With humor and YouTube, group promotes civic education

As the possibility of a genuine democracy emerges, Egyptians are being confronted with questions about their political future, which, a year ago, seemed the preserve of civics textbooks or academic conversations between political scientists. Now, discussions about list-based vs. single-winner electoral systems and civil vs. religious constitutions are commonplace.

While the media provides a platform for these forces, less attention has been paid to breaking down the sometimes complex political issues for the public. That is where Qabila TV comes in.

The idea for Qabila (or “tribe”), a group that produces online civic education videos, serendipitously emerged six months before the revolution began, according to founders of the group. The group, which is funded by its members, went live in April.

PR manager Mohamed Elshafie said that a group of 12 friends – doctors, engineers and members of the media – with a similar vision came together with the idea of producing alternative media for civic education. While their project began during the stagnant political life of the Mubarak era, their mission got a boost with the opening up of political conversation after 11 February.

“There was a political awareness opportunity after the revolution – a large void that needed to be filled, because Egypt has been detached from political participation over the course of the last 30 years,” Elshafie says.

Qabila fills this void through its “Citizen’s Guide to Understanding Politics” a series of playful cartoon infographics. The short videos, which last between three and five minutes are distributed over the group’s Youtube channel and spread on Twitter and Facebook.

Delivered in Egyptian colloquial Arabic, each infographic begins with videos of Egyptian citizens being asked to define political concepts.

Some of the responses are unexpectedly bizarre: When asked to name the branches of power, three people listed them as the Interior Ministry, the army and the people.