Egypt protest leaflets distributed in Cairo give blueprint for mass action

[TomClash]

Source: Guardian UK

Egypt protest leaflets distributed in Cairo give blueprint for mass action
Anonymous flyers provide practical and tactical advice for confronting riot police, and besieging government offices


Ian Black, Middle East editor
guardian.co.uk, Thursday 27 January 2011 19.15 GMT

Egyptians have been urged to come out after Friday prayers tomorrow and demand the overthrow of Hosni Mubarak's government, along with freedom, justice and a democratic regime.

Anonymous leaflets circulating in Cairo also provide practical and tactical advice for mass demonstrations, confronting riot police, and besieging and taking control of government offices.

Signed "long live Egypt", the slickly produced 26-page document calls on demonstrators to begin with peaceful protests, carrying roses but no banners, and march on official buildings while persuading policemen and soldiers to join their ranks.

The leaflet ask recipients to redistribute it by email and photocopy, but not to use social media such as Facebook and Twitter, which are being monitored by the security forces.

Read more: http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2011/jan/27/egypt-protest-leaflets-mass-action

[TomClash]

1. Tweet

Jailan45: We're going to be completely cut off internet tomorrow. Screw the cowards. Yes, I'm talking to you. @TEDataEgypt @LinkDotNet #Egypt #Jan25
1 minute ago via web · Reply · View Tweet

[nadinbrzezinski]

2. Egyptian Activists' Action Plan: Translated

Source: The Atlantic

Egyptian activists have been circulating a kind of primer to Friday's planned protest. We were sent the plan by two separate sources and have decided to publish excerpts here, with translations into English. Over Twitter, we connected with a translator, who translated the document with exceptional speed.

What follows are side-by-side translations of nine pages from the 26-page pamphlet. They were translated over the last hour and pasted up in Photoshop to give you an idea of what's in the protest plan. While the plan itself contains specifics about what protesters might do, these excerpts show how one might equip oneself for clashes with riot police. Egyptian security forces have repeatedly beaten protesters as the level of violent repression of demonstrations has ratcheted upwards. For more context on the pamphlet itself, the Guardian UK ran a summary of it earlier today.

As you'll read, the creators of the pamphlet explicitly asked that the pamphlet not be distributed on Twitter or Facebook, only through email or other contacts. We're publishing this piece of ephemera because we think it's a fascinating part of the historical record of what may end up becoming a very historic day for Egypt.

Read more: http://www.theatlantic.com/international/archive/11/01/translated-excerpts-from-egyptian-activists-action-plan/70388/

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fast running stories are always fun to chase

[tekisui]

3. I think it was highly irresponsible for the Atlantic to publish this on the eve of the protest.

[nadinbrzezinski]

4. actually what they have published is very much

standard operating procedure. Nothing that any security personnel has not seen in the past.

Well done though, and the Guardian gives a summary of it. Also I am sure they got a few of them.

[karynnj]

5. I agree - as historical record, it could be published a month -- or a year -- from now

That they did this against the will of the authors is wrong. They write:

"As you'll read, the creators of the pamphlet explicitly asked that the pamphlet not be distributed on Twitter or Facebook, only through email or other contacts."

If the creators did not want it on facebook and twitter, I doubt they want it in large segments in the Atlantic!

[The Stranger]

6. The Atlantic's little piece says they skipped "tactical" parts to protect the protesters.

But they fucking lie: there's page after page of tactics -- where to gather, where to go after gathering (government buildings), how to repel police batons, how to disable security cameras, and so on and so on.

Fucking irresponsible of the Atlantic to do this.