무바라크 전 이집트 대통령 무죄판결, 항의시위 확산

 

                                                Both liberals and Muslim Brotherhood supporters joined the protest in Tahrir Square

이집트에서 3년 전에 일어난 민주화운동 '아랍의 봄'으로 축출된 무바라크 전 대통령이 반정부 시위 참가자의 살해를 지시한 혐의를 받아 열린 재판에서 사실상 무죄판결이 나옴에 따라, 판결에 불복하는 젊은이들이 항의시위를 벌이면서 반발이 확산되고 있습니다.

현지 언론에 따르면 판결에 불복하는 젊은이 등 약 천 명은 수도 카이로에서 항의 시위를 열었으며, 북부의 알렉산드리아와 만수라에서도 항의시위가 열리면서 반발이 확산되고 있습니다.

또한 로이터통신과 AFP통신에 따르면 카이로의 항의시위에서는 경찰이 시위 참가자들을 향해 최루가스를 발사해 강제진압에 나서 충돌이 빚어지면서 사상자도 발생했습니다.

3년 전에 일어난 반정부시위에서는 경찰의 발포 등으로 800여명이 사망했으나, 지난해 군이 사실상의 쿠데타를 일으킨 후에는 민주화운동에 참여한 젊은이들과 이슬람세력을 견제하는 움직임이 이어져 왔습니다.

이번 무죄 판결은 '아랍의 봄'으로 붕괴된 강권적인 지배체제가 복권될 조짐으로 받아들여져, 젊은이들 사이에서 더욱 반발이 확산될 것으로 예상됩니다.

 

                                                  The court decision provoked an angry reaction from Mubarak's opponents

 

                                  Amal Shaker with a photo of her late son Ahmed, who died in the uprising: "Youth that were like flowers were killed"

지난 2011년 발생한 시위대 살해에 관련된 혐의로 기소된 호스니 무바라크 전 이집트 대통령에게 무죄가 선고됐습니다.

한 이집트 판사는 29일 사람들로 가득 찬 법정에서 시위로 권좌에서 쫓겨난 무바라크에게 적용된 혐의를 기각한다고 선고했습니다.

이 같은 선고가 나오자 환호성이 터졌고 함께 기소된 사람들과 무바라크의 아들이 들것에 앉아서 선고를 듣고 있던 무바라크의 이마에 입맞춤했습니다.

한 이집트 텔레비전 방송은 검찰 측이 항소를 고려하고 있다고 보도했습니다.

시위대 수백 명을 살해하라고 명령한 혐의로 기소됐던 전직 이집트 내무부 장관과 전직 치안 책임자 6명에 대한 혐의도 모두 기각됐습니다. 무바라크 전 대통령도 시위에 참여한 사람들을 살해하라는 명령을 내린 혐의로 기소된 바 있었습니다.

 

 

                                                        Mubarak waves as he is wheeled out of the court after the ruling

 

                                                          one Mubarak supporter wore a T-shirt of the deposed leader

 

*Hosni Mubarak

 

                                         Mubarak (left) became Egypt's fourth president after the assassination of Anwar Sadat (right)

Hosni Mubarak ruled Egypt for almost 30 years until he was swept from power in a wave of mass protests in February 2011.

Few expected that the little-known vice-president who was elevated to the presidency in the wake of Anwar Sadat's 1981 assassination would hold on to the country's top job for so long.

Sadat was assassinated by Islamist militants at a military parade in Cairo, and Mubarak was lucky to escape the shots as he sat next to him.

Since then, he has survived at least six assassination attempts - the narrowest escape shortly after his arrival in the Ethiopian capital, Addis Ababa, in 1995 to attend an African summit, when his limousine came under attack.

 

                                The former president's numerous court appearances often saw him on a stretcher and wearing trademark sunglasses

Besides his knack for dodging bullets, the former air force commander also managed to keep a hold on power by positioning himself as a trusted Western ally and fighting off a powerful opposition movement at home.

It all came to an end in a televised address on 1 February 2011, following mass protests in Cairo and other cities. Mubarak announced he had decided not to stand for re-election later that year.

Protests continued and on 10 February he appeared on state television to say he was handing over powers to his vice-president, but would remain as president.

The following day Vice-President Omar Suleiman made a terse announcement saying Mubarak was stepping down and the military's supreme council would run the country.

On trial

By late May 2011, judicial officials announced that Mr Mubarak, along with his two sons - Alaa and Gamal - would stand trial over the deaths of anti-government protesters.

So began a protracted series of court appearances - with the former president often been seen in the dock in an upright stretcher wearing his trademark sunglasses.

He has steadfastly argued his innocence - telling a retrial in August that that he was approaching the end of his life "with a good conscience".

 

                                                   Mubarak was charged with corruption and involvement in the killing of protesters

On 2 June 2012 he was found guilty of complicity in the murder of some of the demonstrators who took part in the wave of protests that began on 25 January 2011. Along with his former Interior Minister, Habib al-Adly, he was sentenced to life imprisonment for his crimes.

In January 2013 a court upheld an appeal against Mubarak's and al-Adly's convictions and granted retrials. Mubarak and his sons were also ordered to be retried on corruption charges for which they were originally acquitted.

Mubarak was released from prison in August that year but placed under house arrest before being transferred to a military hospital.

In May 2014, Mubarak was found guilty of embezzlement, and sentenced to three years in prison. His sons were sentenced to four years each.

In November 2014, he was finally acquitted in a retrial of conspiring to kill protesters during the 2011 uprising against his rule. At the same time, he was also acquitted of corruption charges involving gas exports to Israel.

Early life

Born in 1928 in a small village in Menofya province near Cairo, Muhammad Hosni Sayyid Mubarak insisted on keeping his private life out of the public domain while president.

Married to a half-British graduate of the American University in Cairo, Suzanne Mubarak, he was known to lead a strict life with a fixed daily schedule that began at 0600.

Never a smoker or a drinker, he built himself a reputation as a fit man who led a healthy life.

In his younger days, close associates often complained of the president's schedule, which began with a workout in the gym or a game of squash.

He was sworn in as president on 14 October 1981, eight days after the Sadat assassination.

Despite having little popular appeal or international profile at the time, the burly military man used his sponsorship of the issue behind Sadat's killing - peace with Israel - to build up his reputation as an international statesman.

Emergency rule

In effect, Mr Mubarak ruled as a quasi-military leader when he took power.

For his entire period in office, he kept the country under emergency law, giving the state sweeping powers of arrest and curbing basic freedoms.

The government argued the draconian regime was necessary to combat Islamist terrorism, which came in waves during the decades of Mr Mubarak's rule - often targeting Egypt's lucrative tourism sector.

 

                                                          Hosni Mubarak was a key US ally in the Middle East

He presided over a period of domestic stability and economic development that meant most of his fellow countrymen accepted his monopolisation of power.

But towards the end of his tenure in power, Mr Mubarak felt for the first time the pressure to encourage democracy, both from within Egypt, and from his most powerful ally, the United States.

Many supporters of reform doubted the veteran ruler's sincerity when he said he was all for opening up the political process.

Ahead of his declaration that he would not to stand again for the presidency, the US had heaped pressure on him to stand aside, calling for an "orderly transition" of power to a more democratic system.

Mr Mubarak won three elections unopposed since 1981, but for his fourth contest in 2005 - after a firm push from the US - he changed the system to allow rival candidates.

Critics said the election was heavily weighted in favour of Mr Mubarak and the National Democratic Party (NDP). They accused the Egyptian leader of presiding over a sustained campaign of suppressing opposition groups, most notably the Muslim Brotherhood.

Health fears

The length of his time in power, along with his age and possible successors, had all been sensitive subjects in Egypt until the mass protests allowed the Egyptian people to find a voice.

People around Mr Mubarak said his health and vigour belied his age - although a couple of health scares served as a reminder of his advancing years.

Rumours about the president's health gathered pace when he travelled to Germany in March 2010 for gall bladder surgery. They flared every time he missed a key gathering or disappeared from the media spotlight for any conspicuous length of time.

However much Egyptian officials tried to deny them, they kept circulating, with reports in the Israeli and pan-Arab media.

The days of mass protests in Egyptian cities prompted Mr Mubarak to finally name a vice-president. on 29 January 2011, intelligence chief Omar Suleiman was elevated to the role in what was seen as an attempt by Mr Mubarak to bolster his support in the military.

Two weeks later Mr Mubarak's three-decade rule was over, and in March he was under arrest.

In the past, Mr Mubarak had said he would continue to serve Egypt until his last breath.

In his speech on 1 February 2011, he said: "This dear nation... is where I lived, I fought for it and defended its soil, sovereignty and interests. on its soil I will die. History will judge me like it did others."

 

 

이집트 보건성 등에 따르면, 지난 사흘동안의 충돌로 인한 사망자 수는 적어도 648명에 달합니다.[이집트 민주화 운동]

 

 

30년 간 장기 집권으로 퇴진 압박을 받아온 호스니 무바라크 이집트 대통령이 어제 (11일) 사임한 가운데, 이집트에서는 밤 늦게까지 축제 분위기가 계속됐습니다.

이집트의 오마르 술래이만 부통령이 어제 무바라크 대통령의 사임을 발표하자, 이집트 전역에서는 군중들이 국기를 흔들며 환호하고, 불꽃놀이를 펼쳤습니다.

 

이집트 무바라크 전 대통령 '무죄'판결 파문

11월 29일 이집트에서는, 3년 전에 있었던 '아랍의 봄'이라 불리는 민주화운동으로 축출당한 무바라크 전 대통령에게, 사실상의 '무죄판결'이 내려졌습니다. 그 직후부터 각지에서 항의 시위가 일어나, 수도 카이로에서는 1000명 정도의 시위대가 치안부대와 충돌해, 2명이 사망했습니다. 오늘 해설은, 현재의 이집트 정세에 대해, 데가와 노부히사 NHK 해설위원에게 들어보겠습니다.

무바라크 전 대통령은 2011년 2월, 민주화를 요구하는 시민의 대규모 시위로 권좌에서 쫓겨난 뒤, 시위 참가자의 살해를 지시한 죄로 기소됐습니다. 지난 2012년, 특별법정에서 종신형이 선고됐지만, 무바라크 씨는 이에 불복해, 재심리가 이루어졌습니다. 특별법정은, 이번에는 검찰측의 절차에 미비한 점이 있다며 소송 자체를 기각해, 사실상의 무죄 판결이 내려진 것입니다.

이 판결이 나온 배경에는, 군을 뒷받침해 온 구 체제의 부활이 있습니다. 이집트 사회는, 혁명 후 당분간은 자유롭게 말할 수 있다는 기쁨에 잠겨, 무바라크 정권의 탄압이나 부패의 책임을 철저하게 추궁하는 분위기였습니다. 하지만, 민주적인 선거로 무슬림 형제단의 무르시 전대통령이 정권을 쥔 지 1년간, 정치, 경제 모두 대 혼란에 빠졌다는 실망감에서, 현재는 군 출신의 강한 지도자인 엘시시 대통령이 나라를 안정시키기를 바라는 분위기가 지배적입니다. 진정한 민주화를 외치는 목소리는 지금 거의 들리지 않습니다. 무바라크 씨 본인은 86세로, 이제 정계에 복귀하지는 않겠지만, 이러한 변화와 더불어 무바라크 정권의 실세들이 차례차례 복권되고 있습니다.

다만, 무바라크 씨의 무죄는 아직 확정된 것은 아닙니다. 검찰총장이 2일, 최고재판소에 해당하는 파기원에 상소할 것을 결정하고, 구체적인 절차에 들어갔다고 밝혔습니다.
무바라크 씨의 처우를 둘러싼 혼란은 계속될 전망입니다.

한편으로, 최고재판소는 2일, 작년 여름에 무르시 전 대통령의 추방에 항의하는 시위에 참가한 무슬림 형제단의 지지자들 188명에게, 사형에 상당하는 판결을 내렸습니다. 무바라크 전 대통령과 구 정권의 간부에게는 관대하고, 무슬림 형제단에는 극히 엄격한 판결이 나온 것입니다.

민주화 운동을 이끌어 온 젊은이들과 무슬림 형제단의 지지자는 향후 항의활동을 강화할 태세이지만, 정권측은 힘으로 철저하게 억누를 자세를 굽히지 않고 있습니다. 더한층 심한 유혈사태가 우려됩니다.

오늘 해설은, 이집트 정세에 대해, 데가와 노부히사 NHK 해설위원에게 들어봤습니다.