not characteristic of polittoal intrigue:":, in the East especially perhaps,, to invite publicity at .the wrong- moment. Bo ,that as.it may, the fact is, »b every wide-awake 'Anglo-Egyptian knows, tkat all is not well in Egypt. ; Thisfihould not surprise him,, as it has been' common knowledge in the 1 country for a long time that the Egyptian, with but few exceptions, has been, and probably is, a thorough pro-Turk and had, and pTobably still has, a genuine admiration for tho German. To understand why this is so perhaps a short explanation may be useful.

Two' Classes in Egypt. Roughly speaking, the Egyptians (by which is meant the Mohammedans, who form' 60 per cent, of the 'population), are divided into two main olasses—the effendi, or educated class, and the fellah, or peasant class. ■ A very laigc proportion of tho effendi olass woro always frank admirers'of the. Turk, and 'this was but- natural, seeing that the highest society in Egypt, the pashas, were to all intents and purposes Turks, even if actually, not Turks, by birth, speaking Turkish among themselves and leading the fashion in Turkish ways and habits. Mainly lazy and spendthrift in character, with all the Oriental longing for personal power, however petty" and hollow, he formed ideal material as a subject for German propaganda. The fellah, being a peasant, had furor characteristics, but, -retaining many of the traits of his long serfdom under pashadom, and being for the most part illiterate, he thought for himself only in matters, concerning' his land and immediate district,' and, having a mare.or less servile admiration- for the effendi class, imbibed a great deal of its proTurkish, proclivities. Further, having ■ made mammon his god in the form of un all-absorbing passion for property, •> he, too, became eminently suitable for the nractioe of German intrigues;. Most Englishmen were respected by the fellah, but very, fow were liked. Those of the • effendi class who were not Government officials generally disliked Englishmen, and seldom met them . socially, while many of the Government officials fretted at 'being under their control In such circumstances it was not surprising that German influence as exampled in the r.ctivo intrigues of the popular- (and successful) Deiitsche.Orient Bank was rapidly growing during the last decade. . On the outbreak of the war, not only did nearly all the Pashas side more or loss openly. with the Turk, while the fellah frankly boasted of his belief in the invincibility of the' superman-Ger-man, but at-that moment the .'Govern-

ment permitted a largo number of its British officials to give up their work in order to serve in the forces, thus weakening control when it should have been stronger. Fortunately there was a, powerful British army in Egypt, and evdn more fortunately, - neither, effendi ■ nor fellah is a fighter, otherwise the unfurling of the green flag at .Constantinople might have changed .■ 'very lo.rgely the course of events in the Near East. Further, as the prioe of agricultural' pTqduce advanced, the fellah's attention was practically absorbed in money making, and land purchases, and he therefore became comparatively innocuous "■:'• Corruption Rampant,

It was now,, however, that the effect of less control in tho Egyptian administrations became evident. Corruption which, though .tolerably masked through fear of detection,. had never been radically stamped out, became rampant, running probably in a conseoubvo chain from some of the highest native officials down to the village ghaffir or watchman. Government requisitions of grain, straw, boats, animals, and especially men, became the occasion of oil kinds of intolerable injustices and petty despotism on the part of many of those in authority. Moral laxity showed more prominently in the various . administrations, and crimn and lawlessness increased The Government certainly recognised the canker and tried its best to remedy it. To suppress profiteering, a Supplies Control Board was eventually formed, but in spite /Of the powers of martial law, its regulations were to a large extent frankly disregarded. Omdehs (village headmen) and police officers were dismissed,'but with well-feathered nests, and there is little reason to believe that any improvement can be expected from their successors. The fact is,- of course, that the British official has far too much to.do. or in many cases does not do as much as he might, and control is consequently lax. While all this is much to bo regretted, it proves irrefutably that tho Egyptian i 3 totally unable at tho present moment to govern himself honestlv. As' to the reason why, after thirty-six years of British occupation, he has improved 60 little, this is a.consideration which cannot be adequately dealt with in the present article. The Egyptian politician thinks tho time is now ripo to-draw public attention to his affairs. 'He is now making every effort to put forward a claim for national recognition at the Peace Conference, but he omits to set'out the incontrovertible fact that he has proved time and agnin that the country is incapable of governing itself honestly. He appeals as a nationalist for "the Egyptian nation.'*. In ; truth, there is not an Egyptian nation. , The Egyptian is an inhabitant of Egypt. The highest class is Turkish, the educated class wants to be Turkish, and the fellah thinks only of his land, its produce, and his yillago affairs. The Egyptians have no truly national aspirations. They are incapable of combining to form even a single successful Egyptian bank or large agricultural or commercial company. The Copts who form the minority, "and tho local Jews and Greeks are the only elements in the country showing business capacity, hut religious prejudice and an entirely lack of confidence precludo the possibility of a successful partnership between them and the Mohammedans. No True Nationality.

For this population the Egyptian' politician is claiming immediately a national existence unhampered and uncontrolled by external influence or protection. Without having understood n the least tho whole aim and object of the war, he is attempting to influence public sympathy by appealing to Mr. Wilson's clause concerning the self-determination of small nations in order to re-establish: despotism in the country. Blinded by his petty materialistic ideals, he las been unablb to see the real issue in ■ present- events. Hearing this in mind, his hypocritical appeal should deceive nobody, and its clumsiness, resembling so nearly the German's, should be clearly evident to all who wish the world, including Egypt, well.

It is not the writer's intention to give the impression that the Egyptian is worthless. On tho contrurv. the fellah, especially, lias many excellent qualities, such as thrift and industry which have contributed largely toward the wealth of Egypt. When he had to servo in tho Egyptian labour corps, after the outbreak of the war, he showed not only a fine output of work but a surprising adaptability in picking up new and useful jobs. This was always under strict control and direction, which merely confirms the truism thnt tho Esyptian has at present no initiative. The effendi muoh resembles the Turk, but he probably lacks his courage. Here, too, ;n mite of many shortcomings, there is uso-

ful material, as well-run administrations under strict and energetic supervision of Englishmen, as for instance the railways and survey department, prove, but ho, too, shows up boat in <i subordinate position.' . ' The object of thi3 articlo Is to emphasise the fact that at the present moment the Egyptian cannot govern himsolf. Nobody would think it less than criminal to trust a burglar with the key of one's safe, and the application of the illustration to the present demand for self-gov-ernment in Egypt is not, it is believed, exaggerated ot "misleading.