Egyptians return to Tahrir Square to protest election results.
Protesters are challenging the second round of voting between a member of the Muslim Brotherhood and a former minister in Hosni Mubarak's regime.
Sandro Fernandes, Cairo – World Opera Thousands of Egyptians took to the streets on Monday (May 28) to protest against the Electoral Committee's confirmation of the candidates who advanced to the second round of the Egyptian presidential elections. The new head of state will be chosen between candidates Mohammed Mursi and Ahmed Shafiq. Mohammed Mursi represents the FJP (Freedom and Justice Party), the political arm of the Muslim Brotherhood, while Ahmed Shafiq is a former member of the regime of Hosni Mubarak, the dictator in Egypt for 30 years who resigned in February 2011 after a wave of protests in the country.
Most of the protesters gathered in Tahrir Square are carrying signs for nationalist candidate Hamdin Sabbahi, the revolutionaries' favorite, who finished third in the final vote count. Sabbahi won in major cities like Cairo and Alexandria, but missed the chance to compete in the second round due to low support in rural areas.
“We have been fighting since the beginning of last year to end the Mubarak era. We do not accept Shafiq as one of the options in the second round. He represents the opposite of the revolutionary spirit,” says young Ahmed, who has participated in the demonstrations “since day one.”
In Tahrir Square, there is no stage. Nor is there a leader speaking to the entire crowd. Small groups organize themselves into assemblies and discuss recent events in Egypt and “try to convince the less revolutionary of the importance of continuing to fight,” according to a middle-aged man carrying a poster with a photo of Morsi crossed out with a red cross. The most repeated phrase among the participants is "Horreya," which means "freedom" in Arabic. The names of protesters killed in clashes with the armed forces are also repeated like a mantra by the crowd.