This was among the first set of photos I snapped of Kareem el-Beheiri, the currently “disappeared” Ghazl el-Mahalla activist. It was a Workers’ Coordination Committee meeting in downtown Cairo, which took place on a Friday, one day after the victory of the Kafr el-Dawar textile strike. I recall I was totally exhausted that Friday, after my return on the previous night from Kafr el-Dawar and then stayed up late till I posted a report. I wanted to go home early on that day, but I had already volunteered to translate for three Swedish journalists who showed up at the event. Also I wanted to hear any of the participants in Ghazl el-Mahalla December 2006 strike. And it was Kareem that day who spoke very eloquently about the strike and the future of the struggle against the state-backed labor unions.
The photo below, which unfortunately not that focused and in low resolution, is the first I snapped of Kamal el-Fayoumi, the currently “disappeared” Textile Workers’ League activist. It was January 2007, and Kamal was among a delegation of the Ghazl el-Mahalla December 2006 strike leaders who descended on Cairo to meet with the (state-backed) General Union of Textile Workers officials in Shobra demanding the impeachment of the corrupt local union members who opposed the strike. He was the most fiery among the strike leaders, I recall. In response to Said el-Gohary scoffing the workers’ demands saying they had no right to ask for any since Ghazl el-Mahalla was losing and not generating profits anymore, Kamal stood up and with a high-pitched voice he thundered, while waiving his hands and pointing at the corrupt union officials, “I’m a worker! You give me a production plan every year, and I implement it. It’s not my business what I produced later gets marketed or not! This is the management’s responsibility not mine!” I remember I told myself, “Wow! This guy destroyed the neoliberal logic in four sentences, and I bet he never read either Chomsky or Klein.”
I hope to see Kareem, Kamal, all the political detainees free soon. My heart and thoughts go out to them and their families.
يا حسام كريم مش في امن الدولة احنا سألنا
تفتكر يكون فين
اتخطف؟ هو احنا في شيكاجو هنا؟
ما اعتقدش انه اتخطف ممكن يكون مستخبي لانه قبل كده جات له تهديدات
بس لازم كان يطمن حد فينا
كريم وبقية الرفاق من المحلة معتقلين حاليا في سجن برج العرب
يعني ايه يا حسام؟
طب ليه امن الدولة انكر كريم بالذات؟
طب كريم اتعرض على نيابة؟
لو كان اتعرض على النيابة كان المحامين عرفوا انه موجود
فيه زيارات؟
اكلم مين يا حسام
كريم وكمال الفيومي وعدد من عمال غزل المحلة ومواطني المحلة كانو محتجزين بأمن دولة المحلة بعض صدور قرارات الإفراج من النيابة ودلوقتي اتحولوا على سجن برج العرب.. المحامين بيحاولوا دلوقتي يطلعوا تصاريح زيارة ويروحوا… وأنا بأدعو الناس انها تحاول تروح تزورهم وما تسيبهومش لوحديهم في المحنة ديه
أنا حأبعتلك دلوقتي نمرة محام رايح على الميل…
دولة الظلم ساعة و دولة الحق الي قيام الساعة
لية كل الشباب دول يتسجنوا ويتبهدلوا بالشكل دة حرام والله