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Theme:
2004 Seeds of Reform in the Arab World
Will They Flourish?
Egypt 2004: Rising Opposition
The year 2004 was one of apprehensions for the regime. Among the causes were
the president's health which has shown signs of deterioration, and the continued
stagnation of the economy for the fifth year in a row. On the political front
there was also no improvement: the seriously flawed constitution still remains
in place, the government continues to rule by emergency law as it has don over
the last 23 years, and violation of human rights in the form of detentions,
torture and even deaths at the hands of the security forces continued unabated.
While the legislature, with its tiny opposition, remains weak and totally dominated
by the executive the judiciary has demonstrated a high degree of independence
by its large number of rulings that went against the regime's interests. Among
these was the ruling that restored the original police motto which read "the
police is at the service of the people" instead of the current motto with its
totalitarian overtones which said "the police and the people are at the service
of the nation." The administrative judiciary also overruled the decision of
the Ministry of Social Affairs which, on alleged security grounds, denied a
license to the "Association of Sons of Land for Human Rights." On November 3,
the Egyptian judiciary also cancelled a previous executive decision that suspended
the license of the Egyptian Labor party.
Also on the positive side was the emergence of a vibrant civil society that
resulted in the formation of a number of coalitions and initiatives, formed
and introduced by political parties and civil society organizations, in an attempt
to increase the pressure on the regime to commence implementing tangible political
reforms. Moreover, the outlawed Muslim Brotherhood, after intense self-critical
appraisal of its past philosophy which caused the regime to outlaw it, has introduced
radical changes in its ideology, bringing it more in line with the modern international
norms of democracy and human rights. Such a change is expected to eventually
lead to the Brotherhood’s re-integration in the political system.
In response to the pressures exerted by the opposition within civil society,
the regime adopted a flexible strategy that involved both harshness and leniency:
utilizing the emergency law it harshly suppressed any attempt by the opposition
to bring its message to the streets, even in peaceful demonstrations, while
simultaneously licensing several new political parties---a step which it had
not taken for many years.
"No Real Changes Brought Out by the NCHR but More Open Dialogue."
Most human rights activists criticize Egypt's National Council of Human Rights
for being an artificial governmental creation with only advisory powers, intended
to improve Egypt’s international image. Even the Council’s program officer,
Moataz Al Fegiery admits that independent "NGOs consider the establishment of
this council an attempt to enhance the government externally…The government
can prove its will to reform by taking urgent steps to end the emergency law
or combating the epidemic spread of torture or announcing a timetable for political
reform, but none of this is happening." The Secretary General of the Egyptian
Organization for Human Rights (EOHR), who is also a member of the council's
board, believes that his NGO can only recognize the legitimacy of the Council
when the government abolishes the emergency law, frees prisoners of conscience
and puts a halt to the systemic use of torture in prisons. The government failed
to follow up on its promises to repeal the emergency law three w eeks after
the January 2004 creation of the Council. The memorandum prepared by the Council
urging the suspension of rule by the emergency law is still “under study” by
the government. Critics accuse the council of "failing in its first test to
prove its commitment to solving human rights problems." Hafez Abou Saeda, head
of the EOHR's, explains that "the matter (emergency laws) does not need further
consideration. What is needed is...the end of the state of emergency... the
source of all human rights violations. The commitment to political reform and
the continuation of the state of emergency are contradictory and can in no way
occur together." But despite its failure to bring about tangible accomplishments,
the NCHR has allowed for an open discussion of political, social and economic
reform in Egypt. Its latest memorandum issued on the occasion of the International
Human Rights Day (December 12th ) did not shy away from controversial issues,
or from accusing the government of extensive violations of the civil and political
rights of Egyptian citizens.
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