On July 28, 2018 an Egyptian Court handed down a guilty verdict and sentenced seventy-five people to death. Their crime was merely participating in a sit-in at Rabaa al-Adawiya and al-Nahda squares in Cairo against Morsi’s removal in 2013. The crackdown on the demonstration was considered daft even at the time. According to the Human Rights Watch, 817 people were killed in the violence. Once a democratically elected government, the Muslim Brotherhood is now an officially banned terrorist organization. Today, according to conservative estimates, the military regime in Egypt is prosecuting 739 people for the demonstrations in support of Morsi back in, 2013. Moreover given the gross disregard towards the requirements of a fair trial, the fate of those being tried would not be any different – or better. Far from the maddening cries of freedom, bread and social justice; far from the alluring hope cultivated by slogans of unity; far from the enthralling songs of revolution – what transpired with time has been quite a turn of cautiously engineered events. Devastating. Egyptians continue to ponder over; what could have been… The summer of 2010 seemed harmless. It appeared to be business as usual when on June 6, 2010 somebody named Khaled Saeed was abducted and tortured by the local police. It had all happened before. It was going to happen again. Except that this time there was a small protest registered in Cairo. Around 400-500 people gathered and condemned the death with as many soldiers surrounding them for public order – of course! It was a norm under Mubarak in Egypt. Egypt, despite the liberalization of speech due to international media outlets, still clamped down hard on public assemblies. At the time, the Egyptian deep state couldn’t have cared less about the social networking sites. And that continued to create space for dissent. Mubarak believed in the mantra that so long as people expressed their opinions, yes opinions, on-arm chairs and did not disturb public order, it was acceptable. He had to connect with the young emerging Egypt for the longevity of his rule and its succession after all. Far from the maddening cries of freedom, bread and social justice; what transpired with time has been quite a turn of cautiously engineered events. Devastated, the Egyptians continue to ponder over what could have been A Facebook page commemorating the death of Saeed, just that, actively started sharing posts condemning police torture, in general, and encouraged people to step up against the deep state’s draconian policies. The page and its posts steadily attracted followers. With adequate support then; the page eventually called people for a direct action in December, 2010. It asked people to join the protest on January 25, 2011 (National Police holiday) and demand for the removal of Interior Minister, Mr Habib el-Adly. All this was new for Egyptians. In this political milieu, powerful voices such as that of a Noble Laureate Mohamed ElBaradei lent credence to the demands of the protestors. In Tunisia, on December 17, 2010 a fruit vendor had triggered a mass movement. Egyptians were all too conscious of these developments. Despite all that, few believed that one death and one Facebook page could usher Egypt into a new era. Essentially it was the six days, between January 19 to January 25, 2011 that elevated a protest against police torture; to the overthrowing of a regime with the peoples’ power. Remember by then Ben Ali had fled from Tunisia. Egyptians believed that if the Tunisians could do it; why can’t we? People continued to occupy Tahrir. And they would for eighteen days. Protests swept elsewhere – though not widely covered; in Alexandria, in Suez, Ismailia and Gharbeya; to name a few. Egypt had indeed entered into a new era. They called it a revolution! It was a carnival as people occupied Tahrir. Those eighteen days brought together the entire nation. There were no social classes or religion that divided people. They had all converged for an objective far bigger. People voluntarily took after cleaning the streets. They danced to the tunes of revolutionary anthems. They attended to each other’s needs and security. Artists flocked in to express themselves publicly celebrating the revolution. With one of the worse traffics in the world; Egyptians even voluntarily obeyed traffic rules. Tahrir was a well-managed commune working more efficiently than the regime. It is hard to say, even with all the euphoria and contagious optimism, every one shared a belief that they would overthrow Mubarak. They wanted it for sure. Perhaps that is why, when Mubarak was deposed on February 11, 2011 Egypt celebrated like it had never celebrated before. For everything they had endured over a period of thirty years, that day seemed a promised deliverance. It did not matter who replaced him and what would follow. People believed they had achieved all their goals. What happens if we get there, was a question, they had never entertained! People left Tahrir. And that was a defining moment of the revolution! The writer attended Berkeley and is a Barrister of Lincoln’s Inn Published in Daily Times, August 31st 2018.