Kamal Khalil
Encyclopedia
Kamal Khalil is an Egyptian
engineer and labour
activist. He is a leading member of the Revolutionary Socialists
, a representative of the Workers Democratic Party
and the founder and director of the Center for Socialist Studies
in Cairo
. He is a critic of the social democrats, youth parties and the Muslim Brotherhood
in the post-Mubarak
Egypt. He advocates more worker
s' unity, particularly in regions such as El-Mahalla El-Kubra
, which has in the past been a center of industrial struggle by textile workers
. Khalil has said Egypt's workers must create independent trade unions and a political party to represent them: "No party will represent the workers other than the workers' party itself." Prior to the Egyptian Revolution in 2011, Khalil had been arrested many times. In 2003 he was arrested by the State Security Investigations Service
(SSI) and placed in solitary confinement for his role in the anti-war movement
, causing the Stop the War Coalition
in Britain
to demonstrate outside the Egyptian Embassy in London
.
Egyptians
Egyptians are nation an ethnic group made up of Mediterranean North Africans, the indigenous people of Egypt.Egyptian identity is closely tied to geography. The population of Egypt is concentrated in the lower Nile Valley, the small strip of cultivable land stretching from the First Cataract to...
engineer and labour
Wage labour
Wage labour is the socioeconomic relationship between a worker and an employer, where the worker sells their labour under a formal or informal employment contract. These transactions usually occur in a labour market where wages are market determined...
activist. He is a leading member of the Revolutionary Socialists
Revolutionary Socialists (Egypt)
The Revolutionary Socialists are a Trotskyist organisation in Egypt aligned with the International Socialist Tendency. According to Mark LeVine, a professor of history at the University of California, the RS "played a crucial role organising Tahrir and now in the workers movement" post-President...
, a representative of the Workers Democratic Party
Workers Democratic Party
The Workers National Democratic Party also is a workers' political party in Egypt formed shortly after the Egyptian Revolution of 2011. It is backed by the Federation of Egyptian Trade Unions and forms part of the Coalition of Socialist Forces...
and the founder and director of the Center for Socialist Studies
Center for Socialist Studies
The Center for Socialist Studies is an organizational center for the dissemination of socialist ideas and politics located in Giza, Egypt. It produces and sells left-wing theoretical books, magazines and newsletters as well as hosting public events and lectures on political issues...
in Cairo
Cairo
Cairo , is the capital of Egypt and the largest city in the Arab world and Africa, and the 16th largest metropolitan area in the world. Nicknamed "The City of a Thousand Minarets" for its preponderance of Islamic architecture, Cairo has long been a centre of the region's political and cultural life...
. He is a critic of the social democrats, youth parties and the Muslim Brotherhood
Muslim Brotherhood
The Society of the Muslim Brothers is the world's oldest and one of the largest Islamist parties, and is the largest political opposition organization in many Arab states. It was founded in 1928 in Egypt by the Islamic scholar and schoolteacher Hassan al-Banna and by the late 1940s had an...
in the post-Mubarak
Hosni Mubarak
Muhammad Hosni Sayyid Mubarak is a former Egyptian politician and military commander. He served as the fourth President of Egypt from 1981 to 2011....
Egypt. He advocates more worker
Proletariat
The proletariat is a term used to identify a lower social class, usually the working class; a member of such a class is proletarian...
s' unity, particularly in regions such as El-Mahalla El-Kubra
El-Mahalla El-Kubra
El-Mahalla El-Kubra is a large industrial and agricultural city in Egypt, located in the middle of the Nile Delta on the western bank of the Damietta branch. It is known for its dominant textile industry...
, which has in the past been a center of industrial struggle by textile workers
2008 Egyptian general strike
The 2008 Egyptian general strike was a strike which occurred on 6 April 2008, by Egyptian workers, primarily in the state-run textile industry, in response to low wages and rising food costs. Strikes are illegal in Egypt and authorities have been given orders to break demonstrations forcefully in...
. Khalil has said Egypt's workers must create independent trade unions and a political party to represent them: "No party will represent the workers other than the workers' party itself." Prior to the Egyptian Revolution in 2011, Khalil had been arrested many times. In 2003 he was arrested by the State Security Investigations Service
State Security Investigations Service
The Egyptian State Security Investigations Service was the highest national investigating authority in Egypt. Estimated to employ 100,000 people, the SSI was the main security apparatus of Egypt's Ministry of Interior and had the role of controlling opposition groups, both armed groups and those...
(SSI) and placed in solitary confinement for his role in the anti-war movement
Opposition to the Iraq War
Significant opposition to the Iraq War occurred worldwide, both before and during the initial 2003 invasion of Iraq by the United States, United Kingdom, and smaller contingents from other nations, and throughout the subsequent occupation...
, causing the Stop the War Coalition
Stop the War Coalition
The Stop the War Coalition is a United Kingdom group set up on 21 September 2001 that campaigns against what it believes are unjust wars....
in Britain
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
to demonstrate outside the Egyptian Embassy in London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
.
See also
- Revolutionary SocialistsRevolutionary Socialists (Egypt)The Revolutionary Socialists are a Trotskyist organisation in Egypt aligned with the International Socialist Tendency. According to Mark LeVine, a professor of history at the University of California, the RS "played a crucial role organising Tahrir and now in the workers movement" post-President...
- Workers Democratic PartyWorkers Democratic PartyThe Workers National Democratic Party also is a workers' political party in Egypt formed shortly after the Egyptian Revolution of 2011. It is backed by the Federation of Egyptian Trade Unions and forms part of the Coalition of Socialist Forces...
- Center for Socialist StudiesCenter for Socialist StudiesThe Center for Socialist Studies is an organizational center for the dissemination of socialist ideas and politics located in Giza, Egypt. It produces and sells left-wing theoretical books, magazines and newsletters as well as hosting public events and lectures on political issues...
External links
- Eyes speak Kamal Khalil's blog (Arabic)
- Kamal Khalil's twitter account