Who is Hosni Mubarak?

Born May 4th, 1928, Hosni Mubarak was a career military officer before entering politics. He got his start at the Egyptian Military Academy and the Air Force Academy and rose quickly through the ranks of the Egyptian Air Force before becoming Commander of the Air Force and Minister of Defense in 1972. President Anwar El-Sadat named him Vice President in 1975. He became Egypt’s fourth president in 1981 after the assassination of President Sadat, also assuming duties of Chairman of the ruling National Democratic Party. Mubarak’s government has been a key strategic ally to the United States throughout much of his tenure, receiving billions of dollars in foreign aid yearly and supporting the fight against Al Qaeda and Israel’s blockade of Gaza.

What sparked the Egyptian uprising?

Egypt has been ruled under a state of Emergency Law since 1958, with the exception of a brief period in the 1980’s, through which the government has suspended constitutional rights, maintained censorship, and extended police powers. Mubarak’s government has long faced harsh criticism from human rights groups worldwide for his actions against democracy activists and dissenters. Human Rights Watch has accused his government of torture, detention, and mass arrests. The country ranks 138th in the world in The Economist’s Democracy Index.

In the past year the cost of living has risen along with unemployment rates. Public anger has been directed at Mubarak, who has been accused of mass corruption and nepotism. A younger generation of pro-democracy activists, many of whom were born after Mubarak took power, have for the past several years utilized social networking websites such as Facebook and Twitter to organize actions of dissent anonymously. Inspired by the revolution in Tunisia in mid-January, where a popular uprising ousted leader Zine El Abidine Ben Ali, young activists called for January 25th to be a Day of Anger towards the government. Mass demonstrations were met with an unusually lax response from security forces. Police cracked down further throughout the week as the marches continued. Protests occurred Wednesday and Thursday, and the government responded by cutting internet access nationwide. On Thursday, the Associated Press released raw video of an activist being shot by police. Protesters geared up for a climax in demonstrations to occur on Friday, January 28, 2011.

What is Tunisia’s Jasmine Revolution and how did it inspire Egypt?

President Zine El Abidine Ben Ali took office in 1987, when doctors declared former president Habib Bourguiba medically incapacitated and Ben Ali had him constitutionally impeached. His government, which was supported by the US and France, was widely criticized for its corruption and human rights abuses.

On December 7, 2010, Wikileaks published US embassy cables that discussed the corruption and nepotism of Ben Ali's regime. On December 17, a 26-year-old Tunisian street vendor named Mohamed Bouazizi set himself on fire to protest years of harassment and humiliation at the hands of corrupt local police officers; he died on January 4. His self-immolation sparked protests in the city of Sidi Bouzid; they escalated into rioting when police shot tear gas into the crowd. Since Tunisian media offered little coverage of the events, video of the police's severe treatment of the young protesters was disseminated on social media sites such as Facebook and YouTube, fueling the outrage against the government.

In the following weeks, violent clashes between police and protestors erupted across the country. The movement spread from the working classes to the upper classes; on January 6, 2011, 95 percent of Tunisia's lawyers went on strike after the police used excessive force at public gatherings by the Tunisian National Lawyers Order. Tunisian teachers soon joined them, and on January 10th, the government announced the indefinite closure of all schools and universities.

Ben Ali at first condemned the protests and threatened punishment for the perpetrators and the foreign news sites that he claimed led them on. However, on December 29, he reshuffled his cabinet then promised the creation of 300,000 new jobs. Just two weeks later Ben Ali dissolved the government and declared a state of emergency. He then fled the country, flying to Saudi Arabia after France denied him landing privileges. Egyptian citizens were buoyed by this turn of events, and took to the streets soon thereafter. 

Deeper Background

This conflict is more complicated than the people versus the State. The army is a revered institution in Egypt, and remains well respected despite the vitriol expressed towards Mubarak’s government. Police and security forces have been responsible for maintaining day-to-day order in the country and lack the public support that the army enjoys. Al Jazeera English reported this morning a woman yelling, “We have been waiting for the army to come save us from the police.” Various reports tell of tanks entering the streets to the cheers of protestors, with soldiers waving Egyptian flags. Al Jazeera English tweeted that there are “Unconfirmed reports that that army and the police are clashing.” Rowya Rageh of Al Jazeera English reported that protesters welcomed army tanks in the port city of Alexandria.

The protests are without a visible leader or leading group, and consciously so. Organizers decided not to associate the demonstrations with any specific group or person in order to make the point that the Egyptian people were standing as one. Despite this, there has been much talk of Mohamed ElBaradei assuming leadership of a possible transition government, should Mubarak step down. ElBaradei was the Director General of the International Atomic Energy Agency, the United Nations organization that he jointly won the Nobel Peace Prize with in 2005. He has been a staunch supporter of democracy in Egypt for many years. ElBaradei returned to Cairo from Vienna on Thursday night, stating that, despite the risks, “I will be with the people today.” Reports surfaced today that ElBaradei had been detained and put under house arrest. Independent journalist Jeremy Scahill tweeted on Friday that, “ElBaradei definitely seems the West’s successor of choice, but is not particularly popular or well known in much of Egypt.”

In Cairo, the protests have been centered around the Sixth of October bridge, known as the “spinal cord” of Cairo, and Tahrir Square, translated to “Liberation” Square. Friday’s protests began as morning prayers ended and people leaving Cairo’s largest mosque in the downtown area were met with tear gas and excessive force from police. Around the nation, Alexandria and Suez have also been hotbeds of unrest.

Bianca Ceralvo contributed to this report

Residents of Rio de Janeiro’s favelas (slums) are suffocated daily under the triple weight of poverty, drug cartel violence, and police oppression. In a culture and society as vibrant as Brazil’s, this pressure pushes against the surface with little outlet, especially for the youth. Schools are underfunded, home life is rocky for most, and getting food on the table is never a sure thing. More often than not, kids drift towards the most readily accessible example of people who have escaped poverty: the drug runners and gangbangers. Positive role models are few and far between in a sea of rickety shacks and makeshift abodes. In 1993 in the midst of the Vigário Geral favela, however, a seed was planted in the minds of a few brave individuals-- a seed that would grow into an idea and a way of life that gave hope and provided direction to a generation of favela youth.

Anderson Sá was a typical young kid in 1993, in the process of being sucked into drug trafficking like so many others. That year a tragedy took place so devastating that it would be forever burned into the memories of favela residents. The Rio police, enraged by the killings of four officers, stormed Vigário Geral with guns blazing, looking to kill anyone in sight. When the shooting finally stopped and the dust cleared, 21 innocent people were dead. Anderson Sá’s brother was among them. This had an immediate and life-changing impact on Anderson. His mother worried that the killing would push him further into the world of drugs, but it had the opposite effect. Right then and there, he set out to find a way to stop the endless cycle of violence that his community was trapped in.

Anderson’s thinking soon led to the realization that the only way to end the culture of violence was to substitute it with a more positive cultural model. The first manifestation of this was the Grupo Cultural AfroReggae, a cultural group focused on music and black culture that Anderson started along with his friend José Junior and others. It published the AfroReggae Noticias, a newspaper for youth that focused on hip-hop, reggae and soul music. There was such a need for a positive cultural message that their first community center, the Núcleo Comunitario de Cultura, was opened. It filled a void in people’s lives, and all of a sudden kids in the favela had a place to go to learn music, capoeira, theater and dance. They opened the Vigário Legal AfroReggae Cultural Center in 1997, a larger facility in the community. The musical aspect was especially appealing, and from there Banda AfroReggae was formed. It soon became a huge hit in the favela, thanks to some donated percussion and sound equipment. The band and the movement steadily gained national popularity, thanks in part to the charismatic face of the organization, Anderson Sá.

Several years later, budding filmmaker Jeff Zimbalist was at home in Brooklyn when he received a call from his friend Matt Mochary, who was on the phone from a favela in Rio. Jeff and Matt had been looking to make a movie focused on an example of a successful and innovative community in Latin America, and Matt had found the perfect story. He wanted to examine the community built around AfroReggae and how other communities and favelas throughout Rio were confronting violence. Jeff was sold on the idea, to the point that he quit his job and met Matt in one of Rio’s most violent favelas, Vigário Geral. The scope of the movie steadily shrank as the process progressed and it became more and more apparent that Anderson Sá was a natural vehicle through which to tell the story of poverty, violence, and AfroReggae.

Jeff and Matt spent three years filming in the favela, making many trips back and forth between Rio de Janeiro and New York and becoming close friends with the leaders of AfroReggae. The film Favela Rising emerged naturally from their experiences. It was one of the first documentaries to shine a light on the violence that grips the everyday lives of poor people in Brazil. It shows how courage in the face of fear and intimidation can change the futures and destinies of kids whose outlooks were once hopeless. It illustrates the power that music has to transform society.

Join us this Sunday at 11pm EST/8pm PST for the DOC-DEBUT premiere of the groundbreaking documentary Favela Rising.

There are a select few public figures alive in the world today that have transcended fame and entered the realm of living legend. It is difficult to separate person and myth when they have reached this level, and rare to get a glimpse into who they really are. The Dalai Lama is one such figure, someone who has been in the public spotlight for the majority of his life, a person who is seen as a holy symbol by his people and revered the world over for his courage and outspokenness against oppression. Yet, behind the public persona there is a man who few outside of his inner circle have seen. Filmmaker Josh Dugdale gained unprecedented access to His Holiness for a three-year period and was able to elucidate not only the Dalai Lama’s true political intentions, but also his humor, joy, pain, and humanity as well. The result is Sunday’s DOC-DEBUT premiere of The Unwinking Gaze.

Throughout his lifetime, the Dalai Lama has struck a tenuous balance between spiritual leader and political activist. It is an amazing feat for a person to be able to carry such gravitas spiritually while also being a savvy political operator and inspirational leader. And to think that this person was discovered as the reincarnation of the Dalai Lama in a far flung village at the age of two makes one wonder whether the Tibetan leaders who found him really did come upon the true reincarnation. One of the most intriguing mysteries surrounding this man is whether he has become the individual he is through teaching, meditation, and life experience, or whether divine lineage through past lives really do account for his extraordinary character.

Josh Dugdale’s film gets closer to this answer than any movie that has come before: there is no clear explanation beyond the Dalai Lama’s humility and humanity. Dugdale follows him from the headquarters of the Tibetan government in exile in Dharamsala, India, to Canada, England, and the United States. The film shows the Dalai Lama as an oasis of composure in a sea of chaos. He is surrounded by Chinese misinformation techniques, radical Tibetans who are impatient at his approach, opportunistic Western politicians, and fiery emotions on all sides. Dugdale is able to get inside the calm eye of the storm and see what makes the Dalai Lama tick. His Holiness is indefatigable despite his frenzied calendar and advancing age. He remains patient in pursuit of a solution despite his people’s growing anxiety. He is aware of Western countries’ attempts to use him as a pawn in their power plays against increasing Chinese influence, and like a skilled chess player, strategically sees several moves ahead.

On his motivations for making The Unwinking Gaze, director Dugdale says, “I had seen a number of films on the Dalai Lama, but I felt they didn’t show who he really was. It seemed that he was being wheeled out for the cameras, for stage-managed set pieces.” This film strips away the veneer and gets at the man behind the curtain. It presents fair critiques from both sides, and the measured responses of the Dalai Lama. In an age of fiery political rhetoric and few admirable leaders, it is refreshing to see someone confront maddening politics with reason. It is even more refreshing to see the internal struggles that the Dalai Lama confronts, just like any other human being has to. Tune in this Sunday at 11pm EST/8pm PST and meet the real Dalai Lama for the first time.

With all the challenges confronting the world as a new year begins, it is more important than ever to be engaged with and connected to every part of the globe. That’s why it is our New Year’s resolution at Link TV to bring you even more fresh voices, independent views, and inspirational stories from different countries and cultures.

We’re kicking off the New Year with the Link TV's groundbreaking documentary series Doc-Debut, showcasing a new international film every Sunday evening. Our first premiere is Niko von Glasow’s powerful film NoBody’s Perfect, a look at the physical and psychological barriers facing twelve people born disabled due to Thalidomide poisoning. The filmmaker, also affected by Thalidomide, brings these strangers together to confront their disabilities through a nude photo shoot.

Tune in next week for The Unwinking Gaze, a unique behind-the-scenes look at the daily life of the Dalai Lama. Filmmaker Josh Dugdale had unprecedented access to His Holiness for a three-year period, showing what this extraordinary figure is like in his private life and the grueling work that goes into taking on a world power on behalf of an entire people.

Next, travel halfway around the world to the slums of Rio de Janeiro in Favela Rising. Former drug trafficker Anderson Sá has sparked a social revolution through music, helping kids in one of the most dangerous places on the planet have a positive outlet and alternative to gang life. Filmmaker Jeff Zimbalist (The Two Escobars) provides a visually stunning and musically dynamic documentation of Anderson's life and impact in the favela.

While Anderson Sá was transforming his community through music in Brazil, José Antonio Abreu was doing the very same thing with his youth orchestra in Caracas, Venezuela. Starting January 12th, Link TV will be broadcasting his inspirational speech as part of our ongoing TED Talks series. We are proud to be a part of the TED Open TV Project, helping spread these important ideas from these innovative talks and charismatic speakers.

The powerful Dollar a Day series also continues in January with the premiere of The New Silver. This six-part international series documents what life is like for the billions of people living in poverty around the world. The New Silver chronicles the transitioning economy of Bolivia and how access to capital changes lives and nations.

On a lighter note, 2011 continues on with the new season of Arab Labor. The hit Israeli sitcom, dubbed “The Seinfeld of the Middle East,” pokes fun at the cultural similarities and differences between Palestinians and Jews and looks at life in the holy land from a different angle.

Algeria: Quitting Terrorism, from the United Nations’ 21st Century series, is another documentary bringing a fresh perspective on an age-old issue. Much has gone into figuring out why people turn to terrorism, but this film takes a unique look at why an Algerian man has given up violence.

That, in a nutshell, is what Link TV is all about: challenging established assumptions about how the world works by exploring different viewpoints and perspectives. We hope you join us throughout 2011 for many more groundbreaking shows, insightful stories and brand-new programs to come.