In the Wake of Recent Coup Police in Egypt Are Seen as the Good Guys

Reason

Amid all of the political uncertainty that has followed last week's coup in Egypt the police are being viewed as heroes by those who supported former President Morsi being removed from power. In 2011, the police were widely criticized for their abusive reputation and their crackdown on anti-Mubarak demonstrators. Now, it seems that past police abuses are being forgotten while transitional authorities try to address instability.

From NPR:

Egypt has undergone profound change over the past 10 days. The military has overthrown an elected Islamist president and is back in control of the country amid deadly clashes between Islamists and the state security forces.

There's been another change as well: Egypt's police, long reviled by much of the population, have become unlikely heroes for opponents of the now-ousted President Mohammed Morsi.

During Egypt's 2011 uprising, revolutionaries fought pitched street battles with the police force, the protector of the autocratic regime.

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Comments

[Fist of Etiquette]

Egypt's police, long reviled by much of the population, have become unlikely heroes...

It's a trap.

[Juice]

The police were part of the old regime. For as long as any cop has been alive they arrested and persecuted the outlawed Muslim Brotherhood. So is it any surprise when they don't follow orders coming from Morsi or the Muslim Brotherhood? And this makes them heroes?

[wareagle]

how does opposing the MB make them bad guys? A better question might be why this administration was adamant that "mubarak must go" when anyone paying any attention knew that the Brotherhood was the only group in position to win an election.

[tarran]

The methods the police used included such charming things as arresting and raping women who were related to people they were hunting.

Russian peasants initially welcomed the Einsatzgruppen with open arms as "good guys" too. It turned out to be a bit of a miscalculation.

[Juice]

I didn't say that opposing the MB makes them bad, per se. It doesn't make them good guys, though.

[wareagle]

fair enough

[Killazontherun]

Reported from NPR, and you believed it?

[Almanian!]

All things considered, yes

[Swiss Servator - past LTC(ret)]

I just...you...I mean...

*Considers, then begins slow applause*

[Killazontherun]

Good one, but I listened to NPR a few weeks back, and counted off the factual errors as the broadcast droned on, after ten minutes and getting to the twenty seventh one, I decided I had better things to do and switched it off.