Witnessing history: Olean’s Chauhdry family vacations in Egypt during Morsi ousting
By Christopher Michel Olean Times Herald Jul 8, 2013
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The final days in office of the now-former Egyptian President Mohamed Morsi and the aftermath of the abrupt end have dominated international headlines for most of this week.
And while media coverage has portrayed Egypt as a land in turmoil plagued by conflict as its military took control, the Chauhdry family of Olean who were vacationing in the country saw nothing to that effect.
Dr. Tahir Chauhdry, his wife, Shabana, and their three daughters, Anisah, 14, Zayba, 12, and Lina, 4, arrived in Egypt on June 29, a day after the United States’ federal authorities urged all American tourists and non-essential government personnel to leave the North African country.
“We had actually planned this vacation months ago … and it definitely turned out be quite the experience,” Dr. Chauhdry said. “We were going to just travel around Turkey, but decided to make it a two-country tour. We had no idea anything was going to happen in Egypt.”
The night before his family’s departure from Turkey, Dr. Chauhdry received many messages from his friends back home warning him of the apparent unrest in Egypt.
“Luckily, we had hired a really good tour guide and he said that it was safe to come,” Dr. Chauhdry said. He noted the tour guide did recommend the family cancel their hotel reservations in Cairo and stay in Giza, a city southwest of central Cairo where Egypt’s iconic pyramids and Sphinx are located.
“We decided to take a chance,” Dr. Chauhdry said.
While in the third-largest city in Egypt, the family visited many of its popular attractions.
“It was actually kind of strange. We were just traditional tourists, and what we saw is that weren’t really any other tourists because everyone was staying away,” Dr. Chauhdry said. “We kind of felt like we had Egypt all to ourselves.”
But about 20 miles to the north, hundreds of thousands of Egyptians gathered in Tahrir Square in central Cairo — the same place where Egyptians gathered almost two years earlier and called for former Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak to leave office — and waited to hear Mr. Morsi’s response to the Egyptian military’s ultimatum to step down.
The Chauhdry family did venture into Cairo. They shopped at its bazaars, interacted with its residents, and visited the Egyptian Museum of Antiquities which houses ancient relics and mummies.
“There weren’t people picketing all over. People were just going about their days,” he said. “The Egyptian people that we met were very gracious and very nice to us. We toured Cairo like anybody else would.”
Dr. Chauhdry and his wife did journey into Tahrir Square and spent about an hour there.
“While we were part of something, we didn’t see anything of what the news media was showing. Tahrir Square, which is remarkably small, was kind of one big party, really,” Dr. Chauhdry said. “There were vendors there selling food, soda and clothes. It really looked like a street carnival.”
There was, however, a very visible military and police presence at the square.
“There were military helicopters flying overhead and the police were there, but they were ‘pro-people’ and were actually there holding flags with the people,” he said.
As Mr. Morsi’s time in office came to an end and the Egyptian people and military unified to oust him, the Chauhdrys did not fear for their lives during their stay.
“We didn’t encounter any anti-American sentiment. We actually felt more unsafe because we got so many texts from our friends and family recommending we register with the U.S. embassy in case something happened,” Dr. Chauhdry said. “Nobody really cared who you were or where you were from. They just wanted to have a peaceful protest.”
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Mr. Morsi, the country’s first democratically elected president, was ousted from office Wednesday. The deposed president was then placed under house arrest as his former generals installed a temporary civilian government to run the country until a new Egyptian constitution is put in place and general elections are scheduled.
Mr. Morsi rose to power in the midst of the Arab spring revolution, civilian protests in many Middle Eastern countries that toppled oppressive regimes.
Mr. Morsi replaced Mr. Mubarak, who abandoned his post on Feb. 11, 2011, after winning Egypt’s presidential election on June 24, 2012, as a candidate with the Muslim Brotherhood. He was sworn in six days later.
His tenure as president was wrought with controversy. Many Egyptians believe Mr. Morsi gave too much power to his Muslim Brotherhood supporters, went back on many campaign promises, and did little to address the country’s poor economic state.
The Chauhdry family learned of Mr. Morsi’s removal from office upon their return home.
“I was actually standing in JFK Airport and saw the blurb about it come up on my phone,” Dr. Chauhdry said. “We kind of expected it … We knew it was coming.“
As vacationers-turned-witnesses to history, Dr. Chauhdry said he and his family come away from the experience with a new appreciation for being American citizens.
“We actually had a good experience to see what freedom is,” he said. “Most people here in the U.S., including myself, take our freedom for granted and don’t realize how lucky we are. But no one here is holding a gun to you telling you to go away because you’re in a different political party. The Egyptian people are just looking for freedom and civil liberties.”
(Contact reporter Christopher Michel at cmichel@oleantimesherald.com. Follow him on Twitter, OTHChris.)
