| Your one-stop guide to who’s running in the race for Egypt's People Assembly |
| By Rana Kamaly, Passant Rabie, Randa El Tahawy and Hana Zuhair |
| The race is on for seats in Egypt’s lower house of parliament — but are we ready to cast our vote? More importantly, do we even know who or what we’re voting for? Egypt Today brings you a who’s who of the major players and party alliances.Toeing the Party Line For the myriad of newly established parties that lack the membership, resources and name recognition to field full lists of their own, coalitions are the way to go. In the run-up to registration, groups have come together and fallen apart as they try to find an alliance that will maximize their chances of winning the 332 People’s Assembly seats chosen by the party list elections. (For more about the party list system, see “The Choice is Yours ” on page 50.) While specific parties were still jockeying for positions at press time, the major alliances are in place. The Democratic Alliance The Democratic Alliance was initially set up to bridge the gap between Islamist and non-Islamist-founded parties. Founded June 13, the Democratic Alliance was the first coalition established following the revolution and is arguably the most prominent. While it started off with 34 parties, the alliance is now down to 24, leaving the Freedom and Justice Party (FJP), the political arm of the Muslim Brotherhood, as the sole Islamic party. Aside from the FJP, the alliance includes liberal secular parties such as Al-Ghad, as well as left-of-center parties like the Arab Socialist Party and Al-Geel. Due to the differences in ideologies, the Democratic Alliance has seen its fair share of internal rifts, mainly concerning whether the coalition should agree on common constitutional principles prior to the elections. The alliance is fielding 256 candidates. The ‘Islamist Alliance’ Originally part of the Democratic Alliance, two parties founded by Salafis (Al-Asala and Al-Fadila) and the Islamist Al-Jama’a Al-Islamiya’s newly approved Building and Development Party left the alliance to join forces with Al-Nour Party, which was the first officially recognized Salafi-founded party, in an alliance of their own. The coalition had not announced an official name at press time, but local media has taken to calling it the “Islamist Alliance.” The Islamists leaving the Democratic Alliance said they felt that the liberal parties such as Al-Wafd were too dominating and wanted to impose their liberal thought on the rest of the coalition. Some members also alleged the FJP was dominating the party lists, leaving no room for the smaller parties. Pulled together by Al-Nour in mid-October, this alliance hopes to increase the number of Salafi candidates in each governorate to have a bigger influence on the drafting of the constitution. Egypt Bloc The Egypt Bloc was formed on August 15 as a coalition of mostly liberal and leftist political parties as a response to the rise of the Democratic Alliance, which at the time had considerable Islamist influence. The Egypt Bloc is mainly dominated by the Free Egyptians Party and the Egyptian Social Democratic Party along with 14 other parties. During the registration period for the elections, however, 11 parties pulled out of the Egypt Bloc, bringing the number of registered parties down to three. Of the parties that withdrew were the Sufi-founded Tahrir Party, Egypt Freedom Party, Popular Socialist Coalition (PSC), Egyptian Communist Party, Equality and Development Party and the New Independents who withdrew from the bloc. Ex-members told the media there were concerns about the inclusion of former members of the now-defunct National Democratic Party in their elections list. The bloc is fielding 332 candidates. Coalition of Socialist Forces The Coalition of Socialist Forces formed in May 2011 with five member parties: the Social Party of Egypt, the Democratic Labor Party, the Egypt Communist Party, Revolutionary Socialism and the Popular Socialist Coalition (PSC), a major leftist party that formed after the January 25 Revolution. The PSC and the Egypt Communist Party pulled out of the coalition to join the Egypt Bloc in August. In October, news agencies reported that the PSC had withdrawn from the Egypt Bloc to form a leftist bloc, citing the possibility that the PSC’s new group would attract the Revolution Youth Coalition as well as the Egyptian Socialist, the Egyptian Current and the Egypt Freedom parties. Party Favorites Strong, competitive political parties — something Egypt sorely lacks — are a cornerstone of a healthy democracy. At press time, there were at least 55 officially recognized parties vying for public attention and support, with more being added every week. Not all of them are or will be viable contenders as the nation’s political arena matures. Here’s a look at some of the more prominent and active parties. Pre-Revolution Veterans New Wafd Party The New Al-Wafd was founded in 1978 as a resurrection of Saad Zaghloul’s nationalist party. During the Mubarak-era, the Wafd held only eight seats in the 2005 Parliament and wielded no influence in the shadow of the monolithic NDP. The Wafd slogan “Justice over power and nation over government” should resonate with fans of the January 25 Revolution, but the veteran political party seems to be struggling to find its role in the new Egypt. Falling solidly in the liberal camp, Al-Wafd’s social agenda includes maintaining national unity and political freedom, protecting human rights, abolishing emergency law, improving education, health services and access to housing. Economically, the party wants to fight unemployment and protect labor rights, stabilize prices and link salaries to the cost of living. Its foreign policy goals include supporting Arab unity, improving African-Egyptian relations, and bringing peace to the Middle East by solving the Palestinian problem. Al-Wafd was an early member of the Democratic Alliance, but in early October local media reported that it had pulled out and would be fielding party lists comprised solely of its own members. The current party president is Sayyid al-Badawi, with Fouad Badrawi serving as deputy chairman. The party publishes the daily Al-Wafd newspaper. Headquarters: 1 Boulos Hanna St., Dokki, Giza • Tel: +2 (02) 3748-1375, 3748-7272, 3748-8877 • Email: info@alwafdparty.com • Website: alwafdparty.org •Facebook: http://ar-ar.facebook.com/Alwafdparty The Arab Democratic Nasserist Party Sporting the slogan “Freedom, socialism and unity,” the Arab Democratic Nasserist Party is one of the oldest political parties in Egypt. It was founded by Diaa El-Din Dawoud in 1992 after a decade of legal battles with the Political Parties Affairs Committee (PPAC). A secular leftist party, it espouses the ideals of former president Gamal Abdel Nasser and his party the Arab Socialist Union, endorsing nationalism, socialism and other ideologies taken from the 1952 revolution. According to Soad Abdel Hamid, the secretary general for the party’s committee for female candidates, foreign policy goals are to fight terrorism and promote world peace, improve Arab unity and resolve the Palestinian problem. Economically, Nasserists want to increase workers’ rights, improve the public sector and develop the industrial and agricultural sectors to make Egypt more self-reliant. Socially, the party is committed to human rights, improved quality of free education and healthcare. The current president is Sameh Ashour, who assumed leadership after Dawoud died in April 2011. The party’s online publication, Al-Araby, can be found at al-3araby.com. The Nasserist Party is a member of the Democratic Alliance, but at press time had not released its candidate lists. Al-Tagammua Party (The Progressive National Unionist Party) Al-Tagammua was founded in 1976 by Khaled Moheiddein, one of the original Free Officers of the 1952 Revolution. At the time, the union was a coalition of leftist parties such as Nasserists, Marxists and Arab nationalists parties. Al-Tagammua promotes a socialist society through popular participation, a principle that holds that everyone affected by a decision should take part in the decision-making process. Like the Nasserists, Al-Tagammua defends the goals and principles of the 1952 Revolution and seeks to improve the rights and quality of living for workers and the impoverished. With a stated goal of improving the character of the Egyptian citizen, the party is against religious extremism in any form. They also want to free the media from government control. While the party wants to develop and improve national industry, it also raises awareness about environmental problems and issues. As with many opposition parties in the Mubarak era, Al-Tagammua was marginalized in the political arena. Nevertheless, the group managed to win five seats in the 2010 parliamentary elections, widely regarded to be rigged in favor of the NDP. The current president is Mohammed Rifaat al-Saeed. Sayyid ‘Abd al-‘Aal, also serves as secretary-general. Al-Tagammua publishes Al-Ahaly (al-ahaly.com). Al-Tagammua initially was part of the Democratic Alliance but later withdrew to join the Egypt Bloc. At press time it had not released its candidate lists. Official website: eltgmoa.com Al-Ghad (Tomorrow Party) Founded by former New Wafd parliamentarian Ayman Nour, the liberal Al-Ghad (Tomorrow) Party was granted official party status in 2004 after a battle in courts with the PPAC. Al-Ghad was a spin-off from the Wafd Party, from which Nour resigned after a dispute with its then-President Nuaman Gomaa; a number of Wafdists followed Nour to join Al-Ghad. The new party was Nour’s vehicle to challenge former President Hosni Mubarak in the 2005 presidential elections; after a remote second-place finish, Nour was convicted and imprisoned for forging signatures on his nomination papers — a charge his supporters say was trumped up to stifle political opposition. In 2008, a leadership dispute between Nour supporters and those of Moussa Mostafa Moussa led to the firebombing of the headquarters on Talaat Harb Square. A PPAC edict gave Moussa control of Al-Ghad. After the revolution, Nour formed Al-Ghad Al-Jadid (New Tomorrow Party). Al-Ghad’s platform focuses on ensuring a parliamentary system of governance in Egypt. Enhancing religious tolerance is another pressing issue Al-Ghad is concerned with, as well as supporting legal reforms to ensure women’s equality with men. In terms of foreign policy, Al-Ghad wants to improve Egypt’s relations with the Nile Basin countries and resolve the water crisis issue. Protecting national security interests is another main point on the party’s agenda. Al-Ghad encourages economic cooperation with European countries but is a strong opponent of America’s war on Iraq and calls for a firm stand against any American occupation in the region. Al-Ghad is a party member of the National Coalition for Egypt, along with 13 other parties. Website: aymannour.net/ShowGhadInfo.aspx Al-Ghad Al-Jedid (New Tomorrow Party) Now estranged from Al-Ghad, Nour announced in August he was forming Al-Ghad Al-Jedid (The New Tomorrow), a civil liberal party. His application was initially rejected by the PPAC on the basis that it was too similar to Al-Ghad. The Supreme Administrative Court overturned the decision and approved Al-Ghad Al-Jedid as an official political party in early October. The Court of Appeals dashed Nour’s political aspirations, however, when it refused his request for a retrial of the forgery charges. Nour hoped to prove his innocence in a new trial, as his criminal record disqualifies him from running for parliament or president. Al-Gabha Al-Dimuqratia (Democratic Front Party) The Democratic Front Party (DFP) was established in May 2007 by Osama al-Ghazali Harb, a law professor and former NDP member who resigned after failing to effect reform within the party. The DFP stands for establishing a democratic, civil state that honors human rights, rule of law and the peaceful transfer of power. It believes in a presidential system with less concentration of powers, a bicameral parliament (one that has two parliamentary chambers), an independent judicial system, civil liberties and limiting the powers of government. The Democratic Front’s foreign policy consists of gaining independence from the United States, particularly in policies regarding Israel; moving away from the influence of foreign powers and promoting engagement with Nile Basin countries, Arab, African and Islamic countries. The party is fielding 143 candidates for the parliamentary elections and is running as part of the Egypt Bloc. Website: democraticfront.org Post-revolution Hopefuls One thing the January 25 Revolution has done is open the door for those who feel Islam has an active role in governing to be active in politics without the persecution endured under the Mubarak regime. While parties cannot exclude members based on gender or religion and cannot have platforms based on religion, several groups founded on Islamic principles have won recognized party status. Al-Wasat (The Center Party) On February 19, just eight days after Mubarak’s ouster, Al-Wasat (Center) became the first party to be licensed by the Higher Administrative Court. The approval ended a 15-year battle with the Mubarak regime, which had rejected the party’s application four times by the PPAC, headed at the time by Safwat El Sherif, former secretary-general of the NDP and a Mubarak loyalist. In 1996, a group of young members of the Muslim Brotherhood — including Essam Sultan, Salah Abdel Karim and Aboul Ela Madi — left the party to form Al-Wasat, also known as the New Center Party. Madi, who criticized the Muslim Brotherhood for having “narrow political horizons,” described Al-Wasat as a civil party and a strong advocate for equality, which goes back to Islamic laws as a reference. Even without official status, Al-Wasat moved ahead with mobilizing in the social, political and cultural spectrums through the years, according to Al-Wasat’s official website. As its name suggests, Al-Wasat adopts the centrist (wasateya) Islamic school of thought, a more moderate view and interpretation of Shariah. Unlike existing Islamist parties, Al-Wasat is not opposed to a Christian head of state in a country where the majority are Muslims. The party also welcomes members regardless of religion, race, gender or class. Al-Wasat’s utmost priority in terms of foreign policy is improving relationships with Nile Basin countries. The party also promotes Egypt’s role mediating in efforts supporting Palestine, as well as enhancing regional cooperation culturally, politically and economically. The party stands out among Islamist parties for its adoption of liberal views within an Islamic context. It is a member of the National Coalition for Egypt, which also has the Muslim Brotherhood as one of the main members. Website: alwasatparty.com • Facebook Page: facebook.com/alwasatparty •Email: wasatinfo@gmail.com Al-Hurriya wa Al-Adala (Freedom and Justice Party) The Freedom and Justice Party (FJP) was officially established on June 6 as the political arm of the Muslim Brotherhood, one of the most prominent opposition groups. Under the Mubarak regime, the Brotherhood was banned from establishing a political entity. Even though the FJP defines itself as a civil party, their core ideology is based on Islam as the main source of legislation, while still allowing those of a different faith to follow their own religious rules on personal status law and worship. The party is perhaps the most controversial political force in Egypt, sparking fears that the election of a predominantly Islamist parliament may steer the country toward a more conservative society that infringes on personal, women’s and non-Muslim rights. At the same time, the FJP is considered by many to have the best chances of dominating the elections. Even without party status, the Muslim Brotherhood won 20 percent of parliamentary seats in 2005 by fielding independent candidates, making them the largest opposition bloc to the majority NDP. Responding to public concerns, the FJP has tried to paint an image of itself that is less radical and more moderate in thought than other parties formed by Islamists. The FJP supports a civil state, one that is not run by the military or a theocracy. However, the party still wants Islam to be the official religion of the state and have the Supreme Constitutional Court continue to oversee legislation in order to ensure its compatibility with the religion. Additionally, the party promises it will guarantee freedom of expression and women’s rights, adding that it would criminalize favoritism toward men and protect the freedom of belief and worship for Muslims and non-Muslims. When it comes to economic solutions, the FJP supports a market economy with social justice guided by the framework of Islam, and it wishes to eliminate poverty, fraud, corruption and monopolies. The FJP also wants to raise the standards of education and scientific research and promote the Arabic language in the early years of education. The FJP is a core member of the Democratic Alliance. Despite assertions from other and former alliance members, the party has said it is only fielding candidates for approximately 40 percent of the list. Tel: (002) 014-212-7073 •Email: info@hurryh.com •Website: hurryh.com Al-Nour (The Light Party) Prior to the January 25 Revolution, the Salafi movement was relatively underground, with the label referring only to an Islamic school of thought. In the post-Mubarak era, however, the Salafis have emerged as a political force, forming Al-Nour (The Light) Party, officially recognized on June 12. Under the slogan ‘The only reform we desire is the reform we can achieve,’ Al-Nour’s main ideology is that Islam should be the framework for religion and state. Al-Nour supports keeping Article No. 2 of the constitution which states that Islam is the official religion and Islamic law is the source for legislation. The party wants Al-Azhar to be independent from the state and reestablish its position as a leader of Islamic thought in the Arab World. On social issues, Al-Nour recognizes healthcare as a basic human right, supports religious freedom and establishing a separate personal status law for non-Muslims. Al-Nour was originally running as part of the Democratic Alliance, but left in October to form an Islamist alliance under their name, with Al-Assala Party and Al-Gama’a Al-Islamiya Building and Development Party. Website: alnourparty.org Liberal Parties Then there is the sizable contingent who feel post-revolution Egypt needs to be a liberal, civil state, guided not by religion but by principles of equality, citizenship and justice. El Adl (Justice Party) The party’s slogan is “The average person’s dream.” Established in May 2011, El Adl party, which has approximately 12,000 active members, asserts that it is not about a certain political orientation but rather seeks to promote diverse political and social programs that will serve a collective social interest and ensure the demands of the January 25 Revolution are met. The party, which refuses to be categorized in ideological terms (as socialist, liberal, conservative, Islamist), strongly seeks to defy the hierarchal and centralized dogma through which old parties operated. According to Nora Soliman, communications director and one of the founding members, El Adl’s priority is to improve the quality of education in Egypt, a crucial step toward the nation’s progress. El Adl’s 5,700 founding members come from different ideological and political backgrounds. Among them are political activist and former member of the Muslim Brotherhood Youth Mostafa el-Naggar; economist Mona ElBaradei, sister of potential presidential candidate Mohamed ElBaradei; renowned TV host Moez Massoud; and Abdelgelil Mostafa, general coordinator of the Egyptian Movement for Change. Soliman says the party hopes to win 15 to 20 seats in parliament and will work toward “ending parliamentary impunity.” El Adl brings together youth who participated in the January 25 Revolution; “Many of them come out of Tahrir,” emphasizes Soliman. The party depends on volunteer work and most of the members are not paid, since the party does not have a significant budget. “We hope that money won’t determine the outcome of the elections,” says Soliman. El Adl is pushing a platform free of prejudice and political orientations for Egyptians of all religions and ideologies. Thus far, it has been very successful at keeping its name in the public arena. Website: eladl.org. Tel: 16309. The Egyptian Social Democratic Party The Egyptian Social Democratic Party (ESDP) is a left-leaning liberal offspring of the Egyptian Democratic and the Liberal Egyptian Party. The party ideology follows the principle of developing democracy not only in politics but also when it comes to the economy, with a fairer distribution of wealth to achieve social justice. Additionally, the ESDP believes that democracy should be based on equality between all members of society. It promotes social democracy through economic policies that serve the majority of the population, for example, dedicating more of the state budget to health, education, housing and eliminating poverty. The ESDP is one of the founding parties of the Egypt Bloc. Tel: (02) 2577-2515/6 • Email: info@egysdp.com • Website: egysdp.com Free Egyptians Party (Al Masreyeen El Ahrar) The Free Egyptians Party (FEP) has emerged as a major player with 130,000 members — a substantial number for a post-revolution party just founded in April 2011. Officially recognized in June, the FEP was established by business tycoon Naguib Sawiris, former chairman of Orascom Telecom Holding. The FEP is a pro-business and pro-trade party that focuses on economic development based on a free economy while also advocating social equality and justice. The party believes in the rule of law and promotes religious freedom and separation of religious and state affairs. Its goal is to establish a civil state where all citizens have full equality regardless of religion, gender, wealth, race, region, color and culture. The party also supports freedom of speech and champions the role of women in society, emphasizing the need to involve them in all areas and public offices. The party advocates a market economy that achieves prosperity in the country while restructuring the tax system to favor economic development. It also supports a minimum wage, responsible levels of government spending and competitive bidding for government contracts. It also wishes to improve the living standards of 70 percent of Egyptians and reduce the gap between the rich and poor. The FEP respects the peace treaty between Egypt and Israel, and its foreign policy platform supports defending national interests while supporting a fair resolution to the Palestinian-Israel conflict. The party calls for reforming the Arab League to assert its role in the Arab world. It also eyes stronger ties with Turkey and Iran, strengthening economic and trade relations with the United States, Russia and China and increasing cooperation with the Nile Basin countries. Website: almasreyeenalahrrar.org Masr Al-Hurreya (Egypt Freedom Party) Calling itself a social democratic party, the Egypt Freedom Party (EFP) was founded in May 2011 by popular political science professor Amr Hamzawy. The party is a firm partisan of a democratic civil state rather than an Islamic one. Its views are very similar to the Free Egyptians Party except that the EFP places more emphasis on social justice and the welfare of the state. The EFP does not favor nationalization of industry and defends capitalism a and market economy. It is against military trials of civilians, promoting values of pluralism, tolerance and respect for the freedoms and rights of all Egyptian citizens. The party platform calls for citizenship rights for Egyptians without discrimination on the basis of religion, gender, social background or disability and calls for the protection of human rights as identified by international treaties ratified by Egypt. Economically, the EFP supports a market economy with a strong commitment to social justice, calling for an end to monopolies. The party supports minimum wage and government programs for health care, social security, pensions, unemployment benefits and disability insurance. The EFP foreign policy stances advocate an active role for Egypt in the Arab World, Africa and the international community. The party also supports an independent Palestinian state and calls for ties with both Turkey and Iran. At press time, the EFP had withdrawn from the Egypt Bloc, with speculation that it might possibly join The Socialist Popular Alliance Party’s (SPA) leftist bloc. Website: masralhureyya.org Results from all three rounds of the People’s Assembly elections are due to be released simultaneously, with the announcement expected during the second week of January. The first session of the People’s Assembly is scheduled to be held within the last week of January. All information in this guide package was correct at press time. For official updates follow the Higher Election Commission website at elections2011.eg. |
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