Category Archives: Diary

contains, what a diary should contain…

Diary, Work

back in Cairo…and everything is different…

…and back in a completely different world. The students are suspended from university due to accusations that a few would act in an offensice way against figures in relation to the university or its establishment itself. The teaching is suspended for one week since Saturday. Each party accuses the other one of false accusations without going into details. A Video on Youtube showing a masked man throwing a gas canister towards the gates of the GUC has been removed today upon accusations, that the Video does not show the truth but was staged. The University buildings are almost empty and only the staff is there, wondering, what an university without students is about.

Most probably the open questions are just postponed and not solved. So we have to wait for next week, to see, what will happen. Some german professors who are affiliated with the GUC were quoted saying that special situation need special treatment. The question is, if they would use the same words in relation to their german students at an university in Germany. Once again it is difficult to decide, how to deal with the situation.

Diary, observations generally

religion… is just the tool…

Once again everything is focusing on downtown Cairo. The other areas of Cairo are quiet so far. And at the moment I do not think that the incidents this night will cause any sectarian strife. Many rumors are flooding the streets and at the moment nobody can say who started the fight. Each involved party blames the other and the government blames a mysterious “third party” without defining it.

In the end it will support the military to extend the state of emergency and to keep the power. And most western states as well as Israel will support this supposingly because it might also help to stabilize the region; In a shortterm thinking construct. And we have to keep in mind that Mubarak also was from the military and that he guaranteed peace with Israel. Free and open elections could bring a government, which maybe could cancel all peace treatys with Israel. And this is something, many states are afraid of. Also democracy has to stick to the rules of the big game.

 

http://english.aljazeera.net/news/middleeast/2011/10/2011101072623285752.html

http://www.almasryalyoum.com/en/node/503553

http://english.ahram.org.eg/NewsContent/1/64/23749/Egypt/Politics-/Egypt-general-prosecution-starts-investigating-Mas.aspx

Diary

summer break

1 Comment

The temperatures in Egypt are almost unbearable at the moment. It is hot all over the day and also during the night. Only the slightly moving air in our flat keeps us alive… somehow. Almost all students are spread all over the world while we have to stay on campus and are awaiting the summer academy. And it is almost like in January… as soon as the semester break started, the crowds are out in the streets to start the second part of the revolution and to demand that their needs and wants are met. But almost nobody is demonstrating for something, but everyone is protesting against something. And the demands of the protesters go in a million different directions, even if they all stand on the same place to protest. To be against something unites at the moment, but what will happen as soon as the demands go obviously in different directions? What will happen before September will happen now. In August is Ramadan and nothing will happen there, I suppose. And in September are the elections.
At the moment it does not feel like the days before the 25th of January. People are tired and they are afraid.
But today people went back on Midan Tahrir to protest against the military council. And for the first time these people used violence against an alleged thug. They beat him and stripped him naked. A new level has been entered right now. And things can change fast.

Diary

China, Wuhan

Since the 6th of June I am in Wuhan to perform a Workshop at the Huangzhong University of Since and Technology and the Hubei University, Institute of applied arts and design.

China is a wonderful country with wonderful people! And the University really cares. They care for you but they also want, that you care for them. The first week was a challenge. 4 Lectures to 4 different topics and the workshop. One nightshift after the other. But it is worthwile! All the people give their best and for sure I am glad to have the opportunity to give my best. Although it is hard, it feels completely different compared to the GUC.

Each day students pick me up for breakfast because they fear, I could get lost on the Campus. And even if I ensure, that I meanwhile know my way home, they insist to bring me to my gate, even if it is the completely other direction than their home! And the Staff at University is also very keen on making my visit here as comfortable as possible!
I am used to this behavior from my last visit in China, but it is still amazing.

The weather is going to kill me some day, thats for sure. It is not only really hot, it is hot and wet! The fog is always visible and I had only one day so far, where I could see the sun. You breathe fog, and you are covered with fog.

The food is as always… the best kitchen I know so far!
I love this country and its people!

Diary, observations generally

looking for its way…

scrolling through the newespapers you could become quite worried nowadays. Fightigs, shootings, burnings, shoutings all over the country. The new freedom is used to express someones opinions in the most expressive way, by force. Equal which group is fighting for what, what some of them have in common is, that violence seems to be an appropriate measure to target its aims. But it is not only some of the egyptians which behave this way. Also some westerners seem to have found a new strategy for self expression. The whole country is nervous, which is not really astonishing but worrying. The country is sliding in a deep econmic struggle if nothing will happen. The tourists still stay away and all branchs are affected. Most people generally do not have too much money and now things become serious very fast. Hopefully the tourists come back before someone else gives the money the people need to survive. Egypt has rich neighbors which influenced the country before and also nowadays.
But… the country generally is safe and at the moment nobody is targeting foreigners. Egyptians are still the people they are used to be… but with a uncertain future… and not everyone can deal with this in the same way.

Diary, observations generally

neocolonialism

1 Comment

Yesterday… as usual I was listening to D-radio Kultur… Topic was how to help Africa. The first caller answerd this question, and he was serious about it, that the best way to help Africa would be, to colonize it again because these people can’t help themselves. My brain switched immediately to emergency mode and tried its very best to keep me calm.

But it didn’t work out. The reason why it didn’t work out is, that the rest of my ablity to think told me, that the guy who called the radio station is not alone with his strange ideas. I also know some people at the GUC who are really serious about the fact, that they are the better ones and that it is a waste of time to teach Egyptians because they can’t, they don’t want and for sure, they are not developed enough to understand, what we, mighty and thoroughly educated, Europeans want to teach them.

This way of thinking is the reason for a lot of struggle. The better way would be, first to understand the culture and the people we are acting in and with and than to think about how to implement our knowledge in this culture and in other ways of thinking. Things are different, but not worse.

And then I followed the discussion about the strategies to prevent that all these africans come to cross the border to the EU. And I felt really bad. I am a well welcomed guest in this country and never had a problem because of my nationality. These people did’t have the luck we had. That’s it. We are nothing special, we are only the lucky guys. And we dare not to share our luck? I know, it is more complicated than this. But we should think of different ways of how to deal with other humans.