A circular patch of land in Cairo’s central Tahrir Square poses a dilemma for the government: how to honor the epicenter of the 2011 popular uprising while pressing ahead with one of the fiercest crackdowns on dissent in Egypt’s history?
After weeks of digging, workers put up a 20-metre pole carrying the national flag in the space, something officials said they hoped would help to unify a country torn by political turmoil since the revolt that ousted Hosni Mubarak.
It was the latest attempt by authorities to define the narrative in a square where hundreds of thousands of Egyptians staged protests that ended three decades of iron-fisted rule.
“I have not heard any complaints about the flag up to this moment, in spite of the state of uproar in Egypt and the differences of opinions and all the issues. This is good,” Cairo Governor Galal Mostafa Saeed told Reuters in an interview.
“It was appropriate for us to put a flag in this place because ... it is unifying and makes people feel nationalistic.”
History suggests authorities must proceed cautiously in Tahrir. The former headquarters of Mubarak’s ruling party, burned and gutted during the revolt, is nearby on the River Nile, a reminder of the power of the street just four years ago.
In November of 2013, Egyptian activists, who had been keeping a low profile after the army seized power, returned to Tahrir and destroyed a state memorial dedicated to protesters killed by security forces.

Seeking unity, Egypt flies the flag in symbolic Tahrir

Egypt's national flag is seen raised at the top of a flagpole, which was recently installed in Tahrir square, in central Cairo, February 8, 2015. (Reuters)
Reuters, Cairo
Monday 09 February 2015
Last Update: Wednesday, 20 May 2020 KSA 09:44 - GMT 06:44
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