March of the Millions is underway in Egypt. It is an unbelievable scene. For Ethiopians it is a reminiscent of the May 7, 2005, rally in Addis Ababa where 4 million people turned out to express their support for change one week before the stolen May 15, 2005 elections. Unfortunately, the Ethiopian march of the millions did not bare fruit as the people still continue to suffer under a brutal dictatorship. Ethiopian Review wishes victory and success to the people of Egypt in their fight for freedom.
Latest developments in Egypt
* African leaders are warily watching Egypt. Frustrated with their political elites, railing against the lack of freedom, angered at unemployment levels, dismayed at the rising cost of food, fuel and other basics, the people of sub-Saharan Africa share many of the complaints that led to the upheavals in Tunisia and Egypt, along the continent’s northern edge. – Global Post
* An undercurrent of anger against the United States appears to be building here because of what many see as the Obama administration’s overly cautious response to the demands of protesters for the resignation of longtime U.S. ally President Hosni Mubarak. – Los Angeles Times
* Mohamed ElBaradei is emerging as a potential replacement for Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak, but like other possible successors, he’s seen as a temporary leader. – USA Today
* China minimized news coverage of Egypt uprising and “warned last week that websites that did not censor comments about Egypt would be ‘shut down by force.” – CSM
* Former U.S. presidential candidate Senator John Kerry urges Hosni Mubarak to step down. – New York Times
* Opposition leader ElBaradei calls on Mubarak to quit in order to spare bloodshed. – Al Arabiya
* Egyptian army has ruled out force against the people. – BBC
* Mubarak authorized the new vice president to start talks with opposition leaders. – Al Jazeera
* Turkish Prime Minister Recep Erdogan called on Mubarak to listen to his people, in the first call by a foreign leader to ask Egypt’s present to step aside.
* Google and Twitter have launched a service which circumvents the ban on net services in Egypt. The so-called speak-to-tweet system allows people caught up in the unrest to post messages without any need to use an internet connection.
* The U.N.’s high commissioner for human rights praised protesters in Egypt Tuesday and said she was alarmed by a rise in casualties during unrest in the country.