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Press TV has interviewed Egyptian activist Hazem Salem to talk about the political situation in Egypt.

Press TV: First of all, I don’t know how much you know about this recent attack, but we have heard a lot about the Muslim Brotherhood and supporters of [former Egyptian President] Mohamed Morsi being to blame for these acts of violence. Do you agree with that?

Salem: Well, the fact is the Egyptian revolution and the Egyptian Islamists have been keen to being peaceful all the time and have been keen to preserve the lives even for those who were killing them. You should remember how people were slaughtered in Rabaa al-Adawiya and Nahda, and even despite that the revolution continued to be peaceful.

The fact is there are very contradicting stories coming from all over and the government wants to legitimize and justify the use of force so it is, in one way or the other, accusing the Islamists and the Muslim Brotherhood of being terrorists and accusing them of using violence.

But, it’s a tradition for the Egyptian revolution as a whole and Islamists in particular to be very peaceful. This is the way to win the game against the coup.

Press TV: So, how is the Muslim Brotherhood then responding to what it sees as an illegitimate coup in Egypt?

Salem: Well, the fact is the brotherhood and all their allies, whether Islamists or other political groups, especially the young ones, they have been calling for demonstrations and protests and to uncover the authoritarian and the violent face of this coup. This has been happening in demonstrations, especially by university students and this has been the tradition for the last year. The university students never used any violence against attacks from the security, whether in uniform or clothes. The fact is that the response by the public to violence by violence will lead to an escalation and the police and security should learn the lesson that they should not justify any rule by just sheer use of violence against peaceful demonstrators.

Press TV: And now that Mr. Sisi is in power, you know, he was seen as the one behind the ouster of Mohamed Morsi and also, the one behind the violence against demonstrators who came out against him and to support Morsi. But do you think this current strategy that he has, has enabled him, however despite the odds, to come to power and to stay in power?

Salem: The fact is any kind of coup regime never stays in power, especially if it is failing on the political level and on the economic level and it’s failing to provide services to the people. So trying to use violence to deter people from political opposition and from expressing their views about how the country is being administrated, will not be successful. No military rule in that kind of pattern can be successful.

He is giving green light to everyone from his side carrying arms, whether in uniform or not in uniform, this will not stabilize his rule. And the failure is escalating even since he came to power and now it is growing.

Press TV: Right. And just quickly before we let you go. Do you see Egypt as a polarized in terms of support for Mr. Sisi and support for the previous government or do you see the tide turning against Mr. Sisi?

Salem: Well it has never been polarized in that way. There is a very small minority of secular intellectuals and very brutal military rule that wishes to rule and they cannot get any real legitimacy by ballot boxes, the empty boxes during the presidential elections is evidence to that he lacks legitimacy. So, it’s not about polarized society. It is the secular minority and its military backing trying to force itself on the very religious and very moderate Egyptian people.