An American student witnesses the internal democracy of Al-Ghad party.

Two days ago, internal elections on the 4 seats of deputies in the Alexandria chapter of al-Ghad liberal party were as competitive as you may imagine. Sallie, an American student working on her thesis in Egypt, was there during the vote counting and subsequent celebrated declaration of results. She wrote the following post on her blog. We publish it after her permission:

A Day with Ayman Nour and al-Ghad

Ayman Nour walking to the al-Ghad party headquarters in Alexandria

Yesterday I found myself smack in the middle of Egyptian politics.
After a last-minute invitation from a new friend, I hopped on a mini-bus at 9am for the three-hour trip from Cairo to Alexandria. Thankfully the trip was completely uneventful, and the bus was even air-conditioned. Around 1pm we found ourselves sitting at a beach-front cafe sipping fresh juices (strawberry for me, guava for her) and reveling in the clean air and smell of the sea. We took a long stroll down the corniche (the road which runs along the water) and found ourselves outside Ayman Nour’s apartment at quarter to three – 15 minutes early! (Apparently neither of us have gotten back on Egyptian time yet.)

(Quick background: Ayman Nour is a well-known figurehead of opposition politics in Egypt. Formerly a member of the Wafd party, Nour left to form al-Ghad (Tomorrow) party in 2004. Al-Ghad was officially licensed just in time for Nour to run for President in 2005, Egypt’s first multi-candidate presidential elections since Nasser’s revolution in 1952. Nour came in second to president Hosni Mubarak, who has been in power since 1981. Officially Nour received 8% of the vote, but there is speculation that the actual percentage was much higher. Following the election Nour was convicted on forgery charges largely recognized as politically motivated and spent nearly four years in prison. He was released in February of 2009.)

We relaxed in the living room for a while, and eventually the five of us – myself, my friend, Nour, his secretary in Alexandria, and another Ghad party member – left for lunch. Nour nodded out the window to a guard station as we piled into the car. The four men at the station were watching us, and while three of them didn’t seem particularly concerned the fourth was looking between us and his phone. He was letting his superior know we were leaving the house, Nour said.

Anyone who argues that Nour’s popularity has fallen since his release from prison last year (and multiple tabloid-esque stories in the media) has not seen him in public. From the moment we entered the mall, where we stopped for lunch with other al-Ghad members, the flow of people stopping to speak with Nour, shake his hand, or take a picture with him did not abate until we got back in the car to go home at the end of the night. Men and women young and old approached him, all with smiles and handshakes and waiting cameras.

Eventually we made our way to the al-Ghad party headquarters for the Alexandria chapter. It was election day at the party – there were two issues on the ballot, and a petition as well. The first issue on the ballot was the deputy election (4 available seats, 5 candidates). The other, a referendum to confirm the party’s nomination of Ayman Nour as presidential candidate. The office, the entranceway, and the street outside were full of people milling about, speaking animatedly, talking on their phones, and vying for a moment with Nour.

Eventually my friend and I made our way inside, where there was just as much commotion. People coming to vote, and to sign their names next to their thumb-print on the petition. The petition is for a constitutional amendment to change the current electoral law, an issue supported by figures from Nour to Mohamed el-Baradei, the Egyptian former head of the IAEA. The ruling NDP party, however, has stated that it does not intend to propose constitutional amendments before the upcoming parliamentary elections.

Signing the petition

Yet al-Ghad is determined to prove that change is possible. According to Mohamed el-Wasemy, the Vice-President of the Executive Office for al-Ghad in Alexandria, the party’s internal elections are a lesson for both the party and the Egyptian people at large. The ballot counting was something that probably none of us have ever seen before. The ballot boxes are made of glass, a visual reminder of al-Ghad’s commitment to transparency. The ballots were counted out loud in front of a crowd of more than 60 people, the tallies marked on a board at the front of the room. During Friday night’s tally, every time the marker made a mistake and marked a tally for the wrong candidate, a dozen voices instantly called out and the error was immediately corrected. Each party member seated or standing in the room was watching carefully.

El-Wasemy called the elections a message to Egyptians. “A free election is not impossible to achieve,” he said.

“Political activism is the best way to bring about change in Egypt,” said Mohamed, a member of al-Ghad’s youth chapter, echoing el-Wasemy’s sentiments in an interview earlier in the day. Mohamed is a fairly new member of al-Ghad and sees the party as the only challenge to the regime. Neither the Reform and Development party or the Karama party have received official licenses, and Mohamed said that much of the other supposed opposition in the country has been created by the regime to play the part of opposition without actually being such.

Whether al-Ghad offers real opposition to the ruling NDP or not, the Tomorrow party faces many obstacles in its battle for change. Mohamed pointed to the broken lock and handle on the door of the room we were in. “Obviously we have no funding,” he said. Yet, despite the challenges, many in the party were hopeful as they gathered in the street following the election results.

“Say to me, mabrouk!” called out one of the newly elected deputies. I laughed and said to him, “Mabrouk!” Another new deputy echoed, “And me, and me!” Mabrouk – congratulations.

As the evening drew to a close, the crowd gathered on the street and slowly dispersed. Someone brought cake, and as we stood around talking a young member who spoke a little English walked over. “We call Obama the American Tutankahman,” he said. “We like Obama.” Why? I asked. “Some people love Obama because his father was Muslim,” he said. “But for me, his vision and charisma.”

After talk of el-Baradei (the headquarters of his National Association for Change in Alexandria is located in al-Ghad’s offices), corporate scandal, and a shocked exclamation of, “What is this language?!” as someone tried to decipher my notes, it was time to head back to Cairo. This time, my friend and I caught a ride with a party member back to the city. It was 11:30pm, and past 2am by the time we arrived back in Cairo.

An eventful eighteen hours, to be sure. I wonder what is next?

Nour surrounded by party members

Sallie Pisch

Alexandria, March 13th, 2010

EGYPT: First presidential candidate announced

February 17, 2010 | 10:09 am

Ayman Nour, founder of El Ghad opposition party, is the first candidate to officially state his intention to run in the nation’s 2011 presidential elections.

Nour was nominated by the majority of his party’s council earlier in the week. "Last time the decision to run for president was my own," he said, "but this time it is my destiny as the party has chosen me and this is a patriotic responsibility that I do not have the right to reject."

The feisty lawyer finished as runner-up to President Hosni Mubarak in Egypt’s first multi-candidate elections in 2005, but soon afterward, he was charged with forging signatures in support of his run against Mubarak. Human rights organizations said the charges had been trumped up, but Nour was sentenced to five years in prison. He was released last February on medical grounds.

Anyone convicted of such a crime in Egypt is barred from running for the presidency for at least five years after the expiration of the sentence. Still, Nour is confident that the legal system will be on his side when he tries to overturn the ban.

"This will be a legal and constitutional fight and we are ready to launch into it," he said. "We have judicial and constitutional provisions as well as decisions from the Constitutional Court that refute the textual justification for the ban on my participating in politics."

Nour added that he will start his campaign on Thursday by visiting a number of cities, including El Mahalla in the Nile Delta and Port Said by the Suez Canal. In the meantime, two activists belonging to opposition movement, April 6, have been detained on Wednesday for spray-painting walls in Cairo with slogans showing support to former head of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), and potential candidate, Mohamed ElBaradei.

ElBaradei, who will return to Egypt on Friday, left his post at the IAEA in November, and many Egyptians are hoping that he will consider running for president. The former Nobel Peace Prize-winner previously said that he would run only if fair, transparent and internationally monitored elections are guaranteed beforehand.

Mubarak has been in office since the assassination of President Anwar Sadat in 1981, and the 81-year-old is yet to confirm whether he will be the ruling National Democratic Party’s (NDP) candidate. Speculations mixed with fear have recently grown among millions of Egyptians that Mubarak is grooming Gamal Mubarak, his younger son and head of the NDP’s policies committee, to take his place as head of state.

Nour plans to run for president

By Amr Emam
Saturday, January 30, 2010

Opposition activist Ayman Nour announced yesterday his desire to run for president in Egypt’s next presidential polls, downplaying the effect of what he called the “legal stumbling blocks” the Government allegedly puts on the opposition’s way to presidency.

---

Nour said he felt obliged to run in the next elections, which are slated for 2011, so that Egypt could be “put” on track yet again.
“It’s necessary for everyone of us to act now to rescue the future of this country,” Nour said.

“Egypt’s future is in danger and a quick action is required if this country is to continue to hold,” he told The Gazette in an interview.

Nour, the founder of the opposition el-Ghad (Tomorrow) Party, called for the formation of a new constitution and a transitional cabinet to be headed by former International Atomic Energy Agency chief Mohamed el-Baradie to prepare Egypt for what he called “fair” elections.

Nour came a distant second to Egypt’s incumbent President Hosni Mubarak in the country’s first contested presidential elections in 2005.

Some people say, Nour, who was previously convicted and sent to five years in jail for fabricating party documents, has many legal hindrances ahead if he wants to run for president.

He, however, says he had loaded his guns with the necessary legal arguments and documents to sort this legal problem out.

“If my party chooses to field me as a candidate in the elections, I would seek ways to find a solution to this problem,” Nour said.

“My party would ratchet up the necessary internal and external pressure to make this possible,” he added, without elaboration.

Members from Nour’s party are due to meet on Friday to agree whether they will pick him as
the party‘s presidential candidate.

Despite this, he has already started his campaign by touring more than 20 Egyptian cities to meet ordinary citizens and talk to them about his programme.

Nour, in his mid forties and a lawyer by profession, says he had found support everywhere he went, making him encouraged even more to run for president.

Mubarak, who has been ni power swince 1981, has not said yet wheite he will run for a 6th six-year term in office.

But in a recent interview with the Police Magazine, the President said he would welcome candidates who would “serve” the people.

Heartened by this, Nour is optimistic about his prospects in the elections. “I found support everywhere and this gives me hope,” Nour said.

“People’s feelings to my campaign are more than encouraging,” he added.

Ayman Nour: One year since Obama’s inauguration

Barack Hussein Obama has made history since he became the first black person to win a seat in the U.S. Senate and made history for the second time when he won the Democratic Party’s nomination for the Presidential election. He has since made more history when he scored victory in the elections, becoming the first black American President in history.

But making history is different than entering this space and formulating the wide consequences resulted from this victory, as before Obama, American President James Buchanon also made history as the first and the only president to remain a lifelong bachelor, as well as President Martin Van Buren, considering English was not his mother tongue.

Obama’s real problem from the moment of his inauguration last January 20, 2009, is that he began a new phase, which is greater than making history; a difficult stage of the competition, much harder than the old Republican rivals or even his stubborn Democratic rival – and his current Secretary of State – Hilary Clinton, or with his predecessor: Bush.

Obama’s rival after one year in office is himself. He is the only person he cannot defeat, as Obama, the current President of the United States, is a rival to Obama – who was described by the dreamy minds as “the savior”; minds that painted the image of Obama and put it in the background of the image. They drew the descriptions of Moses splitting the sea and Joshua who stopped the sun, and Christ, who revives the dead! And certainly, Obama is not any of these prophets.

Although America is part of the world – and not the whole world – Obama has become a universal dream, especially considering the other was a universal nightmare. Strangely enough, and dangerous, is the conflicting expectations about Obama from related parties whose positions have conflicting interests and can only be unified by hope and ambition in this “magical” image. They have planted in their imagination of Barack Obama, who has to find an impossible approach to fulfill this imagination.

Obama’s problem, who had plenty of sympathy in Egypt and many Arab countries is doubled due to historical considerations and past experience with former presidents of the US, who at the beginning were greeted by them [Arabs], then they called on for their impeachment.

At the end of World War I President Woodrow Wilson made the 12 principles his priority. The last of these principles was the right of every nation to self-determination and Egypt’s Revolution in 1919 was against the British occupation of Egypt, demanding the right to self-determination, and the demonstrators shouted slogans honoring Saad Zaghloul (revolutionary leader) and Mr. Wilson.

In Syria, demonstrations demanded an American Mandate in the hope of the promise of Wilson.

Suddenly, President Wilson recognized the British protégé in Egypt, and demonstrations were organized to call for his impeachment, after it was organized in the beginning to cheer his life! The same thing happened in Syria, when he recognized the French Mandate of Syria and Lebanon!

When President Roosevelt declared the Four Freedoms, the motivation of Arabs turned from Hitler to America, then Truman succeeded Roosevelt, to recognize Israel, breaking Roosevelt’s promises during World War II, causing a shock to the Arabs and a shift in their feelings as they were frustrated.

This happened in 1956, when America gained its popularity back, for its stance against the tripartite aggression on Egypt, the popularity that has soon faded away because of America’s rejection in financing the construction of the High Dam.

When the Egyptian-American relations were restored, the Egyptian people welcomed President Nixon in an unprecedented event, then Carter remained to hold a special place in the hearts of Egyptians until America’s constant bias with Israel, which has been the cause of the deterioration of the Egyptian-American Rapprochement for years.

Obama’s real rival is the image of Obama himself, people who chant for his favor may in fact chant and shout against him. Only if he decided to read history well to be able to make it again after one year has already been lost.

BM

Sectarianism and other untold stories

Never ever fear a nation which examines its actions, and refuses to buck in disclosing its faults and sins. Never ever expect any good from a nation which arrogantly insists on continuing with its mistakes and denying the obvious truth.

Yes, we have a Coptic problem! No one can deny that the crisis of confidence in relationships is the result of many historical and modern accumulations of the problem. Some of them happened by chance and some others were purposefully committed by bad intentions.

We have to confess this unfortunate reality, in order to reach the right diagnosis of the problem and put a clear vision for a remedy. Facing the problem with silence, as usual, is like conspiring to tolerate the crime, which threatens the unity and safety of our homeland. Apathy will only lead us to the painful bottom of agony.

It is our turn now to try clarifying the facts of the crisis and specify its real features and causes.

First: the relationship between sectarian tension and public tension in Egypt. Actually, most of the problems described as “Coptic” are mainly Egyptian problems that are doubled on the Copts. One of them, for instance, is the bitter feeling of the absence of justice, civil rights and equality.

Second: we have a Coptic problem related to media and education. In media, I refuse the demand of some groups to give a special immunity to Copts as much as we refuse using sectarian language in media discourse and the absence of tolerance and the culture of political and religious multiplicity.

On education, school curriculum is still incapable of understanding the real mission of education in enhancing the culture of citizenship and human rights. On his first day in office, the new Minister of Education ordered removing the training programs of human rights and citizenship from school curricula. Moreover, the current curricula are missing proper presentations of Coptic civilization, which continued for more than six centuries in Egypt. Coptic history is an essential part of our civilization; we cannot just ignore or marginalize it in our schools. This would weaken the relationship between citizens to a large degree of their inherited culture!

Third: the overwhelming feeling of injustice for Copts is the result of several factors; e.g. depriving them from occupying certain positions in state in an offensive manner. They are not valued for their patriotism or qualifications. They are classified as second degree citizens, especially in regard to leadership and political positions. Some security apparatuses do not hire Copts at all, like the State Security Bureau.

Fourth: the need for the immediate abolition of the “Hamayouni” manuscript issued in February 1856 by the Sublime Porte, as well as bizarre conditions issued by Major-General Mohamed El-Ezaby Pasha, Minister of Interior, in February 1934 regarding building churches. They should be changed into building a unified law for houses of worship in Egypt in accordance with article 46 of the Constitution, which stipulates citizens’ equal right to practicing religious rituals.

Fifth: The need to issue a number of important legislation to face the reasons behind the sectarian tensions. One of these legislation should provide a penalty for religious discrimination or disdaining religions. Another legislation should handle the personal affairs of Copts. Nevertheless, creating a unified law for building houses of worship. In addition, a new electoral system based on the proportional list should be established in order to give better chances for Copts, women, youth, and other minorities for equal representation in municipal councils, Parliament and the Shura Council.

These are some of the few proposals for the solution of this crisis!

El Ghad Denounces Violence against Christians in Nagaa Hammady

El Ghad Denounces Violence against Christians in Nagaa Hammady

El Ghad Party denounces the terrorist attack against a number of Egyptian citizens which took place as they were leaving Nagaa Hamady’s Church in Quena after Christmas Mass. We see this incident which left seven dead, including the policeman in charge of securing the Church, and many injured, in the context of an accumulation of many previous incidents, which went unresolved as the perpetrators were rarely punished and the law thrown aside. This has culminated an atmosphere of lawlessness as the State failed to protect its citizens and enforce the law, instead resorting to failed political tactics.

This last tragic incident is yet another sign on the failure of a tyrannical regime and the political, social and economic consequences of corruption, oppression, incompetence and misgovernment. This should not, however, blind us from seeing a number of other alarming issues;

• The gross negligence on the part of the security authorities which failed in securing this important church on Christmas day.
• A rise in the culture of violence and conflict in place of tolerance, co-existence, equality and citizenship.
• Abuse of religious sentiments to promote hatred instead of love, compassion and tolerance.
• Failure of Egyptian Media and Educational Institutions in spreading values of tolerance and citizenship as many channels and outlets have been hijacked by extremists and fanatics.

El Ghad Party renews its constant demands to resolve these issues and address the grievances of Christian citizens and all Egyptians. El Ghad presents its liberal reform agenda as basis for coexistence, tolerance, liberty and progress.

El Ghad Party conveys its deepest sympathies and condolences to families of the victims and presents the following demands:

• Swift pursuit and trial of the perpetrators.
• Accountability for negligence and failure to properly secure the church.
• Dismissal of the Minister of Interiors and other officials found responsible for gross negligence.
• Allowing peaceful demonstrators to express their grievances in accordance with the law and the constitution.
• Putting an end to failed policies of denial, cover-up and compromise which has rendered the law ineffective.

To all Egyptian citizens, El Ghad calls for resorting to reason, self-restraint, dialogue and transparency in order to resolve chronic problems of sectarian nature before it is too late

Ayman Nour: The Parallel President

Ayman Nour

Freedom supporters in Egypt are urgently invited to read the following scenario, add their inputs, and get prepared: Mubarak senior or junior goes to the presidential election committee of Heliopolis district in September 2011 to submit his candidacy papers. He will not find the road clean from the supporters of other candidates, particularly the ones who the regime wants to exclude from the competition, upon illegal and undemocratic practices covered by the law.

The hypothetical scene on the morning of submitting candidacy papers, should be as follows: The headquarters of the presidential elections, which is based in a building in heliopolis, across the road from the War College, will mark the unprecedented turnout of supporters for all candidates, regardless of their political affiliations.

The supporters of El-Ghad party, in 2005 “forged” elections, were more than three quarter million of people! Some of them, in 2011, will accompany their candidate while he submits the candidacy papers. They will gather peacefully to express their opinion for the international and local public opinion.

The supporters of some independent candidates (e.g. Dr. Mohamed Elbaradie or Muslim Brotherhood candidate) or candidates of parties threatened by exclusion (e.g. El-Gabha Party) with claim that they started less than five years ago, and others will gather outside the committee headquarters to support the right of their candidates to join the race for presidential seat.

The horrible scene out there will not be the demonstrations or clashes, but the “unexpected” response to article 76 of the Egyptian Constitution, which stipulates that the candidate should be supported by at least 250 members of local municipal councils, Shoura Council, and People’s Assembly; provided that 10 of the supporters must be representing municipal councils in at least 14 governorates.

The presence of people at the election committee will not be artificial for popular pressure. It is also meant to be an execution to article 11 of law 174/2005 of organizing presidential elections; which stipulates that “supporting the candidate is allowed according to the model stated by the presidential elections committee.” In other words, the presence of supporters here is obligatory to know the model they should follow and respond to the committee.

It is also essential that the presidential committee should accept the papers of candidates regardless of the obstacles, according to articles 14, 15, 16, 17, and 18 of presidential elections law. The committee should announce in two daily newspapers the names of all candidates who submitted their papers even before checking their submissions to see if they meet the candidacy conditions or not. This will give an opportunity to supporters of each candidate to wait for few days outside the headquarters of the committee before the final decision is made; i.e. approval or disapproval on candidacy papers.

The whole world should see the odyssey of steadfastness and determination made by the bare hands of people who will enforce their historical right to informed choice.

[http://bikyamasr.com/?p=6730?4ba5e538]

Ayman Nour invites El Baradei to form a constitutional convention

In his article today, Ayman Nour invites former IAEA chief, Mohamed El Baradei, to join Nour’s nation-wide door-knocking campaign. He also invites him to start a national campaign in order to establish a constitutional convention to draft a new constitution for the country. Here are the 3 basic suggestions Nour offers to El Baradei:

1. I invite Dr.El Baradei to participate with us, as an Egyptian reformer, in the door-knocking campaign. It started last April as a nonpartisan nationwide campaign aiming at spreading the ideas of reform and change through direct contact with the people. He is invited to lead the campaign’s second phase starting next February. In the first phase we’ve visited nearly 20 governorates and 30 major cities. The second phase will include weekly visits to the countryside population centers.
2. El Baradei is asked, as a law professor, to adopt a public campaign to form a national constitutional convention whose task is to draft a new constitution supported and signed by the people to achieve what we hope, and what El Baradei does, along with all political forces, for a constitution for a modern Egypt.
3. We call upon Dr.El Baradei to modify what was labelled in the media as ‘pre-conditions to run for presidency’ to ‘national rights and demands’.

[http://egyptdailydigest.wordpress.com/2009/12/11/daily-briefing-dec-11th-09-ayman-nour-invites-el-baradei-to-form-a-constitutional-convention/]

Ayman Nour Biography

Ayman Nour

Ayman Nour was born on the 5 th of December 1964 to a father who was a lawyer and a Member of Parliament (MP) and a mother who established and supervised a number of charity projects in his birth town Mansurah.

He started his political career as a student activist during high school and University; and was elected as President for the Egyptian High School Students’ Union in 1980.

He won several awards in photography, school journalism & many other activities.

He graduated at Law School (Mansurah University) & started his career in journalism in the 80s, in one of the most famous opposition newspapers called “El Wafd” after “El Wafd Party” the oldest liberal party in Egypt. He was married to Gamila Ismail, who was a TV presenter, a political activist and who became his spokeswoman later on.

Nour's main concern was torture & corruption cases which led to his arrest & exposure to physical violence several times during his press campaigns.

Ayman Nour interviewed a number of arab world leaders like Yasser Arafat.

He wrote a number of books like “Liberalism is the solution” in 1992 compared to the famous Islamic slogan “Islam is the solution”.

He wrote as well “The Black Soldier : Zaki Badr” who was at that time the Egyptian Interior Minister.

He received his Ph.D. degree in “History of Law” from Russia in 1995. Then he ran for parliamentary elections and won to become the MP representing “El Wafd” liberal party in an electoral district in the center of Cairo called Bab el Sha’rea.

Till now he is considered the youngest member in the history of the Egyptian Parliament as he had been elected only few days after I had reached the legal age for nomination.

As a Parliament member ( 1995 – 2005 ) he exposed lots of corruption cases, proposed a large number of laws, amended & monitored many International treaties which involved Egypt , stood against random laws, supported civil rights , visited many parliaments around the world & won many awards for his honorable parliamentary performance on both national & international levels.

In 2003, he demanded a war crime trial for George W. Bush & Tony Blair for the invasion of Iraq without the UN permission.

He was re-elected for Parliament in 2000 announcing his intention for running for presidency after having 186 votes in the internal parliamentary elections (more than the third of the parliament which was in this time the main condition for being a presidential candidate) but then one year later he was dismissed from “El Wafd” party together with many of his colleagues in Parliament & began establishing their own political liberal movement called “Al Ghad” i.e. "Tomorrow" in 2003.

In 2002 he wrote a political & economical platform for Egypt’s problems in a book called (Modern Egypt in 2020) which later on became the basis for “Al Ghad party” policy.

In 2003 he launched with his fellows a large political campaign to attract Egyptian youth & society elite to political life based on the old Egyptian liberal values of “Al Ghad movement “such as “tolerance” , “human rights”, “third way free market”, while respecting Egyptian & islamic traditions.

In 2004 after a lot of pressure on the government (by thousands of founders, demonstrations & well written platforms handed to the Court ) the Egyptian government finally gave the legal license for the foundation of “Al Ghad” party (announcing in the government-controlled public media that it was an underhanded deal).

The Party then called for presidential elections instead of the old fashioned presidential referendum.

Because of his calls for constitutional reforms as regards the presidential elections, he was targeted by the Egyptian regime when 3 months later he was accused of falsifying official documents related to “Al Ghad” party.

His parliamentary immunity was terminated in a 30 minutes session & he was brutally dragged to jail while coming out of the Parliament building.

Days later President Mubarak announced constitutional reforms that will allow other candidates to run in the 2005 elections against him. So he submitted his nomination papers from inside the prison & the government released him to run for the Presidential elections.

In only 28 days, he carried out his election propaganda campaign where he visited almost all districts of Egypt holding conferences in each one. He was subjected to a heavy smear campaign by the government-controlled media & newspapers accusing him of being an American ally.

Finally he came second in the elections by officially taking 540000 votes (8%) compared to Mubarak who has been in power since 1981, who took 6 000 000 votes.

After the presidential elections he was put once again in jail in a trial described by many observers as an unfair trial under the control of a famous judge – the one who sent Dr.Saad el Din Ibrahim to prison few years before.

He was sentenced for 5 years in prison for “knowing about the falsified papers” & months later one of the imprisoned partners in this case was found hanged in his cell (was said to have committed suicide ) a day after his announcement that he had been intimidated by the State Security to force him to lie during his confession.

In prison he was forbidden all his rights including the right to communicate through writing and seeing other prisoners, even the right for health care which led to a lot of health problems later on.

In February 2009 – 4 months earlier than the date for his legal release from prison the government set him free (announcing once again that it was another deal between him & the regime ).

After being set free in 2009 he launched a new campaign called “Knocking the doors” to complete the visits he had started in 2005 to Egyptian towns & cities ,, & even to millions of Egyptians living outside Egypt in Europe , US & in the Gulf region.

Now, when he is supposed to be a free man, he is prevented from earning his living by resuming my job as a lawyer, or dealing with his bank accounts, or selling his property and finally he has been banned from traveling abroad.

Ahmed Amar comment on BikyaMasr

Was a free man touring and flying in the sky, maneuvering and engage in dialogue, invalidate his intelligence on the spectrum of prey for upholding the right to
Sky country, which Amtlait corruption until he received a dream day and has the right to dream the dream,

it belongs to Falcon troublemaker contested space and the eagle in his kingdom, which occupied Bjbroch and power and tried to defend the site you Vdhaih solvency Eagle corruption and the assassination of the dreams of the rest of the birds and the determination to fight the battle

Falcon-style space-Sharif and offset Eagle all methods of deception and deceit and even highlighted by owls and crows to Inhishoa in his and did not leave a door in the deception, but it has been opened, and because a single Vhzmh Hawk Eagle of corruption and vote rigging toward economic because they do not powerless Falcon did not escape the eagle ..

commanded him to be incarcerated and isolated from the flight and the opinion of Falcon all forms of humiliation in his prison after he was a free man in outer space and prejudice against himself for a principle and the issue of Vdhaih site you want to purging of raptors Alnahph for the rights of other vulnerable birds until he came out he was sick of Aigoi the birds and because the eagle security Pferman himself and his decision to prevent Falcon Mnatahth rule space,

and the Falcon was trying to pick up desperate measures to continue flying and resisted the disease, and try again after another until recovery and when he tries to fly to the stage behind him and sends owls and crows to check on how it is measured in order to prepare him if completed healing time for elections,

the king of space every day Ivdad Falcon Guo and Ivdad number of crows that try to be thwarted by his determination and less even recovered from his illness and flew and flew and landed to the city he loves and is loved birds because he knows she loves him and interact with the birds in friendly love and discuss with them and teach them the realities of things and saw the truth of the meanings of words and committing themselves to support him as they were by his side at first and he left Falcon to return to his residence,

a joy is happy because he is supported in part by the Muslim Brotherhood ahead, if it is allowed to log on again and breathed a sigh of relief because he understood how much he is loved by birds, which supported the weak and will support him every step of the will to fly to fight Eagle hawk that Egyptian policy, Dr. Ayman Nour .. every year is a good people of Alexandria congratulates him happy birthday .. Ahmed Ammar, head of the labor movement democracy

Ayman Nour: Thank you Baradei for keeping my chasers occupied

Ayman Nour

In Egypt, when you oppose the regime, you will be labeled as either ignorant, a fool, or a hypocrite! If you introduced yourself as an alternative to the head of the regime, you will be labeled as either a criminal or a murderer! Opposing gods would bring their curse and anger upon you. But opposing the regime would shed your blood, lead you to death, and make you an example to scare whoever dares to do what you have done. Opposing the regime is disliked, but competing as an alternative is a big deal that shakes the seven heavens.

When Dr. Mohamed Elbaradei released a statement on his “faraway intentions” to run for presidency seat, the heat came up higher. The pro-regime journalists and media started an immediate urgent campaign of moral assassination of Elbaradie. They started only a few hours after the statement was released. They were referring to him as a reason of pride to the country, they are laughing at him with claim that he is a stranger who spent 28 years outside Egypt. They even accused him of being a spy for the United States of America and its regional ally. Then, they started looking for the other nationalities that Elbaradei might have; some claimed American and some others claimed Swedish!

In less than a minute, the Egyptian citizen, Mohamed Elbaradei turned into half citizen, or quarter of a citizen, or a few remains of a citizen. They made him a foolish student of Botrous Ghali, untalented employee who lacks experience on internal problems of Egypt, and above all a spy to other countries abroad!

I will not commit the foolishness of the pro-regime press. I will not listen to the intense statements of state officials and regime men against Elbaradie. I can understand this horrible process of mental assassination. I have been there before!

In 2000, I announced my intention to run for presidency during a TV interviewed with my late colleague and friend Magdi Mehanna. Before that date, the state-run media outlets used to interview me, almost daily, as a patriotic opposition figure. They used me as a proof of the understanding of the regime, who would accept those who say “no” sometimes; except for gods of course!

I won 168 votes (more than one third of votes) at the internal elections of parliament in 2000, and subsequently fulfilled the provision of article 76 of the Egyptian constitution, which was amended later in 2005. As soon as I won the votes, I found myself in hell. The first burn came from El-Wafd Party which, all of a sudden, cancelled my membership and removed me from my work as a journalist in El-Wafd newspaper.

When my wife ran in the elections of the Shura Council in 2001 against the leader, the details of the new era had been already established. We faced the widest process of forgery and violence, upon the demands of the big boss, as we were told!

Suddenly, they turned me from a good citizen and a patriotic Member of Parliament for ten years into an unpatriotic person with a wealth from unsuspected sources. I wonder where this wealth they are talking about is.

In the presidential elections of 2005, the regime fabricated a naïve and funny legal case against me. The official wing of the supreme authority was directly involved, while other authority tools were busy with assassinating me in cold blood. They are not done yet!

The fools of the regime are not ashamed of spreading rumors and lies about me. They claimed that my father is not my father! They said that I escaped military service, although I am a single child. Some had great ability for imagination. They claimed that I was a soldier in the US army during Vietnam War, although I was born in 1964.

Many thanks for Dr. Elbaradei for keeping the authorities, who were chasing me for years, busy!

[http://bikyamasr.com/?p=6421]

Amr Hamzawy : Egypt's Opposition Misled by Fixation with Mubarak’s Son

Amr Hamzawy
The National,
1 December 2009 Tuesday

Political opposition in Egypt has been stirred by a recent campaign against Gamal Mubarak, the son of the president Hosni Mubarak, becoming Egypt’s new president in 2011. In particular, Ayman Nour, a key opposition figure and a presidential candidate in 2005, has mobilised a wide spectrum of political groups to present a united front in upcoming legislative and presidential elections in 2010 and 2011, respectively.

Upon closer look, however, Mr Nour’s rallying cry is troubling. In gearing up for elections, the opposition has demonstrated a near complete inability to prioritise the issues essential to its political future, and has squandered its efforts trying to prevent Gamal Mubarak’s succession.

Egypt’s opposition groups, including both legal parties and the Muslim Brotherhood, have been in disarray since the regime introduced stifling constitutional amendments in 2007. These measures limit the oversight powers of the judiciary in elections, fail to set term limits on the presidential mandate, and ban religiously affiliated political activities.

While opposition forces have been exclusively focused on the one issue – Gamal Mubarak’s possible ascendancy – the Egyptian regime has been carefully creating an environment which will sustain its rule. The ruling elite is no newcomer to this game. They have consistently manipulated the political process by preventing the opposition from registering candidates in elections, obstructing the campaign process, and fomenting violence on election day.

In contrast to the ruling elite’s clear direction, the opposition has no guiding compass and is left wandering through the challenges posed by the political agenda in Egypt. Their failure cannot be solely attributed to the regime’s repressive measures – a great part of the responsibility belongs to the opposition parties themselves.

Since 2005, parties including the liberal Wafd party, Ayman Nour’s Ghad party and the Democratic Front, as well as the Muslim Brotherhood (which is banned but has de facto representation in parliament) have all failed in two major tasks: formulating an elections platform and clear vision for Egypt’s political development, and applying sufficient pressure on the regime for political and economic reform.

Despite its acquisition of an unprecedented 88 parliamentary seats in the 2005 elections, the Muslim Brotherhood has yet to push for serious reform of the political system. Several concerns also remain unresolved in Egyptian and international public opinion regarding the Brotherhood’s positions on equal citizenship rights for Copts and Muslims, women’s participation in politics and freedom of expression.

The opposition parties urgently need to tackle several issues to position themselves for the 2010 and 2011 elections. First, groups have to clarify their stance on the question of domestic and international monitoring of elections. Especially with regard to the latter, the opposition remains divided.

Second, they have to prioritise calls for the abolition of the emergency law in effect in Egypt since 1981. Finally, parties should be more attuned to new political opportunities, expanding grassroots activities to capitalise on growing protest sentiment among wide segments of the population who are suffering from deteriorating social and economic conditions.

With Egypt’s declining GDP growth, the unemployment rate reaching 10.3 per cent, a poverty rate of 20 per cent, and an alarming level of debt – 76 per cent of GDP – citizens are in desperate need of competent political parties.

The implications of the upcoming elections will, of course, extend beyond Egypt’s borders. In light of the regime’s recent political manoeuvring and the opposition’s stagnation, the 2010 and 2011 elections in Egypt will test the Obama administration’s stance on democracy in the Middle East. Its position will either demonstrate a commitment to the incumbent regime of the Mubaraks as a strategic ally in a turbulent region regardless of its domestic behaviour, or signal pressure to create better conditions for democratic reform and political competition in Egypt.

The first signals from the Obama administration are not encouraging; the administration has so far put the promotion of democracy low on its list of priorities. Washington has only raised the issue of reform in the context of concessions that Mr Mubarak has already made. The Obama administration has also cut aid to numerous actors and organisations in civil society.

The campaign organised by Mr Nour is a step in the right direction for the opposition in Egypt, but he and other activists would be wise to adjust their agenda. Only by letting go of their obsession with Gamal Mubarak’s succession and addressing other issues at the core of the upcoming elections can opposition groups counter the regime’s hegemony.

Ayman Nour: A visit to Gaza

Ayman Nour

After the conclusion of the official reception of my trip with Amr Mousa to Gaza on the occasion of opening the first session of the Palestinian National Council, I received an invitation from a Palestinian Member of Parliament to attend a meeting at the Social Club of Gaza. His name, as far as I remember was Hamadah El-Fara’ena.

In that meeting, I was introduced to a high profile group of Palestinian leaders who belong to the Intifada generation. The most prominent among them were Marawan Barghouthy from the Fatah movement, Abdul Khalek Al Natshah from Hamas, in addition to some other independent political activists.

In the meeting, I had a feeling that I am seeing a different Palestine, unlike the one I left in despair at Arafat’s house, which I sneaked out of to attend the activists’ meeting. There, I saw a real image of the fire burning inside Palestine! I was transformed from a cold conversation at Arafat’s house about personal memories on public and private meetings and phone calls to a real hot debate on the future of Palestine, criticizing the newborn presidency, constitution, and Oslo 1993.

I was an eyewitness to the exchange of serious accusations between liberal and independent leaders. They mentioned the absence of transparency and democracy. They were preoccupied by the involvement of the Palestinian Authority with the ill mechanisms of building the state via importing the worst examples of ruling regimes in the Arab world. They did not want individualism, monopoly, and corruption to be the pillars of establishing the newborn state. They also had big doubts regarding the injustice of diplomatic developments.

The representatives of Hamas, in the meeting, discussed the fragile balance indicated in Oslo and described it as a “domination peace!” This term stole my ears and I could not forget it until I read it again in Raymond Irawan’s book Paixet Guenne Entx Leanationa in 2004.

I saw the power of the Intifada removing the accumulated clouds of division and weakness in the sky of Palestinian national unity. It strengthened hope in reaching a comprehensive and unified solution.

Israel succeeded in planting a burning cord into the powder keg, by involving Arafat, and later, Abbas, into transformational phases, which gave the Israeli side more space to impose a negative rhythm on the development of social movements. They ran into signing conventions based on the logic of steps and testing the ability of the newborn authority to guarantee Israel security – or rather, suppressing Islamist radicals and secularists.

The internal crisis of Palestine cannot be reduced to the conflict between Fattah and Hamas, or illusionary (made in USA) groups of “moderates” and “extremists.” This is a mere echo of the naïve division of the world into the “Empire of Good” and the “Empire of Evil” by Reagan in his infamous Orlando Florida speech to the National Association of Evangelicals on March 8, 1983. The same concept came to the surface once again by Bush after the September 11 attacks.

My evidence on the inaccuracy of this reduction of the internal Palestinian crisis to a conflict between moderates and extremists is that the majority of Palestinian politicians who participated in the aforementioned meeting are in jail, now.

If we look into the “Prisons” Initiative launched by Marawan Barghouthy of Fatah and Abdul Khalek Al Natshah of Hamas, we realize that the Palestinian-Palestinian conflict is not a conflict between moderation and extremism. It is a conflict between two views of managing a homeland which is not found yet.

[http://bikyamasr.com/?p=6187]

Ayman Nour: Human dignity in Egypt

Ayman Nour

Like cows, chickens, rabbits and ants, the blood of Egyptian people is cheap, and their dignity is valueless. Why Egyptians were insulted in the Gulf, died in Iraq, and got abused in Libya, Lebanon and most recently beaten in Sudan? Why harming an Egyptian is a crime without punishment; an easy action with no reaction?

Is it because we are good, sensitive, and religious? Like soda, we rise up in a moment and calm down in the next moment! Is it because we are a nation of giving without limitations and taking nothing, eating nothing, having no place to sleep, or live and then thank God for the grace?

The physical attack by some Algerians against Egyptians in Sudan, last week, is not an incident, but a result of many previous incidents in Yemen, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Iraq, Libya, and Jordan. Why, then, should we be so angry against Algeria?

Why should we be so angry against any of those who insulted us? Absolutely, it is our fault and not their mistake. We have lost our honor when we gambled on the sincerity of others and forgot to preserve our dignity within our homeland.

Wherever you go in the Arab world, hurtful words are poured like dirty water over our heads accompanied by the tales of Egyptian labor without any reaction from our embassies, which always take disgusting and shameful stance towards such insult.

Speaking of Egypt as the big sister and the heart of the Arab world is nothing but verbal eloquence, which today’s world cannot understand. The discourse of the weight of Egypt no longer exists. Egyptian weight is measured by its political and economic power. It is measured by neither its huge population nor the years of service and long age of its president.

The powerful and the rich are the real rulers of this era. They can force the whole world to respect them, regardless of the rules of national compassion, the similarity of blood type, and the relationship to the descent Sibawayh.

It does not matter at all; the amendments made by the Egyptian Ministry of Interior on the Egyptian passport, by making it lighter, smaller, and well protected against falsification. The fact that this passport represents prestige and respect in the eyes of others is what really matters. That is if the Egyptian people seeking dignity can find it in their homeland first.

Egyptian communities abroad reflect the situation in their homeland. If the Egyptian citizen is beaten and insulted in his own homeland, what should we expect from strangers, even if those strangers hold the same religious beliefs, the same language, and the same historical background? The Egyptian has gradually turned into a half human, quarter human, and then the remains of a human! And, the remains have no value in the eyes of others.

Egypt is dwelled in by weevils from head to toe and is almost falling down due to its failure in different activities: education, poverty, despotism, and corruption. We no longer have a way-out to save Egypt and Egyptians’ reputation and dignity. Instead, we should burn fire in the forest of weevils, and await the birth of a new tree.

When we are ruled by King «Sun» or Louis IX, who believes that everything in this country is his property, there will be nothing valuable in the country except the king himself. Then, long live the king, and hell takes the rest.

[http://bikyamasr.com/?p=5947]

Ayman Nour: Video Message on Middle Eastern Democracy

Ayman Nour: Video Message on Middle Eastern Democracy from National Endowment for Democracy on Vimeo.

Ayman Nour: Public Prosecutor is not Independent, Mr. Aboul Gheit

Ayman Nour

Ahmed Aboul Gheit, the Egyptian Minister of Foreign Affairs, committed a fallacy while commenting on the Public Prosecutor’s decision to prevent me from traveling to the U.S. last week. He stated that “the prosecutor’s decision has nothing to do with the Egyptian government!” Apparently, Aboul Gheit does not know that the Public Prosecutor of Egypt is affiliated with the Egyptian government, not another country. The Public Prosecutor’s office is an essential part of the executive authority headed by President Mubarak, who assigns the public prosecutor via a presidential decree.

Aboul Gheit’s statements from Sharm El-Sheikh encouraged opening a thorny file to answer the critical questions: Does the Egyptian public prosecutor truly represent the social structure including its sectors, parties and various forces? Is the public prosecutor, merely, a crown of the executive authority with its one political color and one party? Is the public prosecutor biased in fulfilling the direct and indirect demands of the head of the executive authority on the expense of the social structure, which the public prosecutor represents?

First of all, let’s examine the mechanism of selecting the Public Prosecutor in Egypt. Despite his unlimited powers, the public prosecutor is not selected or nominated by the General Assembly of the Cassation Court. In other countries across the world, the public prosecutor is hired by the Cassation Court and is usually given a judicial role. In Egypt, it is quite different. In Egypt, article 119 of Law 142/2006 stipulates the necessity of the approval of the Supreme Council of Judiciary on the selection of the Public Prosecutor, Assistant Public Prosecutor, Attorney General, and other members of the Public Prosecution. However, the President of the state – who is also the head of the executive authority – selects the Public Prosecutor with a presidential decree, with complete disregard to the aforementioned approval of Supreme Council of Judiciary.

This statuesque emphasizes the absolute power of the head of the executive committee to hire whoever he wants in this very critical position. Subsequently, neutrality and independence is absent. There is controversy around some cases in the Mubarak era. The most prominent is hiring Councilor Ragae’i El-Arabi, in 1991, as a Public Prosecutor, on the backdrop of his work in the “politically motivated” State Security Prosecution. He was selected for the vital position despite the long line of worthy older names. Another controversial case was that of Maher Abdul Wahed, who did not serve at the Cassation Court or at least as an Assistant Prosecutor or an Attorney General! In one day, he moved from an administrative job at the executive authority, as Assistant Minister of Justice to be the Public Prosecutor!

The Public Prosecutor is not only hired according to the sole order of the head of the executive authority, but was also fired in the same way until recently! The unusual general assembly of Alexandria Judges Club made a resolution to amend article 67 of Law 46/1972 with the purpose to give the Public Prosecutor immunity against dismissal. Yet, this immunity does not mean independence under the applied policies of carrots and sticks!

In Egypt, the absence of neutrality and independence is not limited to selecting the Public Prosecutor. However, they are extended to the roles of the whole judiciary system, including its administrative and financial independence. The Minister of Justice – who is also a member of the executive authority – interferes in the work of the Public Prosecutor. This proves the lack of independence claimed by Aboul Gheit.

Article 62 of Law 46/1972 entitles the Minister of Justice to delegate the members of the Public Prosecution to do additional tasks in different administrative authorities upon monetary compensations. The administrative authority which receives the deputized public prosecutor can dismiss him at any moment. Again, this carrot and stick policy violates the claimed independence of the Public Prosecutor and other members of the Public Prosecution. One of the most flagrant examples is deputizing prosecution members to State Security Affairs, which approves the verdicts and sentences ordered by Emergency Court, which falls under the direct control of both the President of the State, as the military ruler, and the Prime Minister, as the vice military ruler.

During the past few years, the executive authority delegated the members of the Public Prosecution and the assistants of the Minister of Justice to supervise judicial inspection of various prosecutions, the technical office of the Public Prosecutor, heads of Appeal Court and General Attorney office.

The structural independence of the Public Prosecution is also systematically violated. This can be proved by the huge difference between formal legal allotments and actual payments in the form of annual salaries. Since 2004, the margin of difference reached to 234,649,782.2 LE. This huge difference is abused by the executive authority, which has the absolute power of giving or deducting according to the level of obedience by the Public Prosecution.

Other blatant examples of violations include preventing me from traveling and earning my living, monitoring and spying on my private communications, and most importantly refusing to execute legal verdicts for the El-Ghad Party and myself. This is a severe, shameful, double standard policy in the time of unashamed tyranny!

[http://bikyamasr.com/?p=5772]