tag:theconversation.com,2011:/institutions/cairo-university-1690/articlesCairo University2021-08-09T17:49:54Ztag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1652062021-08-09T17:49:54Z2021-08-09T17:49:54ZQuand les expériences de réalité virtuelle donnent envie de voyager…<p>Si on en croit l’Organisation mondiale du tourisme, <a href="https://www.banquedesterritoires.fr/tourisme-de-masse-manne-ou-calamite">95 % des touristes mondiaux se concentrent sur 5 % des terres</a> émergées. Cela n’est pas sans <a href="https://www.e-unwto.org/doi/pdf/10.18111/9789284422197">risques</a> : saturation, pression sur les infrastructures, cohabitation difficile avec les habitants…</p>
<p>A contrario, de nombreux territoires restent par ailleurs privés des bienfaits du tourisme. Ceux-ci semblent toutefois profiter de la crise sanitaire. Depuis l’apparition du nouveau coronavirus, les voyageurs ont privilégié le tourisme domestique et des régions peu fréquentées. Recherche d’expériences authentiques en pleine nature et activités en plein air, ont été plébiscitées à l’été 2020.</p>
<p>En France, par exemple, le département de l’Aveyron a enregistré une <a href="https://france3-regions.francetvinfo.fr/occitanie/aveyron/rodez/aveyron-succes-du-tourisme-vert-pleine-crise-du-coronavirus-1865416.html">hausse de 14 %</a> de la fréquentation touristique au mois de juillet, par rapport à 2019 ; dans la Creuse, la fréquentation des familles françaises a <a href="https://www.lamontagne.fr/bordeaux-33000/actualites/le-covid-19-a-plombe-la-saison-touristique-en-limousin-comme-partout-en-nouvelle-aquitaine_13845746/">bondi de 23 %</a>.</p>
<p>Selon le <a href="https://wttc.org/Portals/0/Documents/Reports/2021/Global%20Economic%20Impact%20and%20Trends%202021.pdf">World Travel & Tourism Council</a>, ces tendances persisteront à court terme. Ce nouvel intérêt des touristes ouvre des perspectives pour des territoires jusqu’à présent peu fréquentés. À ce sujet, nos travaux suggèrent que les nouvelles technologies peuvent leur permettre de doper leur attractivité.</p>
<h2>Des monuments, des paysages, mais une faible fréquentation…</h2>
<p>Notre <a href="https://tel.archives-ouvertes.fr/tel-02507519/">étude</a> a porté sur la ville égyptienne de <a href="http://egypt.travel/fr/regions/nile-valley/el-menya">El Minya</a> qui occupe la troisième place, après <a href="https://egymonuments.gov.eg/en/world-heritage/ancient-thebes-and-its-necropolis">Louxor</a> et <a href="https://egymonuments.gov.eg/archaeological-sites/giza-plateau/">El Giza</a>, au classement des endroits riches en monuments. On y trouve des édifices pharaoniques, gréco-romains, islamiques mais aussi coptes ainsi que des musées et des châteaux. Les visiteurs profitent également de l’alternance de paysages magnifiques entre sites urbains, terres agricoles et désert, que l’on peut parcourir en bateau sur le Nil.</p>
<p>Malgré ces atouts, la publicité en Égypte et à l’étranger sur le gouvernorat de El Minya reste inexistante et l’endroit demeure peu fréquenté.</p>
<p>Notre enquête quantitative a été menée en 2019 auprès de 341 personnes de nationalité égyptienne, afin d’identifier les conditions d’efficacité du fait de vivre une expérience virtuelle de l’endroit pour décider les individus à s’y rendre.</p>
<figure class="align-right zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/413762/original/file-20210729-25-1d885qm.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/413762/original/file-20210729-25-1d885qm.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/413762/original/file-20210729-25-1d885qm.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=362&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/413762/original/file-20210729-25-1d885qm.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=362&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/413762/original/file-20210729-25-1d885qm.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=362&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/413762/original/file-20210729-25-1d885qm.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=455&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/413762/original/file-20210729-25-1d885qm.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=455&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/413762/original/file-20210729-25-1d885qm.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=455&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Certains enquêtés ont eu affaire à ce site Internet.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">capture d’écran</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Chacun des répondants a visité une des six versions des sites Internet créés pour El Minya. Celles-ci se différenciaient uniquement par leur degré d’interactivité et de vivacité. Des <a href="https://phdmontvr-4.jimdofree.com/">photos</a> ou des vidéos ou des <a href="https://phdmontvr-1.jimdofree.com/">visites virtuelles en 3D</a> pour les attractions touristiques étaient parfois incluses.</p>
<h2>Vivre l’ambiance</h2>
<p>Il en ressort que les touristes semblent apprécier vivre une expérience virtuelle avant de choisir une destination.</p>
<p>Certes, l’expérience peut varier d’un individu à l’autre : les caractéristiques personnelles (par exemple la préférence pour les informations visuelles, l’implication envers le voyage, la familiarité avec la technologie…) influencent l’intensité de cette expérience. Une tendance se dégage cependant.</p>
<p>En créant une expérience de « téléprésence », vidéos interactives et visites virtuelles en 3D déclenchent des états affectifs positifs, influencent positivement la valeur perçue de la destination et accroissent l’intention de visite. À l’inverse, les sites qui ne présentent que des photos en 2D ont suscité peu d’envie de visiter la destination.</p>
<p>Pour aller plus loin, des entretiens semi-directifs ont permis d’identifier les raisons de la préférence pour les visites virtuelles. Différents avantages ont été mis en avant par les enquêtés :</p>
<blockquote>
<p>« Avec la 3D, vous voyagez sur le site sans bouger de chez vous. »</p>
<p>« La 3D nous montre tout ce qui arrivera sur place. Grâce à la 3D, les choses sont plus concrètes, comme si elles étaient réelles. »</p>
<p>« Les visites en 3D sont très utiles, car on peut s’imaginer en pratiquant les activités disponibles. Si je me sens heureux pendant cette expérience en ligne, bien sûr je visiterai cette destination. »</p>
</blockquote>
<p>Faire ressentir les sensations d’une balade en pleine nature, sur mer, en milieu rural ou vivre l’ambiance de la production de produits locaux grâce à des vidéos à 360° ou des visites en 3D facilitent ainsi la prise de décision.</p>
<h2>Nouvelles perspectives</h2>
<p>L’utilisation de tels outils se développe et selon un <a href="https://www.bloomberg.com/press-releases/2020-02-13/augmented-reality-and-virtual-reality-ar-vr-market-size-is-expected-to-reach-usd-571-42-billion-by-2025-valuates-reports">rapport de Bloomberg</a>, publié le 13 février 2020, les produits de réalité virtuelle et de réalité augmentée représenteront d’ici 2025 un marché mondial de plus de 571,42 milliards de dollars.</p>
<p>Même s’il est difficile de prédire les comportements des touristes après la crise sanitaire, il semble indispensable pour le secteur de capitaliser sur l’évolution récente des comportements et d’aller dans le sens d’une utilisation croissante du numérique.</p>
<p>Les ventes d’outils de réalité virtuelle s’avèrent actuellement en hausse. Ils reflètent l’intérêt croissant des touristes mondiaux pour les expériences immersives et ouvrent de nouvelles perspectives aux destinations touristiques peu fréquentées.</p>
<p>De nombreux pays ont désormais mis en place des politiques et des plans visant à développer le <a href="https://www.unwto.org/fr/le-tourisme-dans-le-programme-2030">tourisme durable à l’horizon 2030</a>. Le <a href="https://www.nationalgeographic.com/travel/article/undertourism-overtourism-sustainable-destinations">« sous-tourisme »</a> est même devenu une tactique suscitant un intérêt croissant des marketeurs. Il s’agit d’encourager les voyageurs lassés par les destinations bondées à choisir des destinations touristiques moins fréquentées comme alternative. Nos travaux montrent que la réalité virtuelle semble un moyen efficace pour parvenir à cette fin.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/165206/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Les auteurs ne travaillent pas, ne conseillent pas, ne possèdent pas de parts, ne reçoivent pas de fonds d'une organisation qui pourrait tirer profit de cet article, et n'ont déclaré aucune autre affiliation que leur organisme de recherche.</span></em></p>D’après une étude, pouvoir visiter virtuellement un endroit motive les touristes à prendre la décision de s’y rendre. Cela semble ouvrir des perspectives pour les territoires les moins visités.Yasmine Hashish, PHD- Lecturer at Faculty of Mass Communication, Cairo University, Cairo UniversityMarie-Christine Lichtlé, Professeur des Universités, Université de MontpellierLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1490102020-11-17T14:18:56Z2020-11-17T14:18:56ZNew coalition plans to tackle Africa’s growing burden of stroke<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/366986/original/file-20201102-17-sihvgd.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Ageing populations, changes in diet, physical inactivity and smoking are some of he drivers of strokes and heart disease. </span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">Getty Images</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>Africa is currently experiencing a changing pattern of diseases and deaths. The continent faces a double burden of infectious diseases and rapid escalation of non-communicable diseases such as stroke and heart disease. These conditions are <a href="https://www.who.int/data/gho/whs-2020-visual-summary">driven by factors</a> like ageing populations, changes in dietary habits, and rising rates of hypertension, physical inactivity, smoking, diabetes, raised cholesterol, alcohol abuse and obesity. </p>
<p>Stroke is a <a href="https://www.thelancet.com/journals/laneur/article/PIIS1474-4422(16)30073-4/fulltext?elsca1=etoc">leading cause</a> of disability, death, and dementia worldwide. As a region, Africa has some of the <a href="https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/29807146/">highest rates</a> of stroke. Around 23% of people in Africa are at risk of stroke at some point in their life. Fortunately, the vast majority of stroke risk factors are modifiable – and thus most strokes may be avoided.</p>
<p>A stroke is a serious medical condition affecting the blood supply to the brain. It is either caused by the blockage to an artery in the brain (ischaemic stroke) or the rupture of an artery in the brain (haemorrhagic stroke). If untreated, this deprives the brain of vital oxygen and nutrients, leading to injury to the brain.</p>
<p>A stroke often leads to the sudden onset of weakness involving the face, arm or leg, an inability to speak, difficulty walking or impaired vision. Strokes can cause death and irreversible disability. This can have huge economic losses and grave implications for the individual, family and society in terms of mental capital, productivity and socioeconomic progress.</p>
<p>We recently founded the <a href="https://www.world-stroke.org/news-and-blog/news/wso-congratulates-the-african-stroke-organization-on-the-occasion-of-its-inauguration">African Stroke Organisation</a>, a pan-African coalition that brings together stroke researchers, clinicians and other healthcare professionals. </p>
<p>Its role is to address the rising rates of stroke on the continent, as well as the <a href="https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/29807146/">high rates of death and disability</a> that can follow. An African organisation is needed because there are combinations of risk factors that are unique to this continent, particularly in the strength of their collective impact on the burden of stroke. A very good example of this is hypertension working in concert with diabetes and high levels of cholesterol in the blood. Research, education and policy responses need to focus on these factors singly and in combination. </p>
<h2>An African network for an African problem</h2>
<p>Most African states have a fraction of the resources available to most developed nations and thus are largely unable to follow established treatment <a href="https://www.who.int/bulletin/volumes/94/7/15-162610.pdf">guidelines</a> from the latter. Africa’s situation requires innovative thinking to make the most of its available resources. </p>
<p>Migration from rural to urban areas has led to an <a href="https://bmcpublichealth.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/1471-2458-11-801">epidemiological transition</a>.
There has also been a significant increase in a diet rich in processed foods which are high in salt, saturated fats and sugar. These lifestyle changes have led to an increase in risk factors such as people being overweight or obese. The WHO <a href="https://www.who.int/news-room/fact-sheets/detail/obesity-and-overweight">estimates</a> that the number of children younger than five who are overweight on the continent has increased by 24% since 2000. </p>
<p>Increased rates of smoking and higher levels of physical inactivity have added to the problem. Around <a href="https://www.who.int/news-room/fact-sheets/detail/tobacco">80%</a> of smokers in the world live in low-and-middle-income countries. Walking and cycling are key means of transportation. But this is <a href="https://apps.who.int/iris/bitstream/handle/10665/272722/9789241514187-eng.pdf">changing fast</a> in these countries, where people are switching to motorised transport. And <a href="https://bmcmedicine.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/s12916-020-1499-y">new research</a> has confirmed the effect of air pollution as a driver of cardiovascular disease. </p>
<p>This is particularly relevant to the occurrence of stroke in African nations where air pollution is rising due to indoor use of fossil fuels for cooking in rural areas and urban slums and outdoor particulate matter air pollution in growing urban areas. </p>
<p>Infections, most notably <a href="https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2015/12/151219144737.htm">HIV</a>, <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1201971209000101#:%7E:text=Summary,lateral%20medullary%20and%20cerebellar%20infarctions.">malaria</a> and <a href="https://www.ahajournals.org/doi/10.1161/STROKEAHA.109.567735#:%7E:text=We%20found%20that%206.0%25%20of,compared%20to%20the%20general%20population.">tuberculosis</a> – all prevalent on the continent – may also lead to increased rates of stroke. </p>
<p>Some infectious agents like the HIV-virus can damage the internal lining of small arteries to the brain and affect blood clotting processes. They predispose such blood vessels to forming clots. The drugs used for treating HIV can also heighten stroke risks.</p>
<p>Tackling the escalating burden of stroke on the continent requires prioritised, multipronged and inter-sectoral strategies. These must be tailored to the epidemiological, cultural, socioeconomic and lifestyle landscape in African countries. </p>
<h2>What can be done</h2>
<p>Fortunately, three factors may help to avoid a pandemic of stroke in African countries. </p>
<p>The first is that more than 90% of all strokes have modifiable risk factors. This means that with adequate healthcare policy and interventions such as detection, treatment and control of high blood pressure or high blood sugar, the large majority of strokes are preventable. Similarly, by getting the recommended amount of exercise each week, you will reduce your risk of having a stroke. Just 30 minutes of exercise five times a week can reduce your risk of stroke by 25%. Exercise plays an important role in reducing several stroke risk factors including high blood pressure, high blood sugar, high cholesterol levels, depression and stress. </p>
<p>Secondly, there have been improvements in stroke care that may reverse the effects of a stroke within hours of its onset. Failing this, stroke and rehabilitation units are powerful tools to reduce the rates of death and disability. </p>
<p>Thirdly, and most recently, there has been a shift in the approach towards stroke. This has been led by healthcare workers who have a can-do attitude to stroke, and are empowered and driven to make meaningful changes at their individual hospitals and on a national scale.</p>
<p>There is an urgent need for a framework that will bring together African stroke clinicians, researchers, other healthcare professionals and trainees, national and regional societies, and stroke support organisations. </p>
<p>With the aim of reducing the rapidly increasing burden of stroke in Africa, the African Stroke Organisation will focus on research, capacity building, development of stroke services, and collaboration with all <a href="https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/32026763/">stakeholders</a>. </p>
<p><em>Dr Patty Francis, president of the Neurological Association of South Africa (NASA), contributed to this article.</em></p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/149010/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Rufus Akinyemi receives funding from UK Royal Society/African Academy of Sciences and the National Institutes of Health, USA. He is the Founding Chair of the Steering Committee of the African Stroke Organization </span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Naeem Brey is currently a member of the South African Stroke Society (SASS), African Stroke Organisation (ASO), South African Angels Steering Committee, Neurology Association of South Africa (NASA).</span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Pamela Naidoo receives funding to run a stroke symptoms awareness campaign from Boehringer Ingelheim/Angels Initiative. This is only as an organization (NPO) not as an individual.</span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Alan Bryer, Foad Abd-Allah, Kathleen Bateman, Lawrence Tucker, and Mayowa Owolabi do not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and have disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>A stroke often leads to the sudden onset of weakness involving the face, arm or leg, an inability to speak, difficulty walking or impaired vision. Strokes can cause death and irreversible disability.Rufus Akinyemi, Deputy Director, Centre for Genomic and Precision Medicine, University of IbadanAlan Bryer, Professor, University of Cape TownFoad Abd-Allah, Professor of Neurology and Stroke Medicine , Cairo UniversityKathleen Bateman, Consultant Neurologist, University of Cape TownLawrence Tucker, Head: Division of Neurology, University of Cape TownMayowa Owolabi, Professor of Neurology and Dean, Faculty of Clinical Sciences, University of IbadanNaeem Brey, neurologist and a lecturer, Stellenbosch UniversityPamela Naidoo, Honorary Professor, University of Cape TownLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1156232019-08-28T12:57:43Z2019-08-28T12:57:43ZHumanitarian forensic scientists trace the missing, identify the dead and comfort the living<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/288560/original/file-20190819-123741-o58bes.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Red Cross forensic specialist Stephen Fonseca, right, searches for bodies in a field of ruined maize in Magaru, Mozambique, after Cyclone Idai, April 4, 2019. </span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="http://www.apimages.com/metadata/Index/Mozambique-Cyclone-Searching-for-the-Dead/df28c0f7584f4ef09f8d8a02c38975f4/4/0">AP Photo/Tsvangirayi Mukwazhi</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>The word “forensic” is typically associated with crimes and legal disputes. <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/topics/medicine-and-dentistry/forensic-medicine">Forensic medicine</a>, for example, applies medical knowledge to establish the causes of injury or death. </p>
<p>But forensic science can have a <a href="https://www.icrc.org/en/document/forensic-science-and-humanitarian-action#.VL_PRCinGm8">humanitarian role</a>, too. Working under international humanitarian law rather than local or federal criminal systems, these forensic experts help ensure the proper identification and respectful handling of people who die during war, natural disaster and <a href="https://migrationdataportal.org/themes/migrant-deaths-and-disappearances">migration</a>, preventing them from becoming missing persons. </p>
<p>We are forensic scientists who have <a href="https://theconversation.com/how-dental-records-will-help-identify-bodies-from-mh17-29535">studied</a> and <a href="https://forensic.meetinghand.com/en/">organized</a> international conferences about the forensic work required at conflict zones and natural disaster sites. And we’d like to introduce the world to this <a href="https://www.icrc.org/en/document/forensic-science-and-humanitarian-action#.VL_PRCinGm8">emerging profession</a>, which is expanding across the globe.</p>
<h2>Natural disasters</h2>
<p>Interpol, the international police agency, publishes global standards for <a href="https://www.interpol.int/en/How-we-work/Forensics/Disaster-Victim-Identification-DVI">appropriately identifying and handling the dead</a> after major disasters. But achieving those standards may be beyond local authorities’ abilities when the death toll is very high and simply finding and identifying casualties presents a challenge. </p>
<p>Starting in 2004, the International Committee of the Red Cross developed the concept of “<a href="https://www.icrc.org/en/document/worlds-first-international-centre-humanitarian-forensics-launched-india">humanitarian forensic action</a>” to ensure that those who die in war, disaster and other complex emergencies are <a href="https://www.who.int/hac/techguidance/management-of-dead-bodies/en/">treated respectfully and with dignity</a> and don’t become missing persons.</p>
<p>The Red Cross’ forensic humanitarians work closely with local authorities worldwide, as well as train, brief and supervise other aid workers, to ensure the proper and dignified management of the dead while the laborious process of identification is underway. </p>
<p>Its experts were on hand after Mozambique’s deadly 2019 typhoon in which over 1,000 people died. They were there after Haiti’s <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2010/01/13/world/americas/13haiti.html">2010 earthquake</a>, which killed an estimated 230,000, and <a href="https://theconversation.com/same-problems-that-dogged-tsunami-response-bedevil-humanitarian-aid-today-35781">Super Typhoon Haiyan</a>, which devastated the Philippines in 2013. </p>
<h2>Conflict</h2>
<p>Humanitarian forensic experts also help factions in armed conflicts fulfill their international obligations towards the dead in battle. </p>
<p>The <a href="http://www.weaponslaw.org/instruments/1949-geneva-conventions">1949 Geneva Convention</a> and subsequent agreements require that the dead are searched for, collected, documented, identified and disposed of in a dignified manner, ideally by returning the remains to bereaved families. </p>
<p>Decades after Argentina and the United Kingdom went to war over the Falkland Islands, which are known as the Islas Malvinas in Argentina, the two countries <a href="https://www.icrc.org/en/document/falklandmalvinas-islands-icrc-presents-argentina-and-united-kingdom-results-humanitarian">agreed</a> in 2016 to invite the Red Cross to exhume 122 unnamed soldiers buried in the Darwin military cemetery on the islands in what became a model of humanitarian forensic action. </p>
<p>Using a variety of forensic disciplines – such as anthropology, archaeology, pathology, dental testing and DNA analysis – the humanitarian forensic experts successfully identified nearly all of the 122 unknown soldiers. </p>
<p>The exhumed Falklands War dead were later reburied in new coffins in marked graves, and the cemetery restored to its original shape. In March 2018, after 35 years of suffering and uncertainty, more than 200 family members <a href="https://www.nodal.am/2018/03/familiares-combatientes-malvinas-visitaron-tumbas-la-isla-luego-del-reconocimiento-cuerpos/">visited</a> the cemetery to pay their final respects. </p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/288559/original/file-20190819-123741-9o5t63.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/288559/original/file-20190819-123741-9o5t63.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/288559/original/file-20190819-123741-9o5t63.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/288559/original/file-20190819-123741-9o5t63.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/288559/original/file-20190819-123741-9o5t63.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/288559/original/file-20190819-123741-9o5t63.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/288559/original/file-20190819-123741-9o5t63.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/288559/original/file-20190819-123741-9o5t63.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">The relative of an Argentine soldier killed in the Falklands War with Britain grieves at the Darwin Military Cemetery on Falkland Islands (Islas Malvinas), March 26, 2018.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="http://www.apimages.com/metadata/Index/Argentina-Britain-Falklands/29c378fa525e480283e622f1cd46568a/3/0">AP Photo/Caiti Beattie</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>Humanitarians in danger</h2>
<p>In conflict zones where militants are engaged in battle against their own governments, the official rules of war may not apply. </p>
<p>In such places, the job of the humanitarian forensic expert involves negotiating the humane treatment of dead bodies, the return of human remains to the families and the honorable disposal of bodies according to the rites of their religion or faith. </p>
<p>This can be dangerous. </p>
<p>In 2007, the Red Cross’ humanitarian forensic team was asked to help in the recovery of the bodies of 11 legislators who had been <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/world/2002/apr/12/colombia.martinhodgson">abducted by the FARC</a>, a Colombian guerrilla movement, five years before and had <a href="https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-2007-sep-10-fg-colombia10-story.html">recently died</a> under contested circumstances. </p>
<p>The guerrillas said the hostages died in a botched rescue operation by government forces, while the government <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2007/06/29/world/americas/29colombia.html">accused the guerrillas of executing them</a>. </p>
<p>After a lengthy negotiation, both sides agreed on a brief ceasefire while the Red Cross team collected the bodies. Locating the burial site of the bodies took days, according to <a href="https://www.icrc.org/en/author/dr-morris-tidball-binz-0">Dr. Morris Tidball-Binz</a>, a leading forensic expert with the International Committee of the Red Cross. </p>
<p>He and his colleagues walked for dozens of miles through the Colombian jungle, some of it defended with <a href="https://www.reuters.com/article/us-colombia-landmines/colombia-aims-to-rid-country-of-landmines-by-2021-govt-idUSKBN15T2FM">landmines</a>. </p>
<p>“At night, there were a couple of occasions when we heard explosions around, which indicated the fragility of the ceasefire,” Dr. Tidball-Binz <a href="https://www.icrc.org/en/download/file/84078/irrc_99_905_12.pdf">recalls</a>. </p>
<p>Humanitarian workers undertaking similar conflict-related identification of the dead have become targets of direct or indirect threats in <a href="https://www.icrc.org/en/international-review/article/using-forensic-science-care-dead-and-search-missing-conversation-dr">Argentina and Libya</a>. </p>
<h2>Missing persons and migration</h2>
<p>International humanitarian law includes another difficult-to-meet <a href="https://ihl-databases.icrc.org/customary-ihl/eng/docs/v1_rul_rule114">obligation</a>. Families are supposed to be informed about the fate and whereabouts of loved ones who go missing during <a href="https://www.hrw.org/world-report/2019/country-chapters/iraq">war</a> or <a href="http://www.laht.com/article.asp?ArticleId=2407515&CategoryId=12393">armed conflict</a>. </p>
<p>After gathering <a href="https://en.oxforddictionaries.com/definition/ante-mortem">all information possible</a> about the missing person based on the physical evidence available, they closely collaborate with family members to paint a more complete picture of the victims, using DNA, identifying marks and personal belongings to try to identify a missing person. </p>
<p>This is sensitive work. War survivors may be hesitant to speak about missing loved ones because they fear retaliation from the government or an armed faction. Yet family cooperation is essential to locating and identifying those missing in war.</p>
<p>Humanitarian forensic scientists have also played a fundamental role in Europe’s migrant crisis, which has claimed the lives of thousands who <a href="https://www.iom.int/news/mediterranean-migrant-arrivals-reach-4216-2019-deaths-reach-83">die or go missing in the Mediterranean Sea</a> attempting to flee Africa and the Middle East. </p>
<p>After a <a href="http://www.thenewhumanitarian.org/news/2016/10/10/egypt-boat-disaster-shines-light-new-migration-trend">boat packed with migrants</a> sank several miles off the coast of Rasheed, Egypt, in September 2016, for example, just 163 people were rescued. Thirty-three were found dead inside the boat and 168 people drowned. </p>
<p>Scientists from the Egyptian Forensic Medicine Authority were called to the scene to <a href="https://www.reuters.com/article/us-europe-migrants-egypt/boat-carrying-600-migrants-sinks-off-egypt-killing-at-least-43-idUSKCN11R1L0">identify the dead</a> and establish their cause of death.</p>
<p>Humanitarian forensic scientists don’t always succeed. Sometimes, their investigations reach a dead end. The fate of those missing remains a mystery.</p>
<p>In the best-case scenario, though, the difficult work of these humanitarian scientists brings closure to families so that they can start mourning their loss. </p>
<p>[ <em>You’re smart and curious about the world. So are The Conversation’s authors and editors.</em> <a href="https://theconversation.com/us/newsletters?utm_source=TCUS&utm_medium=inline-link&utm_campaign=newsletter-text&utm_content=youresmart">You can read us daily by subscribing to our newsletter</a>. ]</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/115623/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Dina Shokry is head of the Forensic Medicine Department at the Armed Forces College of Medicine, Egypt, and President of the Arab Union of Forensic Medicine and Toxicology. She was the President of the 10th International Conference on Forensic Medicine and Sciences, for which the International Committee of the Red Cross was one of the main conference sponsors.</span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Ahmad Samarji does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>Meet the unsung aid workers who put their lives on the line during war and natural disaster to make sure the dead are treated with respect – and that their grieving families get closure.Ahmad Samarji, Associate Professor of Forensic Science Education & STEM Education and the Assistant Dean of the College of Arts and Sciences, Phoenicia UniversityDina Shokry, Professor of Forensic Medicine, Cairo UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/675282016-11-07T07:41:11Z2016-11-07T07:41:11ZWhat a Hillary Clinton victory would mean for Egyptian women<p>Can a woman winning the White House change history for Egyptian women? Over the past year, I have been addressing this question with Egyptian women intellectuals in Cairo. </p>
<p>Before discussing women intellectual’s view of the US election, it is worth keeping in mind that only around <a href="https://elizabethbuckner.files.wordpress.com/2012/01/1757_buckner_final2.pdf">28% of Egyptians</a> go to university. So most of the women I talked to do not necessarily represent average Egyptians. </p>
<p>And for many such Egyptian women, the American presidential race and the gender of the coming president is not a big issue. The US will always be a distant, rich country that is trying to control our lives and represent itself as a dream to our youth. </p>
<p>When I tried to discuss the issue with a female clerk working in the Egyptian bureaucracy, she looked at me with a fading smile and said, “Do you really think they would allow her to become a president?” When I asked her who she meant by “they”, she simply said: “everyone”.</p>
<p>She added sarcastically, “It would be good to have a woman as American president, maybe she [will] decide after all to mind her own business and leave us alone.”</p>
<p>But for intellectuals in general and women intellectuals in particular, the idea of a woman president in the US has been subject to a great deal of discussion. </p>
<h2>A strong woman, but is she a feminist?</h2>
<p><a href="https://www.degruyter.com/downloadpdf/books/9783839400616/9783839400616-011/9783839400616-011.xml">Women activists and feminists</a> in Egypt are fully aware that there is a big difference between having a woman in the White House and having a feminist in the White House. </p>
<p>Based on number of interviews conducted with colleagues and activists, it seems that although Egyptian intellectuals see Hillary Clinton as a strong female candidate, they do not necessarily perceive her as a strong feminist. This belief is reflective of some views in the US, as American women <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2016/may/23/women-female-voters-us-election-hillary-clinton">have pointed out</a>. </p>
<p>Although <a href="http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/africaandindianocean/egypt/8967424/Hillary-Clinton-says-Egypt-is-failing-its-women.html">Clinton condemned</a> the violence and rape against women that <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/world/2013/jan/27/tahrir-square-sexual-assaults-reported">were reported </a> in Tahrir Square <a href="http://www.aljazeera.com/news/middleeast/2011/02/201121125158705862.html">during the Arab Spring</a>, she is still not perceived as a feminist when it comes to Egypt.</p>
<p>Some view her <a href="https://www.thecairoreview.com/essays/hillary-clintons-imperial-feminism/">political positions</a> as another way to undermine women in the region. For them, Clinton is a representative of neoliberal policies and institutions, which do not help the poor in the region, of whom women make up large percentage. </p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/144570/original/image-20161104-27911-19gs97o.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/144570/original/image-20161104-27911-19gs97o.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/144570/original/image-20161104-27911-19gs97o.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/144570/original/image-20161104-27911-19gs97o.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/144570/original/image-20161104-27911-19gs97o.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=502&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/144570/original/image-20161104-27911-19gs97o.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=502&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/144570/original/image-20161104-27911-19gs97o.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=502&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Women taking part of the Egyptian ‘revolution’ in Tahrir square, 2011.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/aljazeeraenglish/5452904725">Gigi Ibrahim/Flickr</a>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/">CC BY-SA</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>No doubt Clinton, and her team, have consistently opposed the sexist <a href="http://www.cbsnews.com/news/women-hear-sexism-and-bullying-in-donald-trumps-debate-remarks">comments</a> made by her opponent, Donald Trump. But her overall performance during the campaign means for many, she is simply another candidate of the <a href="https://www.ft.com/content/38aead1a-9614-11e6-a80e-bcd69f323a8b">establishment</a>. </p>
<p>In other words, her ascendancy to the presidency will not bring much change to existing levels of support for human rights and gender justice. Of course, on that level, Trump would bring any hope either. </p>
<p>Given the current context of the American-Egyptian relationship, <a href="http://www.egyptindependent.com/news/what-would-clinton-win-mean-egypt-us-relations">there is a tendency</a> to fear this status quo. </p>
<h2>Egypt’s critical position</h2>
<p>For the past five years, the Middle East has faced very serious challenges. Political stagnation and economic hardship led to the <a href="https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/ethics-and-international-affairs/article/the-arab-spring-two-years-on-reflections-on-dignity-democracy-and-devotion/6BC2A69053390A38AB73343F7A8AE930">Arab Spring</a>. </p>
<p>While <a href="http://carnegie-mec.org/2016/03/31/ar-pub-63176">Tunisia</a> seems to be doing relatively well on the road to democratisation, <a href="http://guides.library.cornell.edu/c.php?g=31688&p=200748">Egypt</a> has gone into <a href="http://calhoun.nps.edu/handle/10945/43920">reverse</a>. Syria and Libya are on the verge of collapse.</p>
<p>Egyptians, and women in particular, remember celebrating the cheerful statements made by President Barack Obama and his administration in the early months of the revolution in 2011. They also have in mind the more <a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2015/06/08/world/middleeast/obama-administration-criticizes-egypt-in-report-to-congress.html?_r=0">critical comments</a>
made against the current regime under president Al Sisi. </p>
<p>Nevertheless, women I met are fully aware that in both cases it was mainly paying lip service to “democracy” <a href="http://paperroom.ipsa.org/papers/paper_18897.pdf">without any real help</a> to push democratisation any further. </p>
<figure>
<iframe width="440" height="260" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/NEf4m_Co1uw?wmode=transparent&start=0" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen=""></iframe>
<figcaption><span class="caption">President Obama’s speech on ‘Egypt historical day’, 2011.</span></figcaption>
</figure>
<p>“We know and understand that the American administration is busy protecting their own interest in the region. And we know that this does not mean supporting the people, rather it means supporting stability,” a colleague said, in discussing the ability of the American administration to provide support for democratisation.</p>
<p>Would it make a difference, in this regard, to have a female president? Reading through the previous experience of Clinton during her time as secretary of state in <a href="http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/world/2016/07/27/fact-check-clintons-record-state-department-during-middle-east-chaos/87582276/">2009-2013</a> supports my friend’s conclusion. </p>
<p>During those difficult years, Clinton was more keen to secure stability than <a href="https://blogs.harvard.edu/mesh/2009/05/ditching-democracy-in-egypt/">promote democracy</a>. A few months ago, the Washington Post <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/hillary-clinton-was-right-on-egypt/2016/01/28/fe7fe922-c609-11e5-8965-0607e0e265ce_story.html?tid=a_inl">ran a piece</a> on Clinton’s evaluation of the demonstration in Tahrir square 2011. As Clinton herself wrote in her memoirs, she preferred a policy of encouraging President Hosni Mubarak to accept a gradual transition of power, rather than pushing him to resign – the demands of millions of Egyptians in Tahrir square and elsewhere in Egypt. The author of the Washington Post article argues that this was the right policy; millions of Egyptians would disagree.</p>
<p>“She is an integrated part of the institution and can’t break with the established rules neither on the domestic nor the international level”, a friend said when comparing her to her earlier Democratic challenger, Bernie Sanders, who was portrayed in Egypt as a fresh and different perspective on the American political scene. </p>
<h2>The lesser of two evils</h2>
<p>There is one important point in Clinton’s favour among Egyptian women. She becomes a much more favourable candidate when we consider that the other option is Donald Trump, with his endless ability to make new enemies every time he makes a public appearance. </p>
<p>I recently discussed the US presidential elections at an event with couple of female university professors. One of them made a very important comment about the shift in the race from the primaries to the final election campaign. </p>
<p>During the early stages, the question about the gender of the candidate was crucial. Many <a href="http://www.al-monitor.com/pulse/originals/2016/07/egypt-sisi-us-elections-clinton-trump-relations.html">observers in Egypt</a>, just like the clerk I spoke to earlier, believed that Clinton might not have a chance just because she is a woman. The popular belief was that a strong male candidate would have been a better option. Some thought that if the Democratic Party ended up with her as its candidate, this would mean the loss of the election.</p>
<p>Now, Clinton is the only person capable of stopping Trump. Supporting her in the election is no longer a choice based on gender sensitivity or a triumph of the feminist cause, rather it is a convenient choice between the lesser of two evils. </p>
<h2>Breaking taboos</h2>
<p>Clinton seems capable of winning <a href="http://www.reuters.com/statesofthenation/">the election</a>. If she does, Americans will be breaking another taboo about the presidency, having elected an African American president in 2008 and 2012, followed by a woman. </p>
<p>There is no doubt that in some ways, a woman in the White House will have a positive impact on young women around the world, even if she is not considered a feminist by all. A new window would open with her ruling one of the most powerful countries in modern times. Her success will empower and enhance women around the globe. The glass ceiling will not just be smashed in the United States, but in other countries worldwide. </p>
<p>Whether they were critical or supportive of Clinton, all my interviewees agreed that the coming decades are full of promises as much as challenges for women in the US, Egypt and the world.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/67528/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Amal Hamada does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>Can Hillary Clinton, as a woman president, make a difference to Egyptian women? Her former views on democratisation in Egypt leave doubt int the minds of local observers.Amal Hamada, Assistant Professor Political Sciences, Cairo UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/334232014-10-28T10:19:57Z2014-10-28T10:19:57ZViolent crackdown on students engulfs Egyptian universities<p>Egypt’s new academic year started in early October amid unprecedented repressive measures by the state against students. On October 11, the morning of the first day of university, police <a href="http://www.hrw.org/news/2014/10/14/egypt-release-arrested-university-students">carried out a massive wave of arrests</a> – mostly students taken from their homes as they were preparing for their first day of classes. More arrests followed the next morning. </p>
<p>The <a href="http://allafrica.com/stories/201410230276.html">number of students arrested</a>, allegedly belonging to a student movement called “<a href="http://www.dailynewsegypt.com/2014/10/19/sac-promise-student-uprising-due-increased-campus-security/">Students Against the Coup</a>”, is now <a href="http://www.dailynewsegypt.com/2014/10/26/students-stage-protests-violations/">more than 200</a> according to the civil society group, Association for Freedom of Thought and Expression. No charges have been pressed against the students, who are now being kept in custody pending trial. </p>
<p>The student movement has long had a political role in Egypt and played a <a href="http://books.google.co.uk/books?id=uFPoWgTLq0EC&pg=PA39&lpg=PA39&dq=egypt+student+movement+1930&source=bl&ots=UasZfXvUf0&sig=hmo2Bv0JapZALYQVL7lCohjXX3s&hl=en&sa=X&ei=kBlOVMjKEKHC7AaW7IDICw&ved=0CDAQ6AEwAg#v=onepage&q=egypt%20student%20movement%201930&f=false">vital part in the national struggle</a> against the British and against the corrupt monarchy during the 1930s and 1940s. Since independence in 1952 the student movement has continued to play a leading role in the struggle against repression and social injustice during successive regimes. </p>
<h2>Beefed-up security</h2>
<p>Now a new wave of government repression is in full swing.
A private company, Falcon Security, which specialises in anti-protest and riot measures, <a href="http://www.albawaba.com/news/egypt-raises-security-presence-top-universities-614609">has started operating</a> on nine campuses nationwide. The company adopted tight and sometimes violent tactics from day one, with students waiting in long queues to be personally searched before being admitted to their schools through poorly constructed magnetic tin corridors. Instances of verbal violence and harassment were widely reported during the first few days of school.</p>
<p>Hostels at a number of universities refused to receive students, under the pretext that renovation work was still in progress, but no specific dates were announced for their opening. The start of the school year (scheduled according to university law to start the third Saturday of September) had <a href="http://www.universityworldnews.com/article.php?story=20140917130415310">already been postponed</a> under the pretext that maintenance work in the dorms had not finished. But it was not difficult to see that the reason was mainly for the authorities to finish implementing a tighter security system both in the dorms and on campuses. </p>
<h2>Power-grab over university management</h2>
<p>In the midst of all this, Egypt’s president, Abdel Fattah al-Sisi, who – in the <a href="http://english.ahram.org.eg/NewsContent/1/64/110800/Egypt/Politics-/Preparations-for-Egypts-parliamentary-elections-to.aspx">absence of a legislative council</a> – has assumed the power of tabling legislation (with his cabinet) issued an <a href="http://www.dailynewsegypt.com/2014/10/13/cairo-university-professors-protest-amendments-university-laws/">amendment on October 13</a> of the controversial Law for the Regulation of Universities. </p>
<p>Those amendments cancel one of the very few positive changes that had taken place after January 2011, when the academic community <a href="http://www.dailynewsegypt.com/2011/10/03/faculty-deans-elections-prove-mb-unpopular-at-public-universities/">managed to reinstate elections</a> for university high officials. This had replaced a system of direct appointment, meaning that officials were both subject to selection according to security measures and responsible to answer to ministers rather than to the large academic community that had elected them. Egypt has now returned to this state control of academia. </p>
<p>Like anywhere else in Egypt, universities are shot through with political strife. Students belonging to the now-banned Muslim Brotherhood have cause for complaint against the Sisi regime, which they accuse of deposing “their” democratically elected president and initiating a wave of indiscriminate persecution against the Brotherhood. </p>
<p>But Muslim Brotherhood students are not alone. Various other political and social forces on the ground are asking for a more egalitarian public sphere where they can voice their opinions, criticise the regime and protest peacefully. This has been categorically denied to them by the current regime under the pretext of curbing the “terrorism” of the Muslim Brotherhood.</p>
<h2>Violence on campus</h2>
<p>According to another recent amendment of university regulations, university rectors now have the power to call in police forces, armed with tear gas, birdshot and live ammunition, as well as heavy trucks, to raid university campuses when student “riots” break out. During the first week of school, police forces raided at least three university campuses nationwide. </p>
<p>In the face of these restrictions, it was only natural that students would raise their voices and student protests (mainly calling for the release of their detained colleagues) erupted at Alexandria University where the rector called in armed police forces on campus to confront protesting students. Police stormed the campus under a thick cloud of tear gas, while <a href="http://allafrica.com/stories/201410220692.html">a law student sustained bullet injuries</a> in the neck and head and later died in hospital.</p>
<p>The authorities are blaming the violence on students. Yet photos and <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DyiwAx-efjg">video clips</a> as well as student testimonies collected by individual faculty members that I’ve seen testify that in an unprecedented move, the police actually stormed into lecture halls – and were at times firing birdshot at students. </p>
<p>On October 23, the Egyptian minister of higher education appeared in a televised press conference indirectly blaming the dead student by saying that as a law student he had no business being at the faculty of engineering where he was shot. In an obvious attempt to clear the police of any responsibility, even though investigation is still underway, the minister also alluded to the possibility that the student might have been shot by his fellow students in an attempt to frame the police.</p>
<h2>Wider clampdown</h2>
<p>As an academic in Egypt, it is not difficult to see the clamping down on universities as part of a more general policy that the new regime is trying to establish: an iron fist over civil liberties and a stifling of dissent on all levels, no matter whether it is Islamist or otherwise. </p>
<p>State-controlled media is launching a fierce campaign against activists, establishing a narrative that the January 25, 2011 revolution was a conspiracy concocted by enemies of the state that was corrected by the <a href="http://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2013/jul/04/egypt-coup-military-morsi-democracy">military’s soft coup</a> of July 2013. The Muslim Brotherhood in particular – and Islamist politics in general – are projected as the enemy, seeking to dismantle the state. Any rejection of that narrative of events is seen as suspicious if not downright subversive. </p>
<p>In that context, it is not surprising to see that the student movement erupt with little fear of the possibly violent consequences. The clashes and repression that have already taken place have inflicted considerable damage on student life and on the educational process in Egypt. But in a broader sense they reflect the subtle negotiations that continue between an emerging authoritarian regime and a strong and determined student movement. This academic year looks like it will be a decisive one.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/33423/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Randa Aboubakr does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>Egypt’s new academic year started in early October amid unprecedented repressive measures by the state against students. On October 11, the morning of the first day of university, police carried out a…Randa Aboubakr, Professor of English and Comparative Literature, Cairo UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.