CAIRO: Egypt's government tried to get the nation back to work on Sunday and people queued in Cairo when banks opened for the first time in a week as protests to force President Hosni Mubarak to quit entered their 13th day.
Demonstrators camped out in Cairo's Tahrir Square, which has become an epicentre for protest, vowed to intensify their battle to oust Mubarak but the 82-year-old president has said he will stay until September elections because the alternative is chaos.
With some Egyptians keen for a return to normal after unrest that the United Nations says killed 300 people, the government has warned of the damage to political stability and the economy.
"We want people to go back to work and to get paid, and life to get back to normal," army commander Hassan al-Roweny said.
The Egyptian pound opened weaker against the U.S. dollar after the week-long bank closure. "The pound started off down as widely expected, but not with the magnitude one would have thought," one trader said.
The commander of the army, which many say holds the key to the nation's future, was touring Tahrir Square to try to convince protesters, complaining about poverty, repression and corruption, to leave the usually busy intersection. The United States, Egypt's ally which provides the army with $1.3 billion annually, has advocated the need for gradual change and political talks between the government and opposition groups on an orderly handover of power.
U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton on Saturday backed talks between the new vice president, Omar Suleiman, a long-time intelligence chief, and opposition groups, saying the government's dialogue with the opposition must be given time.
Suleiman was due to meet opposition groups at 11 a.m. (0900 GMT) on Sunday in talks joined for the first time by the Muslim Brotherhood, Egypt's most organised opposition group.
"We have decided to engage in a round of dialogue to ascertain the seriousness of officials towards the demands of the people and their willingness to respond to them," a spokesman for the banned Brotherhood told Reuters on Saturday.
It is testimony to the ground protesters have gained that the government is willing to talk to the group which would have been unthinkable before the protests started on Jan. 25.
But opposition activists are concerned about any compromise which would see Mubarak hand over power to Suleiman but also serve out his term -- essentially relying on the old authoritarian system to pave the way to full civilian democracy.
"To hear ... that Mubarak should stay and lead the process of change, and that the process of change should essentially be led by his closest military adviser ... would be very, very disappointing," opposition activist Mohamed ElBaradei said.
CITY CENTRE PARALYSED
At Tahrir Square, army tanks tried on Saturday to squeeze demonstrators to make way for traffic. But protesters, huddled under tents to escape a rare rain shower, refused to leave.
"It is very clear that they are trying to suffocate us. This shows ill intent. But we are not moving until our legitimate demands are met," one protester, Moustafa Mohamed, said.
But many Egyptians, even some who joined widespread nationwide demonstrations to end the 30-year rule of Mubarak, say they are desperate for a return to normal life.
Many shops have been closed during 12 days of protests and banks have been shut, making it hard for Egyptians to stock up on basic goods. Some prices have been pushed up, and economic growth, which was running at 6 percent, is expected to suffer.
More than one million visitors, in Egypt for the beaches, the pyramids and to see artefacts from its ancient civilisation, have fled the tumult which will seriously dent the nation's important tourist sector.
Outside banks, long lines of Egyptians queued at ATMs to withdraw cash from their accounts. Bank employees, who streamed in to work for the first time in days, took lists of names to deal with inquiries and try to prevent chaos.
"We have to have some order around here. People are anxious to get paid and pull money out. It has been almost two weeks and life is at a standstill," said Metwali Sha'ban, a volunteer making a list of customers to organise who would enter first.
The pound was trading at about 5.90 to the U.S. dollar, only a bit lower than the 5.8550 before banks were closed as unrest swept this city on the banks of the Nile.
"I am confident that the market will be orderly," Central Bank Governor Farouk el-Okdah said late on Saturday before the currency market reopened.
The central bank stated it has sufficient reserves to deal with any outflows, which could hit $8 billion in two weeks, the governor said, adding that Egypt had handled bigger outflows. The stock exchange is still closed because of the uncertainty.
With signs of economic life starting to resume and political concessions from the government to the reform movement, some believe opposition to Mubarak's rule could start to melt away.
There are already splits in the opposition movement, with some leaders backing off their refusal to talk to the government until Mubarak and the old guard leave.
"Until now there is no agreement among the various parties and factions on one scenario," Mohammed Morsy, a senior member of the Muslim Brotherhood, told Reuters.
Youths who used the Internet to mobilise mass support for change remain undeterred. ElBaradei said there was a "hard core" who would refuse to give up their protest in Tahrir Square and other places around Egypt until Mubarak steps down.
"It might not be every day but what I hear is that they might stage demonstrations every other day," he said. "The difference is that it would become more angry and more vicious. And I do not want to see it turning from a beautiful, peaceful revolution into a bloody revolution."
Comments
Comments are closed for this article.