No to Beautifying the Face of a Regime that Oppresses the People and the Environment

Statement by the Revolutionary Socialists

Preparations are underway for the 27th United Nations Climate Change Conference, set to begin tomorrow, Sunday, in Egypt. The event is marked by intense security measures, turning Sharm El-Sheikh into a military fortress for weeks to prevent any protest activities typically seen at previous climate conferences. According to Egyptian officials, around 40,000 participants, including approximately 90 heads of state, are expected to attend.

The Egyptian regime has been keen to host the conference. In addition to aiming to restore the confidence of governments, international institutions, and significant investors in a country known for its human rights violations and iron-fisted military rule, the conference also presents an opportunity to demand more international funding to support the transition to environmentally friendly policies. The regime in Egypt anticipates receiving billions of dollars in funding for various green projects. However, “Carbon Market Watch,” an independent research group focused on climate change, warns that “a significant portion of the funding reaching Egypt is at risk of fueling corruption in the absence of strict conditions. Foreign funds typically end up supporting the regime only.”

Nevertheless, these opportunities presented by the conference, among other reasons, prompted the regime to launch its initiative for a (superficial and sham) national dialogue, releasing hundreds of political detainees merely to beautify the regime’s image in front of the international governments and organizations participating in the conference and to avoid criticism of its human rights record (for example, Belgian Environment Minister Zuhal Demir announced last month that she would not attend the conference due to the human rights situation in Egypt).

This image that the Egyptian regime is trying to project is nothing but a false mask. The public sphere remains closed, freedom of the press and expression are still restricted, and tens of thousands of detainees remain in prisons. Moreover, the regime is conducting a fierce campaign of arrests from the streets and homes, random stops, and searches in Cairo and several governorates, coinciding with calls for protests during the conference. As mentioned in a previous statement, the number of new detainees in the last six months has surpassed the number already released, according to various human rights organizations.

The Egyptian regime attempts to beautify its ugly authoritarian face while oppressing the people solely to gain the trust of governments, institutions, and investors internationally. Equally, the regime is greenwashing its image with promotional campaigns and media propaganda advocating for environmental and climate protection while working tirelessly to destroy them.

In its environmental campaigns, such as “Get Ready for Green,” the regime portrays the enormous damage and imminent threat to the environment and climate as acts of major industrial countries. This is mainly true, as these countries, with their giant polluting companies, have no intention of sacrificing their profits or even just slowing them down for the sake of the environment. However, the regime is also not innocent of environmental destruction in Egypt.

Since 2016, the regime has doubled its oil and gas production, the main culprits of climate and environmental damage, so much so that fossil fuels now account for 95% of Egypt’s energy needs. Egypt consumes a third of the methane consumed in Africa. At the same time, its emissions have increased by 140% since 1990, clearly insisting on harming the climate, in stark contrast to the current media frenzy on Egyptian TV channels about renewable energy sources.

While pollution levels in Cairo are ten times the safe limit, the regime continues to remove public parks and green spaces. A prime example is the regime’s attempts to seize Al-Warraq Island (1,850 acres, with more than half of its area occupied by agricultural land) to replace it with real estate investments, depriving Cairo of a vital lung. The Sisi regime is public enemy number one when it comes to the environment in Egypt.

We stand against the regime’s oppressive and authoritarian policies and also against its policies of environmental destruction for the sake of investment and profit.