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From Our Own Correspondent: Egypt and Thailand

Egypt and Thailand

BBC World Service - From Our Own Correspondent, Egypt and Thailand

Owen Bennett Jones with despatches from Tom Dinham in Cairo and Rachel Harvey in Bangkok.

Owen Bennett Jones hears from Tom Dinham, who sees how even police are protesting on the streets of Cairo; and Rachel Harvey, watching public confidence ebb as the floodwaters rise around Bangkok.

Owen Bennett Jones presents insight, wit and analysis from BBC correspondents around the world. Today, Tom Dinham sees how even police and security services are now taking to the streets of Cairo in protest; Rachel Harvey hear how public confidence in government is ebbing as the floodwaters rise around Bangkok.

When the demonstrators are in uniform

What has the Arab Spring actually achieved in Egypt? The country is currently being run by a General who used to be President Mubarak's Defence Minister. Even since the revolution earlier this year - if that's really what it was  protestors have been killed and voices critical of the army imprisoned by military courts. 

But just how solid, and how united, is this new regime and its alliance with the security services? Tom Dinham thinks some cracks may be starting to appear.

Bangkok as a dystopian Venice

Foreign correspondents never know what they will be reporting on next month next week or tomorrow morning, come to that. Of course, Washington correspondents can always expect to be dealing with US politics and in Afghanistan it's generally war reporting. Over the years, Rachel Harvey has reported from Indonesia, Japan and New Zealand, and during that time she has repeatedly found herself having to convey the effect of  natural disasters. 

She is now in Thailand and this time she is witnessing a flood. Bangkok, one of Asia's great cities, is facing slowly but steadily rising waters, and its inhabitants have been expressing their own mounting unease.

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