Egypt has this year marked eight years on its massive 30 June 2013 Revolution which led to the overthrow of the Islamist Muslim Brotherhood (MB) regime that had come to power in the wake of the 2011 Arab Spring uprising. The revolution brought about a civil, secular State in Egypt and, a year later, put President Sisi at the helm; he worked to lift the country from the near-collapse it had reached on all levels under the MB. Eight years on today, Egyptian media have been assessing the achievements and reforms accomplished under President Sisi, which make an impressive list.
Watani too has been making its own assessment through coverage of the outstanding achievements, but also of any shortcomings.
Today, I discuss the project to preserve Downtown Cairo, also known as Khedival Cairo, famous for its wealth of architectural heritage.
Khedival Cairo was designed and built in the second half of the 19th century by French city planners and architects that Khedive Ismail, who ruled Egypt in 1863 – 1879, hired to build a modern Cairo. During a visit to Paris to attend the Exposition Universelle upon invitation by Napoleon III, the Khedive had been impressed by the modern Paris built under Baron Haussmann, and decided he wanted a modern Paris-style Cairo for his capital, which was later given the name Khedival Cairo after its founder. Khedival Cairo, later dubbed Paris of the East, was built with large streets lined with splendid buildings in neoclassical and renaissance styles and connected through several squares.
More than a century later, Cairo expanded east and west, but the Paris of the East was its crown jewel; not only for its beautiful edifices and layout, but for the outstanding value it held on the social, economic, commercial and cultural levels. However, in the wake of the 1952 Revolution which turned Egypt from monarchy to republic, winds of change wreaked havoc with Khedival Cairo owing to the socialist laws passed by President Gamal Abdel-Nasser in 1960. Rents of residential and non-residential housing were frozen indefinitely, leading to meagre revenue for landlords who could then ill afford to spend on maintenance and upkeep of their property. Even though the low rentals were welcomed by tenants, the sad outcome was that Khedival Cairo succumbed to neglect, deterioration and depletion. Over time, its elite residents preferred to leave it to elsewhere, only to be replaced by tenants who did not appreciate the value of its buildings and abused them inside out.
It is auspicious that the government has decided to restore and develop Cairo’s historic places; this included Khedival Cairo. The works involved the famous Tahrir Square, formerly Ismailiya Sqaure; Talaat Harb Square, formerly Soliman Pasha Square; and Mustafa Kamel Square. The development also addressed the main streets flowing in and out of these squares, including Qasr al-Nil St, Champollion St, Talaat Harb St, Abdel-Khaleq Tharwat St, Muhammad Farid St, and Emadeddine St. The development plan focused on all buildings, shops and services overlooking these squares and streets; façades were restored and rejuvenated, with special focus on emphasising architectural styles and exquisite ornaments and correcting all violations or distortion they had been subject to over the years.
I own that the efforts made to rescue and revive the buildings of Khedival Cairo are by all means heartening and give rise to hopes that the area might regain its stature as Paris of the East. But, as the Egyptian folk saying goes “No good is complete”; all efforts to revive Khedival Cairo have focused on the outside of the buildings, and never reached the inside or utilities. This is a bitter truth which only Downtown Cairo residents or those who visit its buildings are familiar with. Passers-by are impressed by the beautiful façades and the effort put into reviving their splendour, but have no idea of what is inside.
The sad, untold truth is that while the façades of the buildings shine in beautiful styles, ornaments, windows and balconies, materials and colours, boasting renewed youth and beauty, the inside aches under neglect and depletion. This includes staircases, lifts, basements, rooftops and infrastructure networks. I am not talking about the interiors of the apartments in these buildings, which fall under the responsibility and care of their residents; I refer to all the public facilities and services in the building.
I have discussed in detail the predicament of the Downtown Cairo buildings last April, under the title “Downtown Cairo buildings: Shiny from the outside..”. The current situation leaves us with open questions regarding the palpable achievement of conserving Khedival Cairo.
