"Breakdown: The Military and Egypt's Failed Transition" with Yasser El-Shimy

Open to the Public

A seminar with Yasser El-Shimy, MEI Research Fellow and Ph.D. Candidate in the Department of Political Science, Boston University. Part of the Middle East Initiative Research Fellow Seminar Series.

Date: Fri, May 1, 2015 Time: 12:00pm - 01:30pm Location: Littauer Building - Belfer Center Library, Room 369

Supporters of deposed Egyptian President Mohammed Morsi yell chants at Egyptian Soldiers during a protest march in the Giza district on August 12, 2013 in Cairo, Egypt.

About

Moderated by Tarek Masoud, Associate Professor of Public Policy, Harvard Kennedy School.

Why did Egypt's political transition (2011-2013) flounder? This talk argues that the nature of the Egyptian military makes it especially willing (and able) to intervene in political matters. In times of transition, democratic consolidation often rests on whether or not a military is praetorian (having the ability to dominate the political system at will), and thus predisposed to enter politics.

For more about Yasser El-Shimy, click here.