The Arab Winter Addendum: This Is Not A Coup.

'What's in a name? that which we call a rose by any other name would smell as sweet' ~ Juliet.
Romeo & Juliet, Shakespeare 

The Arab Winter came sooner than anticipated.The military in Egypt removed President Morsi via decree and placed him under house arrest....but this is NOT a coup....or is it?

The Morsi government, that was less than a year old, was accused of, among other issues, of the politicization of Islam through the Muslim brotherhood. However, it is important to understand that due to the suppression of political movements in the Mubarak era, religious movements were the only outlet available for societal organization. It was therefore inevitable that these religious movements were the most organized groups and were in a position to be politically dominant in a post-Mubarak era. Despite the opposition to the Muslim Brotherhood and its governance systems, they were indeed a democratically elected government and the removal of such a Government by a military decree is a cause for concern.

The issue of coup or no coup is on the lips of every political analyst out there. Some argue that the ouster of the Morsi government by the military was not coup because it was the result of popular protests. That the military was only acting to defend the democratic rights of the people and therefore this was not a power-grab. Others argue that a coup by any other name, is still a coup. This school of thought suggests that no matter the backdrop of  coup, the removal of an elected official remains a coup and therefore what is happening in Egypt is indeed a coup.

Coup or not, the actions of the military have offered an insight into the inner power structures of the Egyptian government. The core function of military around the world is to secure the nation from external threats. The military does not have a mandate to interfere in domestic politics in the name of securing the the democratic rights of the citizens. As was stated before in 'The Arab Winter', a dangerous precedent is being set in Egypt. This precedent is now extended further to the intervention of the military in domestic politics. It's also critical to remember that there were also pro-Morsi protesters in Egypt. It's interesting to ponder the criteria that the military used to choose one group's democratic rights over the other group. It's also interesting to note the amount of 'power' or 'sway' that the Egyptian military holds, even in the shadows. Enough to remove a president by decree.

Looking ahead, one cannot help but consider when the next protests in Tahrir square will arise. The ‘Revolution-Reloaded’ has yielded the fall of Morsi and the rise of military rule. Or should that be the return of military rule? Perhaps it never left. What kind of obstacles would the next round of protesters face? The ouster of Morsi’s civilian government has cost lives in their tens. How many lives does Egypt stand to lose in a would-be attempt to remove a military government? And when can the world expect an end to this cycle of governments and protesters?