Post by peterd on Jul 30, 2013 15:12:55 GMT -8
Introduction
The Egyptian army has been firmly in control of Egypt since 1952 with a single exception – the presidency of Mohammad Mursi, 2012-2013. It has often exercised considerable influence on the political development of the country for six decades. This paper, however, has a relatively limited scope of focusing primarily on the wide and diverse role of the Egyptian armed forces in building an economic empire which they jealously preserve, nourish, expand and protect.
In theory, the magnitude and diversity of this economic empire are shrouded in secrecy: heavy legal restrictions are imposed on the Egyptian national media against exploring any aspect of this empire. Indeed, in the words of an Egyptian observer, the role of the military establishment in the national economy "remains of the major taboos in Egyptian politics."[1] Ironically, however, we found an official government website which provides a comprehensive but not necessarily a complete listing of the key companies and industrial enterprises that form the main body of economic activities carried out by the armed forces of Egypt. This list appears as an Annex to this paper. We also encountered a list of products produced by the armed forces issued by al-jam'iyyah al-masriyyah lil-taghyir (the Egyptian Association for Change) as an object for a boycott.[2] Based on available information elsewhere, the list of the products is accurate and many of these products are woven into the text of this paper.
www.memri.org/report/en/0/0/0/0/0/0/7313.htm
The Egyptian army has been firmly in control of Egypt since 1952 with a single exception – the presidency of Mohammad Mursi, 2012-2013. It has often exercised considerable influence on the political development of the country for six decades. This paper, however, has a relatively limited scope of focusing primarily on the wide and diverse role of the Egyptian armed forces in building an economic empire which they jealously preserve, nourish, expand and protect.
In theory, the magnitude and diversity of this economic empire are shrouded in secrecy: heavy legal restrictions are imposed on the Egyptian national media against exploring any aspect of this empire. Indeed, in the words of an Egyptian observer, the role of the military establishment in the national economy "remains of the major taboos in Egyptian politics."[1] Ironically, however, we found an official government website which provides a comprehensive but not necessarily a complete listing of the key companies and industrial enterprises that form the main body of economic activities carried out by the armed forces of Egypt. This list appears as an Annex to this paper. We also encountered a list of products produced by the armed forces issued by al-jam'iyyah al-masriyyah lil-taghyir (the Egyptian Association for Change) as an object for a boycott.[2] Based on available information elsewhere, the list of the products is accurate and many of these products are woven into the text of this paper.
www.memri.org/report/en/0/0/0/0/0/0/7313.htm