Protesters defy attempts to clear Tahrir Square

CAIRO — Egypt's military moved Sunday to restore order in Cairo after weeks of mass demonstrations, but troops faced some resistance as they tried to dismantle the protest camp at the heart of the movement that toppled President Hosni Mubarak.

"We do not want any protesters to sit in the square after today," Mohamed Ibrahim Moustafa Ali, the head of military police, told protesters Sunday. Soldiers and military police took down the makeshift tents of protesters who had camped out in Tahrir, or Liberation, Square, but scuffles broke out with some young men who refused to leave.

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"The army is the backbone of Egypt. Their solution is not to remove us from the square," said a protester over loudspeakers, as the army moved in, pushing and occasionally lashing out with sticks. "They must respond to our demands."

Many local residents also shouted at the protesters that it was time to go. "Haven't they got what they want? Can someone explain to me what is left of their demands?" asked one bystander.

Thousands of protesters streamed back into Tahrir Square after the army sought to disperse them, witnesses said.

'Revolution until victory'
"The army and people are united" and "Revolution, revolution until victory," they chanted, after military police had earlier told them to take down tents and let normal life return.

A 38-year-old industrial worker who gave his name only as Mohamed, said he had changed his mind about going home.

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"I was going to leave today, but after what the military has done, the millions will be back again. The corrupt system still stands. It has gone back to using the only thing it understands — force. If we leave, they won't respond to our demands."

The crowd chanted "peacefully, peacefully" to the troops whose mission on the first day of Egypt's working week was to let commuters through to work in an economy badly damaged by the uprising that ended Mubarak's draconian rule.

As military police corralled protesters in the center of the square to allow traffic flow, protesters in other parts of the square guided cars. Some swept the ground and others painted curbs, which protesters said shows their desire to rebuild Egypt.

Tanks and armored cars were positioned around the square where banners still hung demanding regime change and where people were crowding around a makeshift memorial to about 300 people killed in the revolt. Volunteers were clearing rubble.

Police protest

Meanwhile, gunshots rang out near Egypt's Interior Ministry during a wage protest by hundreds of disgruntled policemen, witnesses said. A security guard said they were warning shots fired in the air.

The police force was pulled off the streets when it lost control of anti-government protests last month. Some have held their own protests and sit-ins since Mubarak's overthrow on Friday, demanding higher wages and immunity from prosecution.

A low-ranking police officer who gave his name as Hisham said he had served for 21 years and was paid 800 pounds ($136) a month.

"The high-ranking officers are the ones who used to get all privileges and we were left to starve. We were told if we don't like it, we can take money from the people," he said.

Egyptians say "police worry if they can't take bribes anymore," NBC News' Richard Engel said in a Twitter post Sunday, "they can't survive on salaries, which are low."

The tension in Tahrir Square reflected the fragility of the situation as protesters press for a voice in guiding their country's move to democracy two days after Mubarak surrendered power to the military.

Egypt's new military rulers promised Saturday to abide by the peace treaty with Israel and eventually hand power to an elected government, but many protesters worried long-sought reforms would be stalled if they give up.

The crowd on Tahrir Square was down from a peak of a quarter-million at the height of the demonstrations to a few thousand on Sunday. Most of those remaining have been pushed to sidewalks and the streets were open to traffic for the first time in more than two weeks.

A coalition of youth and opposition groups that was the driving force of the movement pulled its supporters from the streets, calling instead for weekly mass demonstrations every Friday to keep pressure on.

"It's time we show that we trust the army," said Nasser Abdel-Hamid, who is with the coalition.

'We still need guarantees'
The coalition is highly influential in the square, but its members do not claim to be leaders and often say they can't defy the will of the "revolution." Many in the square vowed to stay put until all their demands were met. Military police wearing red berets lined up to cordon off one group, prompting skirmishes.

Ramy Mohammed, who has been camped on the square since the protests began on Jan. 25, said some troops beat the protesters with sticks as they tried to clear the square.

"We were chanting peacefully," the 28-year-old said. "They wanted to remove the tents but we still need guarantees. The army's latest statement was vague and didn't tell us exactly what they are going to do."

Protester Ashraf Ahmed said the military can tear down his tent but he's not going to leave "because so much still needs to be done. They haven't implemented anything yet."

"I came here because I wanted freedom. Freedom is not complete," he said.

The angry mood was in sharp contrast from the day before, when thousands began cleaning up the sprawling plaza with broom brigades sweeping up rubble and garbage.

Cabinet to meet
Egypt's cabinet, appointed when the 82-year-old president was still in office, would not undergo a major reshuffle and would stay to oversee the political transition to civilian rule in the coming months, a cabinet spokesman told Reuters.

A cabinet meeting, due later on Sunday, could provide some answers to a protest movement hungry for change after the momentous revolution that shocked and enthralled the Middle East, sending a warning to autocratic rulers across the region.

"The shape of the government will stay until the process of transformation is done in a few months, then a new government will be appointed based on the democratic principles in place," the spokesman said, adding some portfolios might change hands.

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"The main task of this government is to restore security and order and also start the economic process, and to take care of day-to-day life," he said.

With Mubarak gone, Egypt's future will likely be shaped by three powers: the military, the protesters, and the sprawling autocratic infrastructure of Mubarak's regime that remains in place, dominating the bureaucracy, the police, state media and parts of the economy. Right now, the protesters' intentions are the clearest of the bunch.

The coalition behind the protests issued their first cohesive list of demands for handling the transition to democracy. Their focus was on ensuring they — not just the military or members of Mubarak's regime — have a seat at the table in deliberations shaping the future.

Coalition's demands
Among their demands: lifting of emergency law; creation of a presidential council, made up of a military representative and two "trusted personalities"; the dissolving of the ruling party-dominated parliament; and the forming of a broad-based unity government and a committee to either amend or rewrite completely the constitution.

The Armed Forces Supreme Council is now the official ruler after Mubarak handed it power on Friday. It consists of the commanders of each military branch, the chief of staff and Defense Minister Hussein Tantawy. It has not explicitly canceled the constitution drawn up by Mubarak's regime, but the constitution seems to have effectively been put in a cupboard for the time being until it is decided what to do with it.

The military seized power after pleas from protesters, and it has repeatedly promised to ensure democratic change, making it highly popular with the movement.

But on the face of it, the elderly generals are no reformers, and their move to push out Mubarak may have been more to ensure the survival of a ruling system the military has been intertwined with since a 1952 army coup. The deeply secretive military has substantial economic interests, running industries and businesses that it will likely seek to preserve.

The council of generals has said nothing so far about how the transition will be carried out or addressed the protesters' demands.