NEW RULERS:THE PUBLIC face of Egypt's new military rulers is an unnamed officer in green fatigues who has been appearing on state television to read out communiques to the nation.
Identified only as the spokesman of the higher military council, the officer has made several appearances since Friday, delivering some, but not much, insight into how the army plans to run the country after the fall of the regime of Hosni Mubarak, the ousted president.
The council holds the key to the new political order to be shaped over the coming months.
It is headed by Field Marshall Mohammed Hussein Tantawi, the defence minister for 20 years, and includes Sami Enan, the chief of staff, commanders of the land, sea and air forces and heads of other army departments.
Mr Tantawi is a deeply conservative figure who has in the past been as opposed as Mr Mubarak to political and economic reform, fearing the loss of state control would provoke chaos, according to leaked US cables.
But young pro-democracy protesters say they are pinning their hopes on several commanders who they believe support reforms and who could hold significant power in the council.
“So far the messages we are getting from the military appear to be on the positive side, though this could still change,” said Shadi el- Ghazali Harb, an activist from the Democratic Front.
He said “channels of communication” with the council had started to open up. The coalition of youth groups behind the protests hoped to be invited to a meeting imminently so they could lay out their vision for a democratic transformation.
The council has signalled that it did not plan to rule the country permanently and wanted a transition to a “free democratic system” with an elected civilian authority.
The extent to which the military is prepared to allow a genuine democratic transformation is a matter of conjecture.
“This is the first time they have been put in such a situation,” said Qadri Said, a military analyst and former officer.
“It is a challenge for them,” he added. “In the past, Mubarak, who sat on the council as commander in chief, decided on the politics, but I imagine they will want some form of democratic system.
“They know what happens in other countries, and the revolution here has been a big experience, even for them.”
Mr Said also said he expected the army would have a say in the new constitution, which is to be drawn up by a committee appointed by the council.
It is unlikely, for instance, that the military would allow an Islamist to become president.
Mr Said argued however that the desire to maintain good relations with the US, which arms and trains the Egyptian military, might help sway the council in favour of democratic reform.
“The west wants to see Egypt move toward democracy. If the country now starts swimming against the current, that might affect relations with the US. This is something that will be taken into consideration.” – (Copyright The Financial Times Limited)