Shockwaves from the current turmoil in Egypt are causing chaos throughout the political world, but the effects of the upheaval are by no means limited to politics alone.
Duke, and universities across the country, is monitoring what could happen to study abroad and summer program opportunities in Egypt if pro-democracy protests escalate despite Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak’s announcement Tuesday that he will not seek re-election.
Students across the world are drawn to Cairo—the political center of more than a week of protests against Mubarak’s authoritarian regime—and its cultural and intellectual opportunities. One Duke graduate student has been evacuated from the region, and although no undergraduates are currently studying abroad in Egypt, the University is watching the protests closely because their outcome will likely determine the fate of future study abroad opportunities.
Sophomore Amir Abdu, whose father is from Egypt, said he hopes Mubarak lives up to his promise to not run for re-election.
“My hope is that the Egyptian youth will get what they want—a democratic government that promotes freedom,” he said.
In the meantime, administrators at Duke are monitoring the situation’s developments. Margaret Riley, director of the Global Education Office for Undergraduates, wrote in an e-mail that the only program the University currently offers in Egypt is a non-Duke administered program based in Cairo at the American University in Cairo. If a government with radical Islamists at the helm replaces Mubarak’s—or, worse, if the protests escalate into factional warfare—then the University may be forced to halt its study abroad opportunities in Egypt even if it does not wish to do so, she added.
“If the International Travel Oversight Committee determines to add Egypt to the ‘Restricted Regions List,’ then undergraduates would no longer be permitted to study there,” she wrote.
Even without an official warning, some undergraduates are already reconsidering their desire to study in Egypt due to lingering political uncertainty in the country. Some students fear that all study abroad programs in Egypt in the Fall could be canceled if the unrest continues.
“There are three Duke students who have active applications with American University in Cairo for the fall,” Riley wrote. “They are seriously considering other options at this time.”
Study abroad programs for graduate students are also being affected. The lone Duke graduate student studying in Egypt this semester has already been evacuated, as have the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill’s graduate students, according to The Herald-Sun.
“International SOS arranged for the evacuation of the one current Duke student who was in Egypt this week,” Michael Schoenfeld, vice president for public affairs and government relations wrote in an e-mail. “[It] also assisted several recent graduates who were in the country on study and research tours.”
Schoenfeld said it is premature for Duke to make any official decision at this time. Any action on Egypt’s status as a study abroad destination should be well-thought out, he noted, because of the nation’s immense archaeological, historical and cultural opportunities. Few countries can match Egypt’s diverse educational opportunities, he added.
“We look at each program and country on a case-by-case basis to balance the risks with the educational value,” he wrote. “It is important not to make general assumptions or decisions based on the events in one particular country.”
The University also has a DukeEngage program based in Cairo, which last year sent about 10 students to work with refugees, disabled youths and community development projects. This will be the program’s fourth summer, and it is set to take place from May 30 to July 29. Representatives for DukeEngage did not respond immediately to requests for comment on whether the program could be canceled if the unrest continues.
The possibility that study abroad opportunities in Cairo will be canceled is particularly striking considering the popularity and success of past programs there. Two Duke students studied in Cairo last semester at AUC. Junior Ross Taggart, one of the students, said he enjoyed his experience.
“I absolutely loved my experience in Egypt,” he wrote in an e-mail, citing the beautiful historical sites and the “wonderful people” he met.
Although Taggart experienced a relatively peaceful and informative stay in Egypt, he said some political tensions were noticeable even last semester.
“Some of my professors [at AUC] talked at length in class about the rampant corruption in the Egyptian government and Mubarak’s blatant manipulation of the electoral process,” he wrote. “Still, elections were held and Mubarak was re-elected while I was there with absolutely no incident that I was aware of.”
Even a complete change of government would not necessarily spell doom for study abroad opportunities in Egypt. The protests are pro-democratic in nature and are led mostly by liberal reformers under the age of 30, despite the attempts of religious organizations like the Muslim Brotherhood to gain a foothold in the movement. If the government is wholly replaced, the transition could be not only peaceful, but also beneficial if democratic reformers lead the government rather than religious groups, Ebrahim Moosa, associate professor of Islamic studies, wrote in an e-mail.
“[The protests in Egypt] will only affect us in the immediate short term since safety and security concerns would be foremost in dispatching students to the region,” he wrote. “Depending on how long these protests drag on, Americans would be welcome once things go back to normal, but as of now we do not know what ‘normal’ means.”
Moosa added that he believes the Muslim Brotherhood is not as ominous a presence as the United States, Israel, some members of the media and Mubarak himself have made it out to be.
“Using the Muslim Brotherhood as a scarecrow has been a red herring used by the Mubarak regime and also sections of our political establishment and media to support the status quo,” he wrote. “If the Egyptian people choose a political party they prefer but one that is not to our liking, we might be able to lament their choice, but we have no right to subvert and block their right to choose freely.”
Moosa added that the United States and Israel should support democracy in Egypt, rather than continue to support Mubarak.
The Egyptian protests are larger than Duke or any one institution. Whatever the outcome, it has the potential to affect millions, for better or worse. The protests have already helped start or sustain similar protests in Tunisia, Yemen, Lebanon and—most recently—Jordan. The “domino effect of change” that Moosa cited could very well cause further protests throughout the notoriously volatile region.
Egyptian students at Duke are watching the events closely.
Abdu said he believes radical groups have neither the influence nor the means to seize power once Mubarak steps down.
“Although it is a concern, I have doubts that the Muslim Brotherhood has the popularity or the influence to take control,” he said. “Although they support the demonstrations, the Islamic fundamentalists don’t seem to have an active presence at all.”
Abdu added that he believes a peaceful result is likely.
“Egypt seems to be on the verge of real change, and I have faith that it will achieve a positive result,” he said. “I truly believe that after all the dust has finally settled, my family will be able to enjoy freedom, stability and peace.”
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