Will Egypt's military hand over power when time comes?

Fears of an enduring military rule are emerging as jubilation slowly fades on the streets of Egypt, a New Zealander in Cairo says.

Deposed Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak stepped down on Friday after 18 days of protests about a lack of democracy and Government corruption.

Egypt's new military leaders have dissolved parliament and suspended the country's constitution, meeting two key demands of protesters.

Journalist Glen Johnson said celebrations had not stopped on the streets of Cairo since Mubarak's departure.

But that mood had begun to be tempered with some political analysts' scepticism about the chances of the country's new military leaders shepherding in true democracy, he said.

"The question that matters is, will the military hand over power when the time comes? And to what extent will the upper echelons of the military - who are the old guard of the regime - consolidate power in the lead-up to transfer of powers?

"It will need a responsible military leadership and a well organised civilian protest movement to make that happen for sure."

It was becoming clear Mubarak's departure was a military takeover rather than a revolution, he said.

"More and more it's emerging that there has been a military coup. Whether or not the military will hand over to civilian rule is now the question."

Protesters had been pressing the ruling military council, led by Defence Minister Hussein Tantawi, to immediately move forward with a transition to democracy by appointing a presidential council, dissolving parliament and releasing political prisoners.

Thousands have remained in Cairo's central Tahrir Square to demand immediate steps by the council such as the repeal of repressive emergency laws that give police broad power.

The suspension of the constitution effectively puts Egypt under martial law - where the military makes the laws and enforces them in military tribunals.

Mr Johnson said behind those immediate political problems was the question of whether the revolution will spark wider cultural change in Egypt.

The "paternalistic" Mubarak government was partly an extension of the authoritarian family structures and lack of freedom entrenched in Egyptian society, he said.

He saw the next months as a chance for Egypt to show other Arab states the "way forward".

"Right now people are still celebrating what they see as a successful revolution. But behind that is the question of whether society is ready to look at itself and change fundamental problems.

"Getting rid of a dictator is great, but the societies in Egypt, Yemen etcetera need to take a good hard look at themselves and ask 'do we really value democracy'.

"There's still a long, long way to go."