Custodians of the Soil- Land Rights and Conflict in Egypt

Many of Egypt's intelligentsia had predicted widespread rural violence andeven the possibility of a social revolution when Nasser's land reform of 1952was finally revoked in October 1997. Why did this not happen? In this stimulatingaccount of village politics and the struggle for land Caroline Tingayshows that there were multiple and often conflicting interests at stakesurrounding Mubarak's new tenancy law which cannot be simplified into anissue of 'winners' versus 'losers'. She suggests that the high levels of interdependencywhich form the basis of rural tenancy networks together withthe repressive mechanisms put into place by a brutal state apparatus; wouldnever have allowed for the development of collective action in the Egyptiancountryside. Indeed her study illustrates that the so-called threat of ruralrevolt was little more than a convenient excuse for local power brokers toreassert their personal claims to authority while they were in effect the maininstigators of violent action. This book takes the reader right into the heart ofvillage life in today's Egypt for a detailed and anecdotal account of conflictdynamics at the micro level. It is of great interest for anyone working in theMENA region and in the field of land reform.