Cairo and Algiers, once promises of emancipation, are, in 2025, only the shadow of what they could have become. The reason: military regimes camouflaged behind civilian facades, governing in the continuity of absolute power. In Egypt as in Algeria, the generals control the economy, stifle the press, manipulate elections and repress dissent. Since the 1950s, no genuine democratic change has been tolerated. This system of authoritarian management has transformed two great capitals into disorganized, polluted, overcrowded cities, where young people dream only of leaving. Access to basic services, to a quality education or to stable employment is becoming a luxury. The State, instead of being an engine of progress, acts as a rampart against any form of transformation. The people, often accused of inertia, are in reality held hostage by a brutal and corrupt security apparatus. These are two societies paralyzed by fear, but also by imposed resignation. The parallel between Algiers and Cairo is not a coincidence: it is the fruit of a model inherited from colonization and perpetuated by military men who replaced the occupier without changing the methods.
Themouns