Egyptian Elections | News & Discussions

Ok today was a busy day in Cairo when it comes to the lawmaking process. I do not know from where to start , I will start from the good draft law and then move to the the bad draft law.

The good law is the new parties law which regulates the parties formation in Egypt , I find it very reasonable and here are the most important articles in the law from the cabinet’s official website :

• The party's principles, targets, programmes, policies, or means of practicing activities shall not contradict the constitution's main principles or requirements to preserve the national security and the national unity, social peace and democratic system.
• The party's principles, programmes, activities, and selection of members shall not be based on the religious, geographical, or racial basis such as sex, origin, language, religion, religious belief.
• The notification and documents of the party shall be presented to the parties committee within 15 days of notification.
• The Committee shall be headed by first vice head of the Court of Cassation, and membership of two vice persons of the State Council in the Court of Appeal. “Bye Bye Safwat”
• The party's founders or deputes shall publish names of founders at their own expense in two daily newspapers widely spread within 8 days of notification date.
• The party will enjoy the legal personality and practice activities since the first day following 30 days of notification.
• The party is not allowed to accept any donations or benefit from foreign or international person or authority, and/or from legal personalities even if he holds the Egyptian nationality as well.

There are still articles in the laws regarding its announcements , its dissolution if it breaks the laws based on the supreme administrative court order’s decision.

Now the door is open and we should not waste in any debate , we got six months to have enough parties to compete on the seats of the parliament. Again the NO team in 2 weeks managed to have 22.8% all over the country. I am happy that the law is clear regarding the party’s principles will not based on religious or geographical or racial basis. There is not time to waste now.

There are many parties already waiting for this law like for instance :

• The MB’s Freedom and justice which is similar to AKP if I am not mistaken
• The Egyptian Communist party , the oldest underground communist party in Egypt since the 1920s.
• The Al Wasat Party
• The Liberal party of Amr Hamzawy he was speaking about
• Mortada Mansour’s party which will be an extension to the NDP

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Playing Politics

http://www.sandmonkey.org/2011/03/20/playing-politics/

Dear Jan25 people,
So today the results of the referendum came out, and as expected the YES vote won. In case you didn’t expect it, well, there were 4 reasons why that happened:

1) How many Egyptians joined the protests at their peak? The day Mubarak left Office, it was estimated 10-20 million in the streets. What’s 20 million out of 85 million again? 25%? That means there are 65 million who never joined the protests from the beginning, and who probably miss the stability and security of the old regime. 75% that is used to say YES and there is no proof that they changed their mentality or behavior. Never-mind those amongst you who also voted yes for their reasons. I am personally surprised it wasn’t lower.

2) Cairo is not Egypt. This may seem obvious to others, but let me repeat that point again: CAIRO IS NOT EGYPT. Stop your Cairo-is-the-center-of-the-universe chauvinism. 25 million live in Cairo, 60 million live elsewhere. And, let’s be honest, the NO vote people did not manage to get their message across to the people effectively. There was no real TV campaign, no real grassroots campaign and no actual debate. Some individual efforts here and there, but no real coordination. This has to change.

3) The Military & the MB & the Salafis & the NDP were pushing for a YES vote. The Military, as always, just wanted to get out of this mess as quickly as possible, and the YES vote meant just that for them without having to face any real headaches. The rest knew that a YES vote gives them the best chances to win the Parliament and thus re-write the new constitution, and they had the money and the organization and tools to push for it. You didn’t.

4) You no longer represent the people. You really don’t, at least when it comes to their concerns. Your concerns and their concerns are not the same anymore. You care about the revolution, & the arrest of NDP figures & getting the country on the right track. They care about economic security, the return of stability and normalcy the fastest way possible. They only have the military now as the organized force running the country & providing some security, and you are pointing out-correctly, mind you- that the military is detaining your friends and colleagues and torturing them and violating their rights to protests, and you want them to stand up against the military, the only force in the country in their perspective that is keeping Egypt from descending into total chaos. Yeah, that will win them over.

Mind you, this is not totally your fault. There are some things you are just not paying attention to, besides that you have been losing the people steadily. The First of which are the original demands. Remember those? Remember all the millions that went down for the minimum wage and you completely swept this under the rug to engage in a battle with State Security and the military? How many of the original demands have been met so far? Why is this not a bigger issue?

You are also not noticing that the Military doesn’t like you very much, and really, why would it? The Military likes stability, and we started a revolution which brought down a regime that put them first of everyone in the country and instead managed to get them to not only abandon their stable life-style under Mubarak’s rule but to start working harder than they ever had in years. You think they care about you or your demands? You don’t think that they won’t go after every single one of us when the time comes? This is not paranoia..this is simple logic. A force that can bring down a regime can take down the next one or even bring down the military structure itself; why allow that force to continue to exist or have popular support if you can take that away? In case you haven’t noticed, the military only listens when we manage to amass lots of people, and could care less when we only manage to get a couple of thousands. They don’t like you or your ideas, and they cave in when they do in order to maintain stability & their image as the public’s saviors. And you know all those times you keep mentioning that the Military is part of the old regime? Well, they are noticing it, and they don’t like that either. Why wouldn’t they attack you, allow propaganda against you, tell people that you are immoral, armed and/or on drugs, arrest you, beat you or torture you?

What’s in it for them if you succeed?

How is any of this a surprise to you?

So, now what? Well, now is the hard part. This is the part where we stop playing revolution, and start playing politics for the sake of the country. This means caring more about perception and public support over righteous and legitimate demands. Do you know what that means? Well, if you do, but think that the revolution must continue on the street, well, congratulations, you are the reason why we are losing. If you don’t, well, please relax and keep an open mind, cause this is about to get really uncomfortable.

1) You have to get over the referendum results now, & see it as the gift it is: Oh yes, we lost, and it’s great news. Why? Well, because first of all, we managed to find out how many people are really with us, and which areas or locations we need to focus on (All of Egypt..Imagine?) and the percentages from those areas. We now have actual statistics, people. We know each district by vote. We know how many people we have in every voting district. We have a nation-wide base. Sure, 20%, is small, but it’s not insignificant, and you can totally build on it. And now you also know what tactics the MB and the Salafists use to mobilize the vote. We now know how they intend to play this, and this gives us an incredible advantage, cause we still didn’t play yet. You wanna start? Congratulate them on the results of the referendum. Call everyone you know who voted yes and enthusiastically congratulate them. Offer to host referendum parties if you can even. Don’t lose them even if you disagree with them. The wall you build now over this could exist come election time, which is when you will really need every vote. In case you didn’t notice, this was just a test-run.

2) You have to focus on the people & their issues, and push yours aside for now: Yes, you will have to address the economy. Yes, you will have to offer constructive solutions to the Police problem that isn;t simply “clean them up”. Yes, you will have to lay off the military criticism and, as horrible and hard as this might be, to put the issue of those who are detained, jailed, tortured or beaten by the military on the back-burner for now. Yes, I know that they are our brothers and sisters, but I also know that this is how they are distracting you. They are making you focus on small battles instead of focusing on the war. How many of us were tried or arrested? 50? 100? 10,000? We are talking about the hearts and minds of about 85 million, and you are not doing shit to win them. Win the public, and all of your friends will be released immediately. Continue to lose the public and you will eventually join them. Simple, really!

3) Offer solutions that appeal to the public and get you support: I know, I know. You would think demanding accountability and the end of corruption would get you all the public support you ever needed, but, nah. They spread lies about you while you are running around trying to find your jailed friends and not responding or engaging back, and whatever goodwill you got for the revolution, well, it’s EGYPT’s revolution now. Everyone has the “January 25″ stickers on their car, which means that your achievement is now their achievement, and thus you get no credit. Ok, start earning credit again. START SELLING THE MINIMUM WAGE for example. In a country where 40% live under 2 $ a day, how is it possible not to get support for a proposal that would guarantee every egyptian 1200 EGP a month, especially in these economically turbulent times? You wanna demonstrate? Demonstrate for the Minimum wage, and many egyptians will join you, thus showing you have public support again. If the Military Council says yes to the minimum wage, Good, you not only gave people freedom, but also got them extra money in their pockets every month, which they LOVE, and as an added bonus you obliterated the myth that you don’t care about the economic hardships of regular Egyptians. That can’t suck. If they refuse, well, that’s good too. It will show that the military doesn’t care for the economic hardship of the poor, while you do , which makes you with the people again. And while they are there all dissapointed at the not-so-benevolent supreme council, you start letting the people know what else they have been up to. You don’t need to lie to manipulate and sway public sentiment to your side, you just got to pick your timing.

4) Start organizing yourselves into an offline grassroots movement, Zenga Zenga style: This one might seem self-evident, but how to do it is the tricky part.

• First of all, find your people all over Egypt, and start registering them and training them. Start with the Polling data alongside those you know through life, facebook or Twitter. You will find them
• Secondly, organize yourselves into different units: The Internet-Unit (to lead efforts on reaching out and organizing the base on the net), the door-to-door Unit ( Go to every neighborhood, knock on 10 apartments and talk to people), the Phone Unit ( Use telemarketing techniques: call people and talk to them about the revolution. Have a training for the phone unit and conversation scenarios. Reach everyone again), the local Media Unit (those are your Intelligence and propaganda arms. They keep you abreast of the news of the areas they are in, let you know who are the people to watch out for and which are the ones to support and they are responsible for catering the media message to the needs of the locals) and the election observers unit (self-explanatory really). The more organized your people are, and the more trained they are in your talking points and counter-arguments, the easier it is for them to sell their ideas to the people.
• Thirdly, Create the coalition of new parties in order to bring in all those new ragtag parties together and make them a cohesive block that could stand a chance in the parliamentary elections by having one party’s members vote for other Parties’ candidates in precincts that they are not running their own candidates in, and they will do the same in return. Every vote counts.
• Last but not least, FUNDRAISE ALL THE TIME. We need the money. The NDP has all the money they stole from the country and the MB has all the money they get from Saudi & Qatar, so we need to get our own. Hit up for donations everyone you know in Egypt who isn’t interested returning the corrupt to power or having this country turn into a theocracy. Contact your relatives and your friends abroad. Create Festivals and events whose tickets will fund your operations. There is no campaign finance legislation in place, which the MB is totally abusing, and we can as well. Let’s do that until we have enough of a majority to place in a law in place that would make this entirely unpleasant situation we currently live in behind us.

5) Start reaching out to Imams and Priests now: I once suggested that we need to reach to Imams and Priests in order to get them on our side, and I was hissed at for wanting to mix Politics with Religion. Well, as much as I agree with that sentiment and truly wish we live in a country where people don’t vote based on religion, ehh..welcome to Egypt. We are religious people, and whether we like it or not, Imams and Priests are community leaders. We have to engage them, get them on our side and have them help us with the hearts and minds of their flock. An easy place to start are the individual churches and the Sufi festivals (Fun Fact of the Day: the Sufis are 16 million in Egypt. I KNOW!), get those two groups, and then focus on all the local imams that are in your area. If you manage to convince 1 Imam in every 5, you already caused them to lose a sizable part of their base. Try to convince 2

6) Know thy enemy: We need to compile a data-base on all the NDP names we know in every district, and then research their history and public record in the parliament. We need to get the history of all the known MB MP’s in the egyptian parliament and find out what bullshit policies they were pursuing during their tenure there. We need to know how popular they are and how much dirt there is on them. We need to know who their financial backers are and what businesses they own. A lot of the info is already available online. Let’s compile it and learn from it. This will be useful later.

7) Prepare for the propaganda war: The other side has already started the Propaganda war over the refrendum, using lies and fear-mongering to get people to vote their way. I am not a fan of lying or fear-mongering, but I have no problem using the truth as a weapon to hammer my agenda home. Tell people the truth: Tell them of the MB’s record in the parliament- how they wanted to ban books and music videos and the net. Tell people what Hamas- the MB of Ghaza- did t the population the moment they seized power (No music, No shisha, no concerts, no free media, intimidation and fear). Start creating banners accusing them of being agents for wanting to sell the country’s soul to the Gulfies, and start asking loudly where their seemingly endless money comes from during this economic crisis. Play on nationalism and national Unity. Joined demonstrations of muslims and christians that congregate in front of the MB Supreme Council’s office, and do a sit in there until they vow to stop using sectarian tones and ads, and when they vow, throw it in their face every time they use a religious slogan. Go After the Salafis as well. If they call you infidels, you call them Taliban. Remind people when they used to throw acid on girls for showing some legs or on their face for not wearing a Niqab. Remind people of the days when they used to target them and kill them, or when they used to crash weddings for being Haram or burn video stores and christian jewelery stores. Keep repeating everywhere you go that Egypt will never be Afghanistan, and people will start repeating that every time they see a Salafi or an MB member trying to use religion to his advantage. Start putting them on the defensive. They are weaker than you think, and the ways to neutralize them are endless.

That’s all for now, but let me remind you of one last thing before you go: You are more powerful than you know. You brought down Mubarak and his regime. You changed this country, gave it a future, and there is no way in hell you will allow those who use people’s ignorance to hijack it. They aimed to scare you yesterday, and instead they pissed you off. They pissed off the smartest, most fearless and most capable group of egyptians this nation ever gave birth to, thinking that you will see beards and yelling and you will run away screaming. They thought wrong. They miscalculated. They fucked up. And they will find that out soon enough. We gave them our hand in friendship, we gave them the benefit of the doubt and we wanted them equal partners in the building of this country’s future, while they were busy plotting against us with the NDP of all people. Well, moral clarity time: The NDP and the Islamists are two faces to the same coin, and neither can be allowed to control this country ever again. It’s time to quit being distracted, and start organizing and engaging people NOW. War has been declared on all of us, and we will be damned if we lose now. Just like the NDP, we will fight them until we can’t.
And in case you are wondering: We will win!

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Egypt: A Parliamentary Plan 2011

http://www.sandmonkey.org/2011/03/23/egypt-a-parliamentary-plan-2011/

The following post was written by my friend Ramy Yaacoub, which you can find on Twitter @RamyYaacoub (follow him as well) . The Idea behind this is simple: in the absence of organized political forces besides the NDP and the MB, name recognition of independent players is essential. Given that the Presidential candidates have the best name recognition, and most don’t represent a current party, why not have them run for Parliament (with a list of candidates that are part of their coalition) as well? This way, they bring others in parliament who otherwise wouldn’t have a chance, and showcase their actual electability ( the guy who can;t win a parliamentary seat would never be able to win the presidential one), and allows for their presence on the scene even if they lost the elections. Anyway, that’s an overview, read the details below and share your opinion on this in the comment section if u feel like it.

In a post referendum March 19, 2011 Egypt, Parliament will be the only institution representative of people’s choices. As of now, many household figures, namely Amr Moussa, Bastaweesy, Ayman Nour, Baradie, etc have expressed their intentions to run for the presidency. Such names have, somewhat, all agreed in opinion on the need to curb the current presidential powers. Along with the January 25 movement and what I regard as the majority people, the household names have expressed their discontent with the Pharaoh-esque powers of an Egyptian president. They [the household names] have called for the dilution of presidential powers, by creating term limits, creating a checks and balances system, etc.

Meanwhile, other forces in the country, as the Islamic political movements, namely Muslim brotherhood, etc, have consolidated their efforts to legitimize the Parliament. Successfully doing so with the passage of the March 19, 2011 referendum, Parliament now has the popular legitimacy required for a three-part-plan for overhauling the Egyptian constitution. Further elaboration on the three-part-plan will follow later.

The current path to fully fledged constitutional reform and presidential (or the lack of which):

Constitutional Amendment Referendum (Yes) - Amending Electoral & Party laws - Parliamentary Elections - Elected Parliament (Legislative Body)
It is predicted that post assembling a legislative body, they (an elusive they) will hold presidential elections followed immediately by the assembly of a constitutional drafting committee, selected by members of Parliament. Also predicted, the constitutional fruit of that committee will be up for another popular referendum that will either accept or reject the then newly drafted constitution. Should that referendum fail, then the country would revert back to the 1971 constitution. Such scenario would require a separate detailed political plan.

It is clear that Parliamentary elections will indeed take place in the near future (sometime around beginning to mid June 2011). It is also expected that the centrist voting bloc will not have much influence on the Electoral & Party laws amendment process, which will more than likely take place in May 2011. Considering the hurdles ahead, it is wise to consider a dedicated focus on influencing the Parliamentary elections, and furthermore, the first Parliamentary session post the January 25, 2011 uprising.

While it is unclear how the Electoral & Party laws amending process will affect candidacy and elections to the 444 (454 if we consider the ten presidential appointees) seats up for grabs in the People’s Council and less importantly the 174 (264 if we consider the 88 presidential appointees) seats in the Consultative Council, it is safe to predict some, if not significant, changes to the structure of eligibility and voting procedures to Parliament.

Noting one of the first points made in this briefing, household names are betting the house on a presidency that will be subject to constitutional reform sometime in the very near future. Meanwhile, established veterans of Parliament from the NDP and the Muslim Brotherhood, with supreme organizational skills are at a vantage point at this stage. Additionally with the relatively short time provided for unorganized opposition groups to assemble and push political message out, it is crucial to consider utilizing the household names in the Parliamentary elections.

To highlight the level of Parliamentary familiarity and organization with institutions such as the Muslim Brotherhood, I would like to site an example of their Parliamentary efforts. In the United States congress an esteemed research center is provided and dedicated to the service of members of congress, the Congressional Research Service (CRS). After the more impressive win of Muslim Brotherhood candidates in 2005, the Brotherhood set up an equivalent research center to serve its members in Parliament. Unprecedented in Egyptian Parliamentary history, members of the NDP struggled to catch up with this advantage the Brotherhood created for its team in Parliament. Several scholars agree that if it was not for the corruption of Parliament, this simple tool could have magnified the effect of the Brotherhood in Parliament.

What this brief is proposing is the encouragement and utilization of the household names and their top supporters, advisors, or the like to run for parliament as a counter measure to the strength of the established institutions such as the NDP & the Muslim Brotherhood. The repercussions could be beneficial beyond expected.

I. Having household names in Parliament will gain media attention to a legislative body that was deemed a rubber stamp for decades.

II. The presence of household names in Parliament will give the centrists a more significant leverage in the constitutional drafting process

III. Being a member of Parliament does not hinder a run for the presidency. In fact, instead of having one winner (the presidency) and several losers. By having the households as members of Parliament initially at the end of the presidential elections, all would be in influential positions to mend the current affairs of the nation.

It is imperative for all centrist parties, and perhaps leftist as well to consolidate brain powers to map out the parliamentary districts of Egypt. An efficient polling methodology should be devised and activated to register accurate statistics to determine potential wins and to highlight probable losses. Finally, an agreement on the division of parliamentary districts should be conducted on high-level leadership basis between all involved centrist-leftist parties.

Ramy Yaacoub

M.A. Candidate, United States Foreign Policy – Middle Eastern Relations
School of International Service, American University
Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/RamyYaacoub

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Secular forces prepare to confront Islamists in elections

Secular groups in Alexandria are rallying to confront predominant Islamist forces in the coastal city ahead of parliamentary elections scheduled for September.

On Thursday, the Wafd Party will host all the secular parties and opposition groups in an effort to establish a coalition and develop strategies for contending with both the Muslim Brotherhood and Salafis.

“We’ve agreed on some major points such as putting aside the ideological differences since we all agree on the secularism of the state, and on not handing the revolution to dogmatic forces. We are thinking of a plan not to have two candidates from the secular bloc in the same constituency so that they don’t compete with each other,” said Rashad Abdel-Al, a Wafd Party spokesman in Alexandria.

In the meantime, the main challenge for those secular groups is a prevalent Islamic trend in Alexandria, with mainly Muslim Brotherhood and Salafi manifestations.

Alexandria is Egypt's second largest city with a population of 4.1 million. In the last two parliamentary elections in 2005 and 2010, it was one of the main battlegrounds for the National Democratic Party's campaign to sweep the elections, edging out lawmakers affiliated with the Muslim Brotherhood.

Amid allegations of election fraud by the former regime, the Brotherhood failed to garner any of the city’s 22 seats.

In the 2005 elections, the Brotherhood won eight seats, making Alexandria its third most influential parliamentary stronghold after the Delta governorate of Gharbiya, where it had ten seats, and Cairo, where it had nine.

For some political leaders, the past dominance of the Brotherhood over the coastal city is no indicator of a landslide victory in the upcoming elections.

“Any starting point for thinking about the next parliamentary elections should bear in mind the results of the last referendum on constitutional amendments in Alexandria,” said al-Sayed Ghazi, head of the Alexandria office of the left-leaning Tagammu Party.

Alexandria had the highest voter turnout of any governorate during the 19 March referendum, with around 1.5 million voting on whether to accept or reject the constitutional amendments. With 32 percent opposing the changes, Alexandria also had the fourth-highest percentage of "no" votes.

“These figures simply give us an indicator that despite the heavy campaign marred with religious propaganda by the Brotherhood and the Salafi groups to convince people to back the referendum, one third of the voters said 'no',” said Ghazi. “Don’t overestimate the power of the Muslim Brotherhood in Alexandria.”

The Brotherhood and Salafis held campaigns to convince people to vote for the constitutional amendments, presumably because the group wanted early elections, for which they are perceived as the most prepared contenders.

“A third of the voters saying 'no' is not a small number. This number highlighted the power of the secular forces in the city that could be translated easily into parliamentary gains,” said Abdel-Al.

Abdel-Al argued that secular forces, which consist of old parties and the new opposition groups, could win at least half of the seats of Alexandria and maybe more in any electoral system.

In the 2010 elections, the Tagammu Party fielded ten candidates in Alexandria, while the liberal Wafd Party, the biggest formal opposition party in terms of membership, fielded 13 candidates but did not win any seats.

Previous elections have been based on candidates themselves rather than a system or proportional representation in which voters choose a party and the parties receive a certain number of seats accordingly. Opposition parties have criticized this system, saying it encourages candidates to spend vast amounts of money on their campaigns and also that it allows many non-political factors to influence a candidate's popularity.

Some have advocated for proportional voting, which they hope would shift the focus to party platforms and positions and away from personalities and flashy campaigns. This is being used as a winning card for the seculars.

“Changing the electoral system will turn the electoral battle into a political contest over programs and ideas and this will be a major threat to the Muslim Brotherhood,” argued Ghazi.

Moreover, the candidate-based system is the “only means for the former ruling NDP to have the ability to compete with the Brotherhood and win some seats of the governorate’s 22 seats,” said Abdel Haleem.

As for the Salafis, conservative Islamists who have long abstained from politics but recently announced they would begin participating, secular opposition politicians beleive they have no chance of winning seats in Alexandria.

Alexandria is a major stronghold for the Salafi movement, which adopts a literal interpretation of Islam and Sharia Law.

In the working class area of Karmooz in Alexandria, Salafi Abu Abdel Rahman, was hanging posters against “indecently-dressed women” on the fences of a school. The posters, featuring a non-veiled woman surrounded by insects, were put up over other Salafi posters that had been torn or removed.

“We are inviting people to return to God and adhere to the true teachings of Islam,” said Abdel Rahman, who was in the middle of a heated discussion with area residents.

Some of the Salafi banners were covered in graffiti denouncing their content or accusing followers for being extremist. In the meantime, posters reading “yes for a secular state” were also found on the streets of the city.

Tension in the city between Salafis and Copts abounds.

Joseph Malak, the coordinator of the Free National Coalition Party, the secular party dominated by Copts, said, “There are strong fears within the Coptic community in Alexandria that the Salafis are preparing to attack unveiled women. We do not know whether these rumors are related to news about the Brotherhood possibly conducting a dialogue with Coptic youth.”

Recently, an estimated 16 historic Sufi mosques were targeted by members of the Salafi movement, who believe mosques that contain shrines to the dead do not conform to Islam, Sheikh Gaber Kasem al-Kholy, the highest Sufi Sheikh in Alexandria, told Al-Masry Al-Youm.

“They have made fatal mistakes by attacking people in mosques that have tombs. They are simply causing public panic and by such attitude they are not going to achieve any success in the next elections if they decide to run,” argued Abdel-Al.

Ghazi said the “Brotherhood activists are hesitant to confront the Salafis, fearing the latter would accuse them of compromising religion. I think that they are both falling.”

According to Malak, the founding members of the Free National Coalition Party will not apply to register their party yet. "Instead we will use our platform to support candidates who believe in the secularism of the state," he said.

With an estimated 1 million Copts living in Alexandria, the city has one of the largest Coptic communities in the nation, said Malak.

“We have seen the impact of the Coptic population in the referendum. I think that the Copts are now more determined in taking part in shaping the political landscape of the new Egypt by supporting secular voices,” said Malak.

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Montrealers said:

Secular should create one big coalition instead of several party's....

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xAbd0o said:

@egypt69 I beated you and posted before using the app :laugh:

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egypt69 said:

Thats what they're doing, did you read the articles?

Sent from my iPhone using SSC Forums

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Naguib Sawiris launches liberal 'Free Egyptians Party'

Telecommunications tycoon Naguib Sawiris announced the launch of the liberal Free Egyptians Party at a press conference on Sunday.

Sawiris, who is among Egypt's best-known businessmen, said that he will not head the party and called on all new political powers to work hard during the “challenging and defining” five month period before parliamentary elections in September.

The new party’s stated principles are democracy and freedom, civil state and equality between all citizens, the empowerment of women to participate in all fields, an independent judiciary, and a separation between legislative and executive bodies.

The party aims at encouraging economic, social, and scientific progress in Egypt and maintaining the dignity of all Egyptians, whether located inside and outside the country.

In October, Sawiris stepped back from the management of his business in order to focus on political and social activities. In the weeks after the January 25 revolution, which lead to the resignation of former President Hosni Mubarak, Sawiris served on the so-called Council of Wise Men, a group charged with mediating between the government and youth-led opposition movements.

Sawiris, whose personal wealth is estimated at US$2.5 billion, funded a campaign calling for a "no" vote in last month’s referendum on constitutional amendments. He is active in a number of other political organizations.

When a TV talk show host asked Sawiris in an earlier interview if he was funding the Free Egyptians Party, he replied that he, like every other member, had the right to contribute as much as he wanted.

Under the slogan “We build the future together to restore Egypt’s glory,” the party aspires to building a free market economy while maintaining an atmosphere of social justice. It also hopes to build new institutions and legislative structures that lead to stability and respect for the rule of law.

“I support all parties based on civilian values, not those that want to bring us back to the ancient times. I don’t differentiate between Muslims and Christians,” said Sawiris in an apparent dig at Egypt’s Islamist movements. He urged Egyptians to join any party that they believe in, and not necessarily his.

Easing concerns that the party would reflect Sawiris’ Christian religion, he said that the party is not Coptic and that currently, most of its members are Muslims. He said he demands that each Coptic citizen who joins bring along two Muslims.

The party believes that Article 2 of the Constitution, which states that Islam is the religion of the state, should remain in place.

So far, the party has around 1000 members; necessary minimum required for official registration is 5000. After securing the minimum number, the party intends to elect a president and vice president. Sawiris will not compete for either position, and will instead serve on the party’s own "board of wise men."

A number of notable public figures have already joined the Free Egyptians Party, including poet Ahmed Fouad Negm, the writers Mohamed Selmawy and Gamal el-Gheitany, and businessman Khaled Bishara.

Sawiris and other party members intend to undertake a promotional tour of Egypt, with the goal of establishing 43 branches across all governorates. The tour will begin next week with a trip to Aswan, Luxor and Sohag.

Sawiris is chairman of the telecommunications company Orascom Telecom Holding (OTH). He launched Egypt’s first mobile telephone operator in 1998 and two satellite television channels in 2007.

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Brotherhood leaders announce they'll implement Sharia, set off storm

Mahmoud Ezzat, the Muslim Brotherhood's deputy Supreme Guide, said in a forum held in the Cairo district of Imbaba on Thursday that the group wants to establish an Islamic state after it achieves widespread popularity through its Freedom and Justice Party. Meanwhile, Brotherhood leader Saad al-Husseiny, said at the forum that the group aims to apply Islamic legislation and establish Islamic rule. His remarks rattled the leaders of several political parties, who said the statements, which were at odds with the concept of a civil state, would worry liberals.

The Coptic Orthodox Church decided to suspend its dialogue with the group after additional Brotherhood leaders said it was seeking to implement Islamic Sharia and declare Egypt an Islamic state, church sources said. The sources said the Brotherhood is trampling over the principles of equality and citizenship, and that its rhetoric changed after the 25 January revolution to adopt the language of the toppled regime.

Al-Masry Al-Youm has learned that as a result of the controversy, the church abandoned its intention to invite the group’s leaders to attend Easter celebrations.

Anba Bassanti, bishop of Helwan and Maasara, gave church head Pope Shenouda III the prerogative to respond and declined to comment on the Brotherhood leaders’ remarks.

Meanwhile, Abdel Maseeh Baseet, the pastor of the Church of Saint Marie in Mostorod, said he was unsurprised to hear the statements, which he believes represents the Brotherhood’s true intentions. “This way of thinking is rejected both locally and internationally. The world is not ready for a Taliban-style state," he said.

The Coalition of Revolution Youth described the remarks as a step backward, saying it belies the group's previous statements that it will establish a civil state, while Khaled al-Sayyed, a member of the coalition, called on the group to apologize to the nation for the statements.

Mostafa al-Tawil, acting president of the Wafd Party, said the statements are intended to prepare the people for religious rule. He added that Egyptians will respond when they vote in the upcoming elections.

The Nasserist and Democratic Front parties expressed similar positions.

The statements also elicited angry responses from within the group itself. Mohamed Habib, former deputy Supreme Guide, said the timing is wrong for a discussion of these matters.

Brotherhood leader Hamdi Hassan defended the statements, saying they are not new, but that the controversy arises from the inaccuracy of press reports and the improper understanding of Islamic law.

Ezzat, meanwhile, filed a report with the attorney general, accusing the media of twisting his statements.

Following the 25 January revolution, the Brotherhood worked to counter fears about its political ambitions after establishing the Freedom and Justice Party. It announced that the party would welcome Christian members, and that it would not oppose female and Coptic nominations for presidency.

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Ahram Online's idiot's guide to Egypt's emergent political landscape

The Egyptian revolution has triggered an explosion of new and emerging political parties and movements. Ahram Online offers its readers a tentative guide to the daily evolving political landscape of the country

On 11 February 2011 the Egyptian revolution’s top demand was met: Mubarak, who ruled Egypt for 30 years, was forced to step down. Egyptians were then faced with the most difficult task of building a democracy after decades of authoritarian, one-party rule, with scarce, if any, real political participation. The hundreds of thousands of people who participated in the overthrow suddenly have a chance to engage in political life. Many just don't know how.

On 28 March, 2011 the Supreme Council of the Armed Forces, which stepped up to rule, temporarily, in the absence of a president, passed a new law for the establishment of political parties. This new law requires parties applying for registration to gather 5000 signatures from at least ten of Egypt’s 29 governorates, with the guarantee that their application would be reviewed by a judicial committee within 30 days. Since the debate of this law, which began weeks ago, dozens of political parties have been launched, and are busy fulfilling the requirements for registration.

Egypt's new political parties have yet to complete the registration process; however many are hopeful that the emerging political landscape, made up of secularists and Islamist, leftists, liberals and conservatives, is a promise of vision of a new era of healthy political competition, which will manifest itself in the coming parliamentary elections in September of this year.

Whether secular or Islamist, for the most part, the nascent political parties agree they need more time before the elections —which are to take place in less than six months— for these groups to have a real impact. Some also worry that elections coming this soon would greatly favour the Muslim Brotherhood, which already has a large-scale social network in place.


Old and new forces on the left

On 19 March 2011 seventy-three members of Egypt’s only legal leftist party, Tagamu’, walked out of the party conference, after having accused the leadership of being too close to the remnants of the Mubarak regime, and called for the formation of a new party. They, in turn, joined the Popular Alliance, a new coalition attempting to bring the fragmented leftist parties and groups of Egypt under one umbrella organisation, independent of past political allegiances, with democracy and social justice providing the base-line of their "unity amidst diversity" perspective.


The Popular Alliance Party

Elham Eidarous joined the Popular Alliance as an independent because she wants a catch-all leftist party to represent her "...especially that during revolution it was clear that there are two big forces: one liberal and another Islamist. I felt that a strong left force is needed to balance things out," said Eidarous, who didn't feel that Tagamu’ could represent her as it "doesn’t have a strong opposition stance: I wanted a party that supports the revolution and whose members are revolutionary," said Eidarous. She is very hopeful that the new leftist party is a fresh start for the Egyptian left. "It is also a democratic party, where everything is discussed in groups and everyone has a say, not a strict, take-it-or-leave-it platform. The party has a struggle and isn’t solely interested in growing its membership base.”

Many argue that a broad left coalition is the way to go, and they hope that one single leftist party should represent all leftists. Eidarous believes that there won’t be fragmentation because "Differences are there according to participants’ backgrounds. We may differ in our explanation of a situation, but we will all take the same stance."

Besides the Popular Alliance, there is also the Egyptian Socialists Party led by veteran activist, Ahmed Bahaa Shaaban, and the Egyptian Democratic Labour Party.

http://www.facebook.com/#!/popular.alliance.party


The Egyptian Democratic Labour Party

Mostafa Basiouni is one of the founders of the Democratic Labour Party. He makes it clear that the party is based on a demands platform.

"Part of its mandate is to stop privatisation. The party is fully aligned with workers’ needs and rights. Members are not there according to ideas. They believe in worker’s rights to political expression and party organisation," said Bassiouni, who believes the workers should have their own voice in the new political map. "The labour movement has always been organised. Workers have a very high level of awareness," added Bassiouni. He admits that the party lacks a leadership figure, but believes one will come forth in the middle of the struggle to organise the party.

Bassiouni doesn't feel the rush to start the party before the upcoming elections in September. "This has to take its time. We are forming this party because we believe in the right of workers for political expression, we reject the pressure from a law that states we need at least 5000 members and rush towards elections," added Bassiouni.

The first declaration of the Labour Democratic Party states that "The Egyptian labour movement is the first line of defence and spearhead of the January 25 Revolution. The continuation of this movement and its development is the only guarantee for the success of the revolution. We need to establish strike committees and independent trade unions everywhere. We need to establish an independent Federation of Egyptian Workers and the ultimate elimination of the federation of the Mubarak era. We need a political party; the voice of workers and a forum for all those that toil and are exploited and oppressed in Egypt."

Both the Popular Alliance and the Labour Party have gathered signatures from their founding members and are set to hold their first conferences within weeks.

The goals of both parties include the complete achievement of the revolution's demands by ridding Egypt of the former regime and establishing a civil, democratic state, as well as fighting capitalist policies and promoting the rights of lower economic classes.

Both parties' economic programmes involve setting a minimum and maximum wage, putting an end to privatisation and monopolistic practices and redirecting development plans to benefit underserved social classes.

Workers called for the unconditional nationalisation of major companies, as well as agricultural reforms in favour of peasants.

Liberal forces

Egyptian Social Democratic Party

Bassam Mortada is also a leftist activist, but he didn't join the Popular Alliance. He prefers the more liberal-leaning Egyptian Social Democratic Party (ESDP).

"I don't take decisions alone. I belong to a group of people, previously called the democratic left, and we decided to join the ESDP together because currently, we need the strength of a big party that brings together leftist and liberal forces to build a democracy. Two years or so from now we might diverge into different parties," said Mortada, who is excited to participate in openly in politics versus in the shadows. "All of the parties say the same things: ‘freedom, democracy, and social justice’ but I feel that the ESDP has a strong inclination to establish democracy through the state and institutions," said Mortada.

Prominent figures have joined the party, such as Mohamed Abul-Ghar (one of the founders of 9 March university professors’ movement), Samer Soliman (leftist activist, academic at the American University in Cairo), Ehaab El Kharrat (pshchiatrist, activist and one of the few people who spoke openly pin support of the revolution in churches during the events), filmmaker Dawoud Abdel-Sayed, and many others. The party focuses on human rights, democracy, citizenship, social justice and economic development, world peace and environmental awareness. Website: http://www.egysdp.com/


The Free Egyptians Party

The Free Egyptians Party was established by business tycoon Naguib Sawiris, based on the "belief in democracy and freedom; the right of citizens to free assembly and organisation; the freedom of opinion and expression; the integral role of women in society and the need to empower them in all domains, especially in public office; a civilian Egyptian government that guarantees freedom of religious practice and the preservation of Egyptian values, customs and traditions as tokens of a genuine Egyptian identity.”

Both liberal parties promote free market policies, but with an emphasis on the state's role in developing the public services especially education. There is no mention of a minimum or maximum wage or the issue of privatisation on their agendas.

Youth parties

The most recognizable party-planning took place through Facebook, the social-networking site most often credited with helping protesters topple former president Hosni Mubarak's regime. At least a dozen Facebook groups have been set up under the name "25th of January Party" after the date of the first protests that eventually brought Mubarak down. The largest of the groups has attracted nearly 400,500 "Likes."

The Voice of the People's Party has around a 1000 likes on Facebook and their programme is based on citizenship and a secular parliamentary state, as well as development of education. Interestingly, the party was established in the satellite city of 6th of October, roughly half an hour outside of Cairo.


Islamic parties

The Muslim Brotherhood

Although the new law prohibits the establishment of parties based on religion “in their principles, programmes or the practice of their activities,” the Muslim Brotherhood announced on 21 February 2011 that they intended to establish the Freedom and Justice Party.

The MB has affirmed that it does not object to the election of women or Copts to the government, although it deems that both are "unsuitable" for the presidency. The group supports free-market capitalism, but without manipulation or monopoly. The party’s political programme would include promoting tourism as a main source of national income. The Freedom and Justice Party says it will base itself on Islamic law, "but will be acceptable to a wide segment of the population," according to leading MB member Essam El-Erian. The party’s membership will be open to all Egyptians who accept the terms of its programme. The spokesperson for the party said that "when we talk about the slogans of the revolution – freedom, social justice, equality – all of these are in the sharia [Islamic law]."

Al-Nahda (Renaissance Party)

Egypt’s Salafis, who have been at the centre of controversy lately, are slated to establish Al-Nahda, or Renaissance Party, open for all Egyptians to join, according to Mamdouh Ismail, a lawyer and founder of the party.

Al-Wasat Al-Gadeed Party (New Centre):

A Cairo court finally approved on 19 February the establishment of a political party that has been trying to secure a license for 15 years.

The court's ruling was handed down in the wake of the Egyptian Revolution of 2011 and made Al-Wasat, a moderate Islamic party, the first new party to gain official status after the resignation of ousted former president Hosni Mubarak.

The party embraces the idea of Al-Wasatiya (moderation or centrism): a tolerant version of Islam with liberal tendencies, formed by a group of young professionals who defected from the ranks of the Muslim Brotherhood in 1995 and sought to establish a political party. Among the very early founders was Islamist thinker and lawyer, Mohamed Selim El-Awa. The party, later in 2004, emerged into Al-Wasat Al-Gadid.

Party leader is Abul-Ela Madi, an ex-member of Al-Gama'a Al-Islamiya during his years at Minya University's Faculty of Engineering. In 1979 he left to join the Muslim Brotherhood. In 1984, he became a member, and then deputy secretary-general of the Engineers' Syndicate. He defected from the Brotherhood in 1995 after a row over the establishment of a new political party to be called Al Wasat.

The party's manifesto accepts the right of a Christian to become head of state in a Muslim-majority country.

In a recent interview, Madi likened the Wasat's ideology to that of the Turkish Justice and Development Party (AKP), which he says has deep roots in Islam, yet still appeals to a broader electorate, including secular, middle-class elements.

According to the party’s official website, founders include the late political writer and historian Abdel-Wahab Elmessiri and former member of the parliament, Fikri El-Gazzar.

Website: http://www.alwasatparty.com/article-107.html

Non-parties: simply political movements

Akram Youssef, leftist political activist has been shopping for a political party. He went to both the founding conferences of the ESDP and the Popular Alliance but decided he won't join either. "My main observation is that the revolution made a lot of young people eager to join political life, they but don't necessarily want to join a political party. So the solution is coalitions and alliances that gather people around their common goals. These people then can form parties later on. This is the natural order of things: awareness first, parties later," said Youssef one of the founders of the Association of the Progressive Revolution Youth, an initiative taken on 15 February that sought to create an organised body that would work for a civil state, which respects the rule of law and fights for freedom, social justice and human dignity. It aims to coordinate and work with other political groups and contribute to raising awareness. http://www.alrabta.net/

There are dozens of like-minded initiatives, where large groups of youth meet either in cafes or online to discuss and explore a rapidly changing political reality. A meeting on Tuesday between 23 new political groups may not only be a beginning of another revolution coalition, but also their answer to Egypt’s very uni-dimensional political scene. The political weight still seems to be only in the hands of groups who had power before Egypt’s January 25 Revolution. An assembly of many of the current movements hoping for the prospect of a coalition may be just what the forces of change need to influence the future.

Youssef believes that these new movements and youth coalitions are capable of standing against the "corrupt mechanisms and policies of the old regime that focuses on money, tribal relations and sectarian issues in campaigning," said Youssef in a hopeful tone.

Among the new initiatives are also El-Lotus, Masry Hor (Free Egyptian),The National Front for Justice and Democracy, El-Sahwa (The Awakening),The Popular Committees for the Defence of the Revolution, Rasd el-Parlaman (Monitoring the Parliament), Magles Tahrir Masr (The Council for Freeing Egypt), The Confederation of the January 25 Revolutionaries, Haraket El-Shaab Helm Yatahaqaq (The People Movement: a Dream Realised) and many others.

On a lighter note

If the reader of this article doesn’t find a political party they’d like to put in their shopping cart, try the author's personal favourite: the Dragon Party. A group of young, humorous youth decided to establish a satirical virtual party online that keeps the laughs coming with videos, pictures and comics. http://www.facebook.com/#!/home.php?sk=group_177938722254050&ap=1

There is also the hilarious "I don't understand anything party" group on Facebook. Both groups strictly confine themselves to a platform of the humour of politics.

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