A Comparison of the Egyptian Revolutions of 1952 and 2011 A Comparison of the Egyptian Revolutions of 1952 and 2011 By Muhammet Musa Budak A Comparison of the Egyptian Revolutions of 1952 and 2011 By Muhammet Musa Budak This book first published 2022 Cambridge Scholars Publishing Lady Stephenson Library, Newcastle upon Tyne, NE6 2PA, UK British Library Cataloguing in Publication Data A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library Copyright © 2022 by Muhammet Musa Budak All rights for this book reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise, without the prior permission of the copyright owner. ISBN (10): 1-5275-7724-4 ISBN (13): 978-1-5275-7724-4 CONTENTS Foreword ................................................................................................... vi Introduction ................................................................................................ 1 Chapter One ................................................................................................ 9 Revolution Theories and International Relations Revolution Theories ............................................................................ 10 Revolutions and International Relations ............................................. 30 Chapter Two ............................................................................................. 41 1952: Nasser’s “Revolution” Socio-economic Causes of the Revolution ......................................... 44 International Actors and Nasser’s Revolution .................................... 50 Leaders of the Revolution ................................................................... 57 The Ideology of Revolution and its Effects on the Middle East ......... 64 Chapter Three ........................................................................................... 72 “Arab Uprisings” and the Egyptian Revolution Economic and Social Reasons ............................................................ 73 International Reactions ....................................................................... 85 Leading Figures of the Revolution ...................................................... 93 The Ideology and Effects of the Revolution ..................................... 102 Chapter Four ........................................................................................... 107 Similarities and Differences between 1952 and 2011 Socio-Economic Demands ................................................................ 108 Approach of International Actors ..................................................... 113 Leaders .............................................................................................. 121 Changes in Ideologies ....................................................................... 127 Conclusion .............................................................................................. 135 Bibliography ........................................................................................... 144 FOREWORD The states which were structured in the Middle East after World War I, especially by Western powers’ intervention, have not met the basic necessities people expect from their governments. Demands such as equality before laws, the economic means to live with dignity, and the right to political participation received no response from governments. Such demands for rights came in different forms, like revolutions with wide social support, military coups or power struggles amongst the ruling elites. In this regard during the 1950s there were revolutions and military coups in many middle eastern countries, especially in Egypt which was a pioneer throughout the region. The aforementioned demands were the main motivation of these social events. But generally they were led by minor social segments with Arab nationalistic and socialist motives and did not meet people’s expectations in the end. Initially, Western powers were very reluctant to approach these revolutionary regimes, then an interest-based cooperation was established. At the beginning of the last decade, people’s demands for basic rights and freedoms in the region’s countries increased without any or with only minor responses from governments, making it an insufferable era. This situation championed social pressures for change. “Revolutions” in the region and their outcomes again questioned whether progress or deterioration would be achieved, like the outcomes of the 1950s revolts. In this book, the revolutions in these two different time periods will be comparatively examined and the reasons for social revolt underlined. Egypt has been chosen as a case study, despite many countries in the region having gone through similar processes, as it is the most populated and holds a great deal of influence in the region as whole. This book was prepared based on my PhD dissertation which I submitted at Ankara Y(cid:213)ld(cid:213)r(cid:213)m Beyaz(cid:213)t University in Turkey. After an intensive period of several years, 2013 to 2018 was a time of intense learning for me, not only in the scientific arena, but also on a personal level. I would like to reflect on the people who supported and helped me so much throughout this period. Firstly, I would like to express my sincere gratitude to my advisor Prof. Mustafa S(cid:213)tk(cid:213) Bilgin for the continuous support of my PhD study and related research; for his patience, motivation, and immense knowledge. Besides my A Comparison of the Egyptian Revolutions of 1952 and 2011 vii advisor, I would like to thank the rest of my thesis committee, Prof. Mehmet Seyfettin Erol, Prof. Mustafa Eravc(cid:213), Dr. Giray Sad(cid:213)k, Dr. (cid:248). Numan Telci, and especially Dr. M. Hüseyin Mercan, for their insightful comments and encouragement which motivated me to widen my research from various perspectives. I would like to specially thank the following colleagues and friends who helped or supported me during the research and writing of this book: namely, Emin Nywandi, Turgut Parlak, Burhanuddin, Afzalurrahman, Dr. Muzeyin Sebsebe, Ashequr Rahman Saykat, Tar(cid:213)q Saifullah, Dr. Muhammed Maruf, Burak A(cid:247)alday, Dr. Taha E(cid:247)ri and Dr. Hac(cid:213) Murat Terzi. Last but not least, I would like to thank my family – my parents, my brothers and sisters, and my lovely wife Hatice Kübra – for their everlasting support. INTRODUCTION The 2011 Arab uprisings across the Arab world directed the attention of the international community to the Middle East once again. Millions of people took to the streets to demonstrate against their autocratic regimes. This was an important indication of the Arab people’s desire for change, along with an opportunity to restore their dignity. Although over time these movements weakened, they brought back discussions of politics, the economy, social organisms and civil-militia relations. To understand this phenomenon, various theories, including revolutionary ones started to be discussed. “The Arab uprisings” were not only significant for the Arab world, but regional and international actors with investment in the region also carefully followed their developments. As expected, with the ousting of the autocratic leader of Tunisia, Ben Ali (after a 23-year reign), and the influence of the mass demonstrations, fundamental changes across the region occurred (Rose, 2011). This ousting of an Arab leader in Tunisia through mass uprisings triggered opposition movements in other Arab countries, alongside an increasing expectation that the fundamental changes that occurred in Tunisia could be repeated. With this growing sentiment in the region, the events that took place in Tunisia were repeated in countries such as Egypt, Yemen, Libya, and Syria. Egypt is distinguished from these other countries because of its lead character in the Arab world and its significant role in international politics (Hamid, 2011). Due to Egypt’s history, its social and military structure, its long-standing close diplomatic affairs with the West (particularly the United States), and the concerns of Western and regional countries regarding the potential dangers arising with new governance, the anti-Mubarak protests that started in Egypt on January 25, 2011 attracted significant curiosity at a global level (Mudge, 2011). World leaders and the media followed the demonstration by hundreds of thousands of people at Tahrir Square cautiously. The future of Egypt and whether Hosni Mubarak – the oppressive ruler of Egypt for over 30 years – backed by the army and the US would be ousted, as in the case of Ben Ali of Tunisia, was perceived as a salient debate on the agenda of world leaders and by the public. As the initial debates on Mubarak’s future were being