25일 별세 이집트 전 대통령 무바라크에 얽힌 두 이야기

호스니 무바라크 이집트 전 대통령

[아시아엔=아시라프 달리 아시아기자협회 회장, <아시아엔> 아랍어판 편집장] 지난 25일 별세한 무바라크 대통령은 이집트 국민들의 삶을 비참하게 만든 장본인이다. 그는 이집트의 보건, 교육 등은 물론 산업 분야 전반을 망쳐놓았다.

또한 무바라크 대통령 시대의 이집트는 제대로 된 의회민주주의를 갖출 수 없었다. 그는 1973년 욤키푸르전쟁에서 이스라엘군 방어 진지에 대한 전격 작전으로 전세를 유리하게 이끌어 국민적 영웅으로 떠오르며 정치권에 발을 들여놓았다.

하지만, 정치지도자가 된 이후로는 부패 당국의 상징으로 기억되고 있다. <요약·번역 송재걸 기자>

아래는 기사전문

1980년대 북한을 찾은 호스니 무바라크 대통령과 북한의 김일성 주석(오른쪽).

Mubarak; Tale of Two Identities

In his opening paragraph of (Tale of Two Cities), British novelist Charles Dickens wrote:

“It was the best of times, it was the worst of times, it was the age of wisdom, it was the age of foolishness, it was the epoch of belief, it was the epoch of incredulity, it was the season of Light, it was the season of Darkness, it was the spring of hope, it was the winter of despair, we had everything before us, we had nothing before us, we were all going direct to Heaven, we were all going direct the other way – in short, the period was so far like the present period, that some of its noisiest authorities insisted on its being received, for good or for evil, in the superlative degree of comparison only.”

With no exaggeration, these lines of fiction portraits the era of the late Egyptian ex-President Mohammed Hosni Mubarak (1928- 2020). So, it is true to read comments of contradicting opinions on his career; as he spent almost half a century in charge of many leading roles, especially with 30 years as the President of Egypt (1981-2011).

In a world you have to choose an orientation, Mubarak was keen to be a man of political balance; he kept the good relationship with the Americans and Russians, he continued the diplomatic relationship with the occupying State of Israel, and reestablished the normal relationship with Arabs and Palestinians.

The final scene of Mubarak’s funeral sums up this contradiction: while the Arab Republic of Egypt considers its ousted President Mubarak a dictator that the Arab Spring and January Revolution could get him out of the political scene, and detained him for the last 10 years by its laws, you will find that Mr. President, Al Sisi, was present for a farewell salute, conducted by the Egyptian military forces.

Mubarak was the man who turned the lives of millions in Egypt to misery; you may name a certain sector to find a big failure in education, industry and health. In 30 years he couldn’t build a single hospital to trust for his own health , and used to travel abroad to get treated.

To keep the good balance, he offered a chance to establish political parties, but under the table he could buy all of the to sustain a democratic theatre stage without real democracy.

Egypt is not a geographic spot for natural disasters; such as floods and earthquakes. Its four seasons offer good chances for tourists around the year to enjoy the huge historic monuments of different civilizations. To some extent, the country is expected to sustain good living for its citizens, but the economic situation is totally the opposite, as human disasters made by corrupted authorities made it difficult for the majority of the people to find their dreams of a good life.

Today, as loving people say goodbye to him, they consider the man who participated in the October 1973 war against their enemy, but those who are not praying for him do not see that hero, but the man who was behind the thousands of Egyptian victims in train accidents, drawn ships and the 2011 revolution.

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